The 2024 NFL offseason is underway for Philadelphia, and after a 32-9 wild card loss to Tampa Bay, the Eagles’ focus will now shift to reshaping the roster to fit two new coordinators on both sides of the ball.
The 2024 cap is expected to exceed $240 million, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, and where things currently stand, Philadelphia is expected to have roughly $20,284,984 in cap space.
The Birds are set to have 20 pending free agents, and with another likely retool schedule on defense, the organization could conjure up a scheme for more flexibility.
According to Over the Cap’s potential transaction chart, the Eagles can easily create $35.4 million in cap space by making these five moves.
Extend LB Haason Reddick
Cap savings: $11,832,000
Reddick finished the year with 11.0 sacks and 38 tackles in 17 regular-season games, and he recorded double-digit sacks for the fourth consecutive season, leading his team in that category and tying for 15th in the NFL.
Had Nolan Smith showed that he was ready to be an elite pass rusher, then the idea would be to cut Reddick, saving the Eagles $11 million after dead money allotment.
Outside of the sacks, though, Reddick’s numbers were poor by his standards.
His 38 tackles were the second-lowest mark of his career, and he didn’t force or recovered a fumble after forcing five and recovering three last season. His snap share (74 percent) remained identical, indicating the drop-off wasn’t due to a lack of opportunities, but mismanagement from coaches.
Cut Kevin Byard
Cap savings: $14,070,588
Dead money: $346,500
Byard was the 23rd highest graded safety in the NFL according to PFF, and finished the year with career highs in tackles (122) and solo tackles (80) in 16 regular-season games.
Byard began the year with the Titans before being traded to the Eagles.
Despite playing only 10 games for Philadelphia, Byard finished fourth on the team in tackles, recording 75 after the move.
Philadelphia shouldn’t cut Byard outright and could negotiate a restructure or reworked deal, but the $14 million cap hit is to high for a player that made no game changing plays during his stint. His one saving grace, is the Eagles may move on from Avonte Maddox, and if they move on from Byard, that’ll leave just two safeties on the looming 90 man roster.
Post June 1 Cut Avonte Maddox
Cap saving: $7,117,647
dead money: $2,559,266
In June, the NFL suspended Isiah Rodgers for violating the league’s gambling policy, and the Colts immediately waived him. Still, he’s Philadelphia’s 2024 security blanket at the slot cornerback position, and that’s why the Eagles can make this move.
According to Pro Football Focus, Rodgers was the 5th best overall cornerback and the NFL’s 6th best cornerback in 2022.
Extend LT Jordan Mailata
Cap savings: $2,796,000
Prior to the start of the 2021 NFL season, Mailata signed a 4 year, $64,000,000 contract with the Eagles, including a $10,000,000 signing bonus, $40,850,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $16,000,000.
Mailata finished this season as the third highest-graded offensive tackle in the NFL.
The road-grader allowed just three sacks and 45 total pressures in 677 pass-protection snaps
Zoltan Bundy of PFF named Mailata the team’s most improved player in 2023, and Mailata was the only NFL offensive tackle this season to earn at least an 83.0 grade in both run blocking and pass blocking.
He’s the real deal and just getting started at 26 years old.
Extend DE Josh Sweat
Cap savings: $2,540,000
Depending on who you ask, Sweat is either a building block for the future, or a player Philadelphia could potentially move on from for salary cap purposes.
Sweat finished his sixth NFL season with 6.5 sacks (second-best on the Eagles) and 43 tackles in 17 regular-season games.
Sweat saw his role increase even more in the Eagles’ defensive end rotation this season, as his 71 percent snap share increased over is 56 percent mark from last season.
Philadelphia could have questions about extending Sweat after his sack totals dropped from the 11.0 he logged in 2022.
Sweat had 5.5 sacks through nine games but didn’t manage another until Week 18.
