June has been a month of promotions for Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith.
After A.J. Brown was traded to the Patriots on June 1, Smith became the top receiver on the Eagles’ depth chart. Less than two weeks later, on June 13, Smith was promoted from fiancé to husband.
Smith married his childhood sweetheart Mya Danielle at the Four Seasons Resort Orlando in Walt Disney World Resort.
The all-black, black-tie affair reportedly hosted 135 guests, including Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and his wife Bryonna Rivera Burrows. Hurts was notably absent from Brown’s wedding in May, which caused a stir on social media.
I’m glad that we have proof that Jalen Hurts was at DeVonta Smith’s wedding and that we won’t have to deal with any nonsense over that. 😅 https://t.co/GVvQFWkin0
People Magazine, the first to report on the wedding, said that despite his recent trade, Brown was in attendance for Smith’s wedding, along with other former Eagles teammates like Nakobe Dean, Jahan Dotson, Isaiah Rodgers, and Parris Campbell. Smith was among the guests at Brown’s wedding last month.
Smith’s college teammates from Alabama were also in attendance, including Jaylen Waddle, Jerry Jeudy, Jordan Battle, Pat Surtain II, and Mack Wilson Sr.
From the looks of this photo Jalen Hurts was not a groomsmen in Devonta Smiths wedding.
The wedding weekend started by honoring the couple’s Louisiana roots with a “Dukes & Boots Welcome Rodeo” on June 12, that included a crawfish boil. Another nod to their home state included reception music from New Orleans DJ Mannie Fresh.
Danielle and Smith met in middle school and have two daughters together, 2-year-old Kyse and 1-year-old Kali. The couple got engaged on New Year’s Eve in 2024, just over a month before Smith and the Eagles won the Super Bowl.
Now with four rings in his collection — two College Football Playoff championship rings, a Super Bowl ring, and a wedding ring — Smith will be looking to add a fifth, a second Super Bowl title, this time as the Eagles’ top receiver.
It’s rare that, in the same week in June, you see three separate stories that pull back the curtain on the most secretive team in town, the Philadelphia Eagles.
That’s what’s happened over the past few days. They sent NFL junkies into paroxysms of delight. They turned radio waves all atwitter with fresh meat during a typical time of famine.
The most significant and best done of the three pieces involved a look at Julian Lurie, who will one day ascend to the throne occupied by his father Jeffrey, who has owned the Eagles since 1993. Jeff McLane of The Inquirer gave us our first look at the sensitive 31-year-old who already lends his voice to the team’s biggest decisions, just as a crown prince should do.
Mike Silver was the most prolific and capable NFL profile writer when Sports Illustrated remained the industry standard 30 years ago, and he has not lost his fastball at the Athletic. Silver joined combustible coach Nick Sirianni at the Eagles’ annual playground construction project and walked away with superb detail regarding Sirianni‘s unlikely interview and subsequent hiring in 2021, all done from the beach, in flip-flops with a white board. But Silver also got an endorsement of Sirianni from superstar running back Saquon Barkley that sparked debate about how valuable and competent Sirianni is compared with his peers.
Finally, our old friend (and sometimes colleague) Joe Santoliquito, a local freelancer who specializes in in-depth exposés and, apparently, in infuriating Eagles executives. He dropped a brief piece on the Bleeding Green Nation website about the most polarizing figure in the city. The story indicates that starting quarterback Jalen Hurts is upset that the Eagles seem willing to replace him if he struggles to produce better numbers for a third straight season.
McLane‘s trademark thoroughness left little room for controversy or discussion despite the delicate nature of his subject, but that’s to be expected, since McLane is the best-sourced reporter in town.
But Barkley’s contention to Silver that Sirianni is “legendary,“ and Santoliquito‘s revelation that Hurts is unhappy … well, those struck a nerve.
Legendary?
Only four coaches who have coached at least 60 games, including playoffs, have a better winning percentage than Sirianni. All of them — Guy Chamberlin, Vince Lombardi, John Madden, and George Allen — are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“He doesn’t get enough credit at all, in my opinion. I don’t get why he doesn’t. Like, what he’s doing, in real time, is legendary.”
Is it, though?
A head coach’s primary job is to win games, to reach the playoffs, and to battle for a title. Sirianni has not missed the playoffs in any of his five seasons. He’s reached the Super Bowl twice. He’s won it once.
Sirianni did all that winning while developing Hurts, a quarterback of limited skills but unlimited ambition — a mirror, in some ways, of Sirianni himself. But that’s a different topic for a different day. He won while handling malcontent receiver A.J. Brown. He won while handling distractions that Sirianni himself created, mainly jeering fans of both his opponents and his own team.
Which brings us to the crux of the matter. Fairly, or not, the narrative surrounding Sirianni is that the team often wins in spite of its coach.
He has been heavily involved in the offense three times: 2021, 2023, and 2025. Each time, it foundered. The other two seasons, the Eagles went to the Super Bowl and the offensive coordinators were hired away as head coaches.
An elite defense and a legendary season from Barkley sent the Eagles to their second Super Bowl. Sirianni has no involvement with the defense, which was run by first-year coordinator Vic Fangio, and Sirianni is considered a pass-first coach.
The Eagles have made the playoffs in each of Nick Sirianni’s five seasons as coach.
When Sirianni was hired in 2021, he was required to retain Jeff Stoutland, the assistant coach who ran the best overall offensive line in the NFL from 2013-2025. Stoutland, like Fangio, operated with almost complete autonomy, and he was the run-game coordinator to boot.
Sirianni also took over a talent-heavy team from Doug Pederson, who was fired mainly because Carson Wentz didn’t want him around any more. Sirianni inherited a wealth of mature locker-room leaders with incredible pedigrees: elite tackles Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata as well as center Jason Kelce; first-round receiver DeVonta Smith; defensive tackle Fletcher Cox; and defensive end Brandon Graham.
Finally, general manager Howie Roseman has consistently replenished the talent pool — Jalen Carter, Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Jordan Davis, Zach Baun, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and Brown — to the degree that it’s fair to wonder if any coach could have failed to win, and win big.
So now you have a portrait of a coach with a sterling record but without a tangible identity. Nobody questions the character of Vince Lombardi, John Madden, or George Allen, and they all coached for at least a decade.
It’s hard to call anybody “legendary” five years into a career. Very good? Sure. Excellent? Maybe.
Legendary?
Let’s let that one breathe.
After all, Sirianni has always had stability at quarterback. Is that about to change?
The 2026 season is shaping up to be a big one for Jalen Hurts.
Hurt feelings?
Like McLane, Santoliquito specializes in long-play reporting that coalesces into bombshell stories that cause a sensation. Such was the case in 2019, when his piece just after the disappointing 2018 season included Eagles sources who called Wentz “selfish,” “uncompromising,” and “egotistical,” with crippling insecurities. After the story ran, Santoliquito received death threats, had property vandalized, and was castigated by both the Eagles organization and by Wentz’s camp.
I ripped him, too, for not giving the Eagles a fairer chance to respond. He admitted his error to me.
Within weeks, however, Santoliquito’s reporting was largely confirmed … by Wentz himself.
Unlike the landmark Wentz story, the recent article about Hurts was an opinion piece. The headline read, “Philadelphia better watch itself, or it will lose another superstar,” and Santoliquito wrote, “The fear here is that Philadelphia may be pushing another superstar out of the door.”
On that: No athlete since Phillies slugger Dick Allen was “pushed out” of Philadelphia by either the fans, the team, or the media. Not future Hall of Fame third baseman Scott Rolen, who was traded after contract negotiations collapsed; not ace Curt Schilling or stud Charles Barkley, who embraced trades after the Phillies and Sixers proved unable to build around them; and not even, as Santoliquito suggested, Wilt Chamberlain, who sought the brighter lights and cooler culture of Los Angeles as the Sixers underwent seismic changes after the 1967-68 season.
In this instance, Santoliquito, who has long been close to people in Hurts’ camp, relays signals from those contacts that Hurts is displeased that:
The Eagles, who wrote the book on saving money with early contract extensions, have not offered Hurts an extension; and,
The Eagles did not support him well enough when an ESPN story on April 1, citing sources on the team, painted Hurts as stubborn, uncoachable, and reluctant. The fallout from the story created a narrative that these traits have the Eagles considering moving on from Hurts if he struggles with the more complex scheme of new coordinator Sean Mannion.
Two things.
First: So what? So what if 2026 is a prove-it year for Hurts? If he plays well, he gets paid. Trust me, he won’t turn down cash. If he doesn’t play well he might get traded.
Second: The Eagles were irate that, as in 2019, Santoliquito did not come to them for comment in a timely manner (or at all, in this instance). Broadly, that’s a fair point. However, it’s a strange complaint in this instance, since it’s irrelevant whether Eagles players, executives, and coaches actually sufficiently supported Hurts. They did have a few words of support to offer, but it was not overwhelming.
What’s relevant is that Hurts, or his camp, feels that they didn’t support him enough.
In Santoliquito’s opinion, that might cost the Eagles the services of Hurts at some point in the future.
Eight days out from the draft, and the biggest question of the offseason has yet to be answered.
What is the Eagles’ plan for the post-A.J. Brown Era?
This isn’t a question that you can shrug off. It would be just as pressing if Brown were guaranteed to return in 2026. He and Dallas Goedert almost certainly won’t be with the team in 2027 or beyond. Even if they are, they are highly unlikely to be anywhere close to the players they were when the Eagles’ offense was at its best. The chapters are short in the NFL. The pages must be turned.
The story of this year’s draft better be the pass catchers. Even if the Eagles somehow think their passing game can tread water with Dontayvion Wicks and Marquise Brown as their second and third options out wide, and with a 31-year-old and clearly diminished Goedert at tight end, those aren’t long-term solutions. The Eagles desperately need to find at least one in this year’s draft after going four years without selecting a pass catcher higher than 152nd.
You don’t find a lot of franchise-level offensive tackles in the second half of the first round.
Not since 2017 has a future All Pro tackle been drafted between picks No. 17 and 49. Even multiyear Pro Bowlers are few and far between. The Cowboys nabbed left tackle Tyler Smith at No. 24 in 2022. Before that, Garrett Boles was the biggest success story, going to the Broncos at No. 20 in 2017. Boles was the first offensive lineman off the board that year, thanks in part to a confluence of circumstances. Going before him were three quarterbacks, two unicorn running backs, and the first three members of a loaded cornerback class (Marshon Lattimore, Marlon Humphrey, Adoree’ Jackson).
The Eagle know first hand how hard it is to find a fixture in the second half of the first round. The last two offensive linemen they drafted there were Andre Dillard and Danny Watkins. There simply isn’t a lot of logic in the idea that the Eagles will be prioritizing an eventual Lane Johnson replacement at No. 23.
“If you’re forcing something, you’re not really filling the need anyway,” general manager Howie Roseman said on Tuesday.
The Texans went 4-12 in 2020. And while Deshaun Watson put up the best numbers of his career — 4,823 yards, 33 touchdowns, seven interceptions, a 70.2 completions percentage — the game script had something to do with them.
Jihaad Campbell was the Eagles’ pick at No. 31 overall during the 2025 draft.
The Eagles have spent a lot of draft capital on the defensive line over the last several seasons.
Again, that’s not to say that they’d turn down an opportunity to draft an edge rusher they have graded as a potential elite talent who can start immediately. Chances are, anybody who fits that profile will be long gone by the time the Eagles are on the clock. They used the No. 31 pick on Jihaad Campbell last season. They drafted Nolan Smith at No. 30 in 2023. Of the last 11 picks that the Eagles have made inside the Top 115 overall, 10 have come on the defensive side of the football.
Jalen Hurts is a quarterback who needs an elite weapon that a defense can’t shade coverage to on every play.
DeVonta Smith counts as an elite weapon. But people need to pump the brakes on the idea that he is Jaxon Smith-Njigba in waiting. Several different media outlets have mentioned the construct in their reporting on the Brown situation. The theory goes something like this: with Brown gone, Smith will be better than he ever has been, similar to how Smith-Njiba blew up in 2025 after the Seahawks traded away D.K. Metcalf.
The problem with that reasoning is that Metcalf’s departure was the least significant of three major variable changes in the Seahawks offense last season. The first two were a new quarterback and a new offensive coordinator.
In fact, you might consider it four variable changes if you include Geno Smith’s departure in addition to Sam Darnold’s arrival. Jakobi Meyers’ decreased production year-over-year after Smith’s arrival at quarterback looks suspiciously similar to Smith-Njigba’s increased production in the wake of Smith’s departure. Meyers saw a 23% drop in his targets and a 36% drop in his receiving yardage on a per-game basis in his seven weeks with Smith compared to his 2024 output. And Meyers didn’t have to play in the shadow of Metcalf, either.
The real yin to Smith-Njigba’s yang was Justin Jefferson. In 2024, he caught 103 passes for 1,533 yards with Darnold as starter. This, despite the presence of Jordan Addison, whose numbers were practically identical to Metcalf’s. Addison was still there last year. Darnold wasn’t. Jefferson caught 84 passes for 1,048 yards.
A tidier summation:
Jefferson without Darnold vs. ’24: 13 less targets, 19 less receptions, 485 less yards.
Smith-Njigba with Darnold vs. ’24: 26 more targets, 19 more receptions, 663 more yards
Fairly symmetrical, no?
Smith-Njigba’s breakout happened because he had a quarterback who could make all of the throws, including those in traffic in the middle of the field. Hurts hasn’t shown to be that quarterback.
Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq should be at the top of the Eagles draft board. But don’t bet on him falling close to their range.
I’m still a bit puzzled that the majority of mock drafts have Sadiq falling into the second half of the first round. He is a physical specimen who tested off the charts at the combine. The only guy in his class over the last 20 years was future All-Pro Vernon Davis. The college production wasn’t eye-popping, but it also wasn’t much different from Colston Loveland, who went 10th overall to the Bears last season. All it takes is one team higher than the Eagles to fall in love with him. I’ll be surprised if he falls beyond No. 15.
Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq is the top projected tight end in the NFL draft.
That being said, if the Eagles somehow find a way to get themselves in position to draft Sadiq, they would have a tidy answer to their question of where to go after Brown (and Goedert). Sadiq is the one player in this draft outside the projected Top 5 who has the potential to immediately fix a lot of the Eagles’ offensive question marks, run-blocking included.
Even if Sadiq isn’t an option, the Eagles have good reason to hope they can nab a player who can help them in both the short and long-term.
Neither Texas A&M’s K.C. Concepcion nor Alabama’s Germie Bernard profile as the sort of outlier that Brown is/was. But both have skill sets and polish that would pair nicely with DeVonta Smith. Both are players who could exploit whatever attention defenses pay to Smith. Concepcion has a lot of Stefon Diggs to his profile, while Bernard looks like a potential Deebo Samuel with the frame and rushing ability to go with his hands. I’ve seen a few mock drafts that have Bernard on the board when the Eagles pick at No. 54. That would be a stroke of luck on the level of Cooper DeJean.
The moral of the story is simple. The Eagles can’t afford to force a pick at any position. But they also aren’t in a situation where they can afford to go purely for the best player available. They need to factor in their future salary cap and talent distribution. You can’t have too many All-Pro cornerbacks, but you can have too many who you need to pay.
Further, you can have too few players at positions that have shown themselves to be just as important to the Eagles’ success over the last several seasons.
Roseman shouldn’t get trapped into picking the best pass-catcher available. But he does need to hope a viable one is there.
The 2026 NFL free agency period begins on Monday, when “legal tampering” will give way to a number of reported deals across the league. Free agency will officially begin on Wednesday, and the Eagles will be players — though how aggressive general manager Howie Roseman and Co. will be remains to be seen. With limited available cap space and the specter of a possible A.J. Brown trade adding to the uncertainty, how the Eagles handle this period elicits a wide range of possibilities.
The Inquirer’s Eagles reporting team of Jeff McLane, Olivia Reiner, and Jeff Neiburg got together for a roundtable ahead of next week’s festivities.
What’s one practical free agent move you could see the Eagles making next week, given their cap space and personnel situation?
McLane: Dallas Goedert is slated to become an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career, but even if he signs with another team, the Eagles won’t have a clean break from their longtime tight end. They still have an approximate $20 million dead money charge from a void year added to Goedert’s contract. That’s a lot of money to eat for a productive player they may want to keep. The Eagles, more than any other team, have been comfortable kicking cash into future years. But Roseman can’t be reckless, and if trading Brown becomes a reality, the general manager would have around $45 million more in dead money on the books.
Could franchise staple Dallas Goedert run it back in Philly after his career touchdown year?
Brown’s return, though, could warrant Goedert coming back for a ninth season. He put up solid numbers, catching 60 passes for 591 yards and a team-high 11 touchdowns, despite the Eagles’ pass offense inconsistencies.
Was Goedert as dynamic as in years past after the catch? No. But he wasn’t given as many chances to run in space. The new Shanahan-McVay parts of the offense could accentuate Goedert’s post-catch abilities. The bigger question is whether he can run block like he once did. The Eagles weren’t happy with his output there. You have to wonder if taking a $4.25 million pay cut last season affected his effort, or occasional lack thereof. Goedert will have suitors on the open market. Is he worth as much as the Ravens’ Mark Andrews, who signed a three-year, $39 million deal in December? If so, it seems unlikely the Eagles re-sign Goedert, unless he wants to end his career in Philly and takes less.
The draft is believed to be deep at the position and there are other avenues to finding a No. 1 tight end — perhaps a trade? — but there’s an argument to be made for keeping Goedert.
Reiner: Re-signing Braden Mann. This seems like the football equivalent of a layup (a check down, perhaps). Mann, 28, is coming off the single best season by an Eagles punter in franchise history. He averaged 49.9 gross yards per punt, making his Eagles career average a franchise-leading 49.5. His net yards per punt (subtracting return yardage) finished within the top 10 in the NFL (43.1; No. 9 in the NFL).
Mann often helped flip the field during a season in which he was forced to punt a lot (72 punts, tied for No. 4). He deserves an extension, which wouldn’t break the bank. The Eagles are just a few years removed from their previous punter woes and they shouldn’t go back down that path by starting over with new contenders for the gig.
Is Christian Kirk (13) a free agent wideout possibility for the Birds?
Neiburg: Signing Christian Kirk to a relatively cheap contract given his talent. This is with or without Brown on the roster. Kirk has been limited by injuries over the last few seasons and ran routes with a crowded receiving corps in Houston. But he had a stretch of really good football from 2021 through 2023, tallying 2,877 yards on 218 catches, 16 of them for touchdowns. Kirk’s alignment favors the slot, but he has played plenty on the outside. The Eagles need to infuse the unit with more young talent, but Kirk, 29, could help bridge the gap, and if Brown is traded he would give the Eagles an experienced running mate for DeVonta Smith.
What’s a bolder, but perhaps less likely move you could see the Eagles making?
McLane: Trade for Maxx Crosby. If the Eagles decide they can’t afford Jaelan Phillips, they could be in the market for a top-end edge rusher. Crosby qualifies as a difference maker and would be an upgrade over Phillips or the returning Jalyx Hunt and Nolan Smith. It would cost a lot, of course. The Raiders are said to want two first-rounders and a player (Smith?) in return. But elite edge rushers are rarely available and Crosby’s existing contract isn’t a backbreaker. He has four remaining years at around $29 million per season, but only next season’s $30 million base salary is guaranteed. (editor’s note: Crosby was traded to the Ravens Friday night).
Crosby has made it clear he wants out of Las Vegas. He has expressed his fondness for the Eagles and Philadelphia as a sports town. Perhaps he would be willing to adjust his deal to expedite a trade. Roseman may be cautious for various reasons. Crosby turns only 29 in August, but he’s logged more snaps than almost any defensive end over the last five seasons. He’s also coming off back-to-back season-ending injuries that required surgery to repair his ankle and a torn meniscus in his left knee. That’s why I think the Raiders’ reported asking price is unrealistic.
There will be competition for Crosby, but the Eagles aren’t likely to repeat the mistake of going into another season with just Hunt and Smith on the edge. Phillips was a good trade deadline acquisition, but a tepid pass rush was an under-the-radar reason why the Eagles defense struggled in the second half of the playoff loss to the 49ers.
Jaelan Phillips is a top-5 NFL free agent who could end up with a huge deal in a location other than Philadelphia.
Reiner: Re-signing Phillips. He might be the Eagles’ top priority among their own group of pending free agents, but he isn’t a slam dunk to return. At 26 years old, he slotted in nicely to Vic Fangio’s defense in a short period of time at a premium position. He made an impact on the pass rush despite posting unassuming sack numbers (two in eight games). He stayed healthy for all 17 games in 2025, with the Eagles and the Miami Dolphins, one year removed from a partially torn ACL (and two years removed from a torn Achilles).
But the Eagles ought to be realistic about a potential extension. Phillips was a net-positive addition last season, but he was not a game-wrecker. The Eagles likely won’t be inclined to pay him as such, given their lack of cap space in 2026 and their need to extend key defensive players both this offseason and in years to come. The Eagles will likely set a walkaway number for Phillips and move on if another team outbids them.
Neiburg: Trading Brown … and trading for his replacement. Trading Brown is pretty bold in itself, but if it happens, the Eagles have a big hole to fill. There’s no doubt DeVonta Smith can handle all that comes with being the focal point of the passing game, but the roster is bereft of receiver depth, and if the Eagles aren’t thrilled with the free agent market — like, say, Kirk or someone like Romeo Doubs are more expensive than they prefer — they could go the trade route and trade from their roster or draft picks to acquire a receiver. Who could be available? Here are a couple of names to target via trade: Jacksonville’s Brian Thomas Jr. and Buffalo’s Keon Coleman.
Does Sean Mannion scheme require a tailoring of the team’s offensive personnel?
How much do you think the team’s offensive staff changes will inform their free agent and draft approaches?
McLane: Aside from the quarterback position, the offensive line is the most likely to be affected by the expected scheme changes. New offensive coordinator Sean Mannion is bringing with him a Shanahan-McVay system that will alter blocking in the run game. Will there be a complete whitewash? No. But the Eagles are likely to shift from less mid-zone to more wide-zone blocking. Those terms might not indicate how different the techniques are, but the former emphasizes more reactionary blocking and winning at the point of attack, while the latter features O-linemen firing off the ball and blocking at an angle.
Asked how the changes may affect his evaluations, Roseman conceded he may be looking for more agile O-linemen. The Eagles already have athletic freaks up front, although injury-riddled left guard Landon Dickerson may not qualify as such.
I don’t think Roseman will do much at the position in free agency. He does have decisions on reserves Fred Johnson and Brett Toth. I don’t think the scheme change rules out either for a return. But they don’t have an advocate in former offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland anymore. His replacement, Chris Kuper, won’t likely have as big a voice as Stoutland in personnel. But the Eagles are almost guaranteed to expend a high draft pick on an O-lineman with right tackle Lane Johnson closer to retirement than ever.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah recently projected seven first-round O-linemen in the 2026 draft and then a drop-off in terms of talent. Maybe one of the top guys slips into the second round and there’s a chance to pick up value, but I’d be surprised if Roseman didn’t expend the Eagles’ No. 23 overall pick — or more in a move up — to secure Lane Johnson’s expected successor.
Neiburg: It should inform the approach plenty. Especially when it comes to how they address the tight end position. Roseman knows he has long appreciated the receiving component of the tight end, but the new scheme will require a lot better blocking than the Eagles got last year and even in prior seasons from the players behind Goedert. As Jeff mentions, it’s possible Goedert returns in 2026 in free agency, but the Eagles would need to slot players behind him who block a lot better than Grant Calcaterra. One name I could see fitting in well is Jake Tonges, who doesn’t offer a ton in the pass game but was an elite blocker for the 49ers.
A.J. Brown’s situation could have an impact on the team’s free agency approach.
Reiner: Given the expected shift in run-game philosophy under Mannion, the tight end and offensive line additions could reflect those changes. I think the prospective wide receiver additions will have layered influences, especially as it relates to Brown’s future. Naturally, the Eagles’ need at receiver becomes much more pressing if (big if) they decide to move the star receiver before the start of the season.
Otherwise, aside from adding a WR3, the Eagles don’t need to overhaul their receiving corps to fit the scheme. If we’re looking to the Packers offense for clues about what the Eagles might look like in 2026, we can expect to see more under-center play action, pre-snap motion, and misdirection as a means of scheming open space in the passing game. That space helps receivers generate yards after the catch and explosive plays downfield.
The prosperity of the scheme seems to be rooted more in its design, not so much in the raw talent of its players, a departure from Eagles offenses past. That isn’t to say the Eagles aren’t looking for talented receivers, but more so that the prototype of a talented receiver isn’t likely to change dramatically.
Besides A.J. Brown, who else could the Eagles trade?
McLane: This may seem like a reach, but I could envision a world in which Nolan Smith is being floated on the trade market, assuming either Phillips, Crosby or some edge rusher equivalent is on the roster by the draft. Smith hasn’t been a bust — far from it. A shoulder injury limited him during his rookie season, but he blossomed in the second half of his sophomore year. Tricep woes sent him to injured reserve last season and he finished with just three sacks and 11 quarterback hits. He’s good at setting the edge and has a high motor, but he’s undersized and struggles to win consistently as a pass rusher.
Hunt has a higher ceiling, is one year younger and was drafted two rounds after Smith. It’s going to be tough for Roseman to pay both, especially with defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter slated for possible extensions this offseason.
Is Nolan Smith Jr.’s long-term future with the team set in stone?
The Eagles could pick up the fifth-year option (around $15 million) on Smith’s first-round rookie contract after the draft. That isn’t an exorbitant amount for a premium position player. He has potential he hasn’t tapped into. But I’d be worried about his durability. And there will be the occasional casualty after strong drafts on the defensive side and upcoming deals for All-Pro cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean.
Reiner: Tanner McKee. Ahead of the combine, Roseman expressed just how much he values the backup quarterback position and the importance of having a competent player in the role. McKee certainly fits the bill despite his limited action in his lone year as the full-time backup. But the soon-to-be-26-year-old quarterback is going into the final year of his rookie deal. If Roseman doesn’t see a future for him in Philadelphia beyond next season, would he be inclined to move McKee at the peak of his value to the team?
This offseason is a seller’s market at quarterback. The draft lacks high-end talent beyond Fernando Mendoza, who doesn’t have the cachet of other recent No. 1 overall picks. The free-agent market is led by Kyler Murray and Malik Willis. If McKee has a market among teams that want him to compete for the starting gig, the Eagles ought to entertain offers. But Roseman would need to get a strong return for McKee, all the while feeling comfortable about a replacement plan in 2026 for Jalen Hurts’ backup. Perhaps they liked what they saw from Sam Howell in practice enough to warrant a low-cost extension and make him the full-time No. 2.
Neiburg: Sydney Brown. The Eagles have a few candidates in their secondary who are due for a change of scenery, and Brown might be at the top of the list. The Eagles need help at safety, but they won’t be lining up with Drew Mukuba and Brown at the back of the secondary to start the 2026 season. Brown, who has one year left on his rookie deal, will be a backup again, and will see some work on special teams. But if you can convince a team to part with a Day 3 pick to acquire a player who isn’t part of your long-term plans, you have to do it.
The new league year is right around the corner, and it’s almost time for the 2026 Eagles roster to start coming into focus.
But first, the annual NFL Scouting Combine.
It’s the next thing on the offseason calendar, and while the focus for much of the week will be on the athletes going through performance testing, when it comes to the Eagles, it should be a big week for news related to the team.
Reporters typically get to talk to Nick Sirianni and Howie Roseman around the combine, and there are certainly plenty of questions to ask this year.
Here’s a look at five of the most pressing Eagles topics the coach and general manager may be addressing soon:
Why did the Eagles choose Sean Mannion, and why did they assemble this staff around him?
It’s been three weeks since the Eagles filled their vacancy at offensive coordinator by hiring Green Bay Packers quarterbacks coach Sean Mannion, a 33-year-old former quarterback with only two years of coaching experience. But we’ve yet to hear from Sirianni or Roseman, besides an initial statement released by the team, on why the Eagles hired Mannion, what they liked about him, and what hiring him means for the future of the scheme.
In the weeks since, the rest of the offensive coaching staff has been filled out. The Eagles hired one of their other coordinator candidates, former Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard, as pass game coordinator. They hired Packers wide receivers coach Ryan Mahaffey to be the tight ends coach and run game coordinator. Longtime offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland left the team (more on that later), and he was replaced by Minnesota Vikings offensive line coach Chris Kuper.
The Eagles retained wide receivers coach Aaron Moorehead and running backs coach Jemal Singleton, sources told The Inquirer, and, according to CBS Sports, plan to shift Parks Frazier, last season’s pass game coordinator, to quarterbacks coach.
Sean Mannion will be calling plays for the first time under intense scrutiny in Philadelphia.
The new offensive coaching staff, under a first-year play-caller, is an amalgamation of coaches with different backgrounds. What will it mean for the scheme going forward?
Sirianni said after removing Kevin Patullo that the offense needed to “evolve.” He’ll soon have the chance to explain why and how this group can help it do that.
What happened with Jeff Stoutland?
The longest-tenured coach in the building, who has been widely regarded as the best offensive line coach in the sport, is no longer coaching with the Eagles.
Why?
The Eagles wanted Stoutland back as the offensive line coach, league sources said, but Stoutland, who also held the title of run game coordinator, wasn’t going to be as involved in the running game, and the Eagles are shifting schemes. Change is in the air. But Stoutland’s role in the running game decreased as last season went on, The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane reported recently on the unCovering the Birds podcast.
How did it get to this, and how much of an impact will his departure have on the offensive line moving forward?
Don’t expect Roseman to say anything that strays too far from his normal line when it comes to A.J. Brown and players like him.
Here’s what Roseman said at the end-of-year news conference on Jan. 15 when asked if he was open to trading Brown or if trading him was a nonstarter: “It is hard to find great players in the NFL, and A.J.’s a great player. I think from my perspective, that’s what we’re going out and looking for when we go out here in free agency and in the draft is trying to find great players who love football, and he’s that guy. I think that would be my answer.”
Still, Roseman likely will be asked about the star receiver’s future in Philadelphia in the coming days. It’s for good reason. Brown, of course, hasn’t been shy about his frustrations with the direction of the offense. But during Super Bowl week, Brown appeared on Micah Parsons’ podcast and spoke about his excitement for the future and the new offensive coaching staff. “Sometimes change is not a bad thing,” he said. He also called Philadelphia “home.”
Does wide receiver A.J. Brown have enough love for Philadelphia to remain an Eagle?
While he didn’t sound like someone who was about to ask for a trade, it’s still early in the offseason.
Brown’s future with the team impacts how the Eagles approach the draft and free agency, so a decision on whether the Eagles see him in their immediate plans probably is already made. It’s complicated, however, because of the salary cap implications. The cost to trade Brown before June 1 would be $48.939 million, according to Over the Cap. If the Eagles traded him after that, they would incur a dead cap charge of $22.09 million. Much more palatable, but still a lot of dead money.
It begs the question, too: Could the Eagles ever get good value in a trade for Brown?
Roseman probably won’t be showing his cards in the coming days, but it’s a topic he’ll have to address.
How much has the future outlook of the offensive line changed, and how will it impact the plans?
The offensive line took a big step back in 2025 thanks to a slew of injuries. Lane Johnson missed half the season. Landon Dickerson was never fully healthy and may never be again. Cam Jurgens played through back pain.
At the time of Stoutland’s departure, it wasn’t even a sure thing that Johnson and Dickerson would be back for the 2026 season. A unit that basically was plug-and-play has turned into a big question mark for the Eagles. How much longer will Johnson and Dickerson play? (Editor’s note: Johnson announced his return for 2026 on Thursday.)
Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson’s health and future were in doubt before he announced his return on Thursday.
Jurgens, meanwhile, shared a video this week on social media of him in Colombia undergoing stem cell treatments. Jurgens, via his agent, declined to comment further on what led him to go that route or how he is feeling. The center had back surgery after the Super Bowl last year and did not play to his 2024 level this past season.
This impacts how the Eagles approach the draft and free agency. They’re due to get an eventual replacement for Johnson in the door, but they now need to think about the future of the interior.
Who stays, who goes, and who could get extended or restructured?
It soon will be time for the Eagles to go shopping on the free agency market, but there are some players on the current roster in line to have their contracts extended or possibly restructured.
Let’s start with Jordan Davis, who broke out in 2025 and earned himself a new contract. The Eagles picked up Davis’ fifth-year option last year, but signing him to a new deal is almost too obvious because it would free up much-needed cap space for 2026.
Will defensive tackle Jordan Davis be first in line for a contract extension after a breakout season?
There’s also Jalen Hurts, whose cap number jumps from nearly $22 million in 2025 to nearly $32 million in 2026. It will be more than $42 million in 2027, more than $47 million in 2028, and a whopping $97.5 million in 2029. But Hurts has no guaranteed money beyond this season. A restructure or extension could be on the table sooner than later.
What about the free agents? Jaelan Phillips, for example, is one of the best edge rushers on the market, and the Eagles need some of those. Safety Reed Blankenship is slated to hit the market, and the Eagles need a safety.
Roseman may not tip his hand, but he’ll certainly be asked about all of it with free agency just a few weeks away.
With the release of ESPN’s new 30 for 30 about the Philly Special on Friday night, Doug Pederson is back on the minds of Eagles fans. And that’s not the only reason why. The former Eagles coach was also spotted this week answering fan questions in an unusual way: over the public address system of an airplane.
Pederson talked about seeing Jalen Hurts grow after they drafted him in 2020, despite already having Carson Wentz as their starter. He also offered some advice for new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion.
"You know, we drafted Jalen Hurts for a reason."
They asked Doug Pederson about the new OC hire and he spent 90 seconds waxing poetic about his QB instead. pic.twitter.com/lpgrMOkUOP
“We drafted Jalen Hurts for a reason,” Pederson said over the microphone. “And we saw something in Jalen Hurts that we felt like he was going to be the starter at some point, he was going to be in the franchise at some point. Sooner, obviously, than later. In his defense, I think this is going to be his sixth offensive coordinator in his career.”
A former quarterback and coordinator himself, Pederson said he understands how difficult that can be, and noted that the Eagles have managed to be very successful despite all the turnover.
“That’s hard,” Pederson said. “But yet you look at the success the Eagles have had over the course of, really, since he’s started. They’ve won a Super Bowl, they’ve been in another Super Bowl. They’ve been to many playoff games. They’ve won a ton of football games. And, every year they’ve had a different offensive coordinator.”
Former offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, who was replaced this offseason by Mannion, faced heavy criticism from fans during the 2025 season due to the team’s struggles on offense.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts will have another new offensive coordinator next year.
So Pederson’s advice to the Birds’ new OC? Work with Hurts.
“I don’t know a ton about [Mannion]. I just know he got to come in and he’s got to work with Jalen. He’s got to figure out what Jalen does best,” Pederson said. “Utilize his strengths, utilize the talent on offense get the run game going to where it was a year ago when they won the Super Bowl. If he does that then they’re going to have a lot of success moving forward.”
According to the fan on the flight who posted the viral video on Reddit, Pederson was there as part of a FanDuel Super Bowl event and took part in an interview before answering fan questions — like who he would rather have on his team, Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes. Pederson also gave his prediction for Sunday’s Super Bowl, where he picked the Seattle Seahawks over the New England Patriots.
Pederson has not coached since the 2024 season after he was fired following a three-year stint with the Jaguars. But he’s open to returning — and according to the Redditor on the flight, Pederson said he has some interest in currently open offensive coordinator positions, but that he is also enjoying spending time with his wife.
SAN FRANCISCO — Jalen Hurts said the flag football played in the Pro Bowl Games doesn’t have the negative connotation that it may have once had.
If anything, Hurts believes the NFL’s all-star exhibition is as competitive as ever.
“It is like being a kid again but it also turns competitive with everything’s that at stake,” the Eagles quarterback said after throwing three touchdown passes in the NFC’s 66-52 win over the AFC on Tuesday night. “Even with the (2028) Olympics, there’s a lot of guys that have a great passion to go out there and represent.”
There was plenty of representation from both sides in the high-scoring event, which was played indoors this year at the Moscone Center — a convention center near downtown San Francisco — before a crowd of 3,100.
It was the first time the Pro Bowl was held during Super Bowl week, and the host city was well represented, with 49ers greats Jerry Rice and Steve Young — who have a combined 20 Pro Bowl selections — serving as head coaches. The Super Bowl is Sunday at the 49ers’ home, Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.
Dak Prescott of the Cowboys wore a bucket hat and passed for four touchdowns, while the Lions’ Jared Goff threw two TD passes.
For the AFC, the Bengals’ Joe Burrow threw for a touchdown and was credited with a passing and receiving score on the same play when he and Dolphins running back De’Von Achane pulled off a trick play in the first half.
It was a good day all around for Burrow and his Bengals teammates.
Cincinnati wide receiver Tee Higgins caught touchdown pass from Burrow’s backup, Joe Flacco, while receiver Ja’Marr Chase had a highlight on defense — a one-handed interception of Goff that he returned 50 yards for a TD.
Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders started for the AFC and threw for 152 yards and two touchdowns. Sanders was a late addition to the event as the replacement for Drake Maye, who’s preparing to lead the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
Broncos tackle Garrett Bolles got in on the fun, catching one of Sanders’ TD throws.
The Eagles won’t play a regular-season football game for at least another 225 days, but a handful of Eagles players are slated to compete in a version of football on Tuesday at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
The Pro Bowl Games are back, taking place in the Super Bowl host area, San Francisco, in the lead-up to the title game on Sunday. Four Eagles players are expected to participate in the festivities, which will have a different format than the Pro Bowls hosted in Orlando over the last couple of years.
Here is a breakdown of the event and the contingent of Eagles players participating:
Linebacker Zack Baun (53) and cornerback Cooper DeJean (33) will both be on the scene in San Francisco.
The participants
Originally, five Eagles players were named to the Pro Bowl, including two first-timers in Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell. Zack Baun, Jalen Carter, and Cam Jurgens, who are each two-time Pro Bowlers, rounded out the rest of the group. Carter was the lone starter at his position.
Players were selected by a consensus vote by fans, players, and coaches. Each group’s vote carried equal weight in determining the players selected to the Pro Bowl.
The Eagles’ five original-ballot Pro Bowlers were tied for second in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, and Los Angeles Chargers. The Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, and Seattle Seahawks had a league-high six players.
However, Mitchell opted out of the event. Nahshon Wright, the 27-year-old Chicago Bears cornerback, was named Mitchell’s replacement on Jan. 26. Additionally, Carter was not listed on the final roster on Saturday, indicating he had opted out, too.
Jalen Hurts was added to the roster on Jan. 30 as a replacement for Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, bringing the Eagles’ delegation back up to four members. Hurts was listed as a fifth alternate when the original rosters were announced in December. The 27-year-old quarterback previously earned Pro Bowl honors in 2022 and 2023.
Michael Vick (left) and DeSean Jackson were teammates for five seasons with the Eagles, are now competitors in the MEAC, and will serve as opposing offensive coordinators in the Pro Bowl.
The format
The Pro Bowl site is downsizing this year from Camping World Stadium in Orlando to the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The event itself is downsizing, too.
In recent years, the Pro Bowl included a flag football game as well as various skills competitions. This time around, the event will consist solely of a flag football game between the NFC and AFC teams. The league, via a press release, framed the event as an opportunity to “preview the elite athleticism and competition of the sport” ahead of its debut at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Both teams have their own coaching staffs led by San Francisco 49ers greats. Jerry Rice, the Hall of Fame wide receiver, and Steve Young, the Hall of Fame quarterback, will serve as head coaches for the NFC and AFC teams, respectively.
Eagles fans ought to recognize a couple of the Pro Bowl assistant coaches. Former Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson and quarterback Michael Vick are the offensive coordinators for the NFC and AFC teams, respectively. Jackson, who serves as head coach at Delaware State, and Vick, the head coach of Norfolk State, last coached against each other in October at the Linc.
Torrey Smith, a receiver on the 2017 Eagles team that defeated the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl, is the AFC’s “flag adviser,” according to the NFL. Jason Kelce, a seven-time Pro Bowler with the Eagles, will be on the call for the flag football game for a second straight year on ESPN.
Jalen Hurts at the Pro Bowl Skills Showdown in Orlando on Feb. 1, 2024. Hurts was added to a long list of Eagles Pro Bowlers this season.
The history
This is the first time that Eagles players will have the opportunity to compete in the Pro Bowl since 2024. In 2025, Pro Bowlers Baun, Carter, Jurgens, Landon Dickerson, Lane Johnson, and Saquon Barkley were busy preparing for the Super Bowl.
According to Stathead, the Eagles have had a total of 313 Pro Bowl selections since 1938, back when it was known as the NFL All-Star Game. Since 2022, the Eagles have had at least four original-ballot Pro Bowlers per season, including 2023 when they tied a franchise-best eight selections (last accomplished in 1960).
This year’s Pro Bowl will be the first without Johnson listed on the roster since 2021. In his 13 seasons with the Eagles, he has earned six Pro Bowl nods, tied for fifth in franchise history.
San Francisco will host the Pro Bowl for the first time in the event’s history. However, this is not the first time that the Pro Bowl will be part of the festivities leading up to the Super Bowl. In 2010, the Pro Bowl moved to the site of the Super Bowl, Sun Life Stadium in Miami, the Sunday before the big game. The 2015 Pro Bowl also took place at the same venue as the Super Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., earlier that week.
The Pro Bowl was famously held in Hawaii for 35 years, but it departed indefinitely in 2017. The league has made various attempts to tweak the event, as it has been criticized for its lack of quality play and entertainment value. According to Sports Media Watch, last year’s Pro Bowl averaged 4.7 million viewers, which made it the least-watched iteration over the last three years since the introduction of the flag football format.
After missing out on the original NFC roster, Jalen Hurts was named to the Pro Bowl as an alternate on Friday, replacing Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.
Hurts, the 27-year-old Eagles quarterback, has earned Pro Bowl honors twice before, in 2022 and 2023. He had been listed as a fifth alternate when the original Pro Bowl rosters were released in December.
The Eagles now have five players expected to compete in the revamped, flag football-centric event on Feb. 3 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, including Zack Baun, Jalen Carter, Cam Jurgens, and Cooper DeJean. Quinyon Mitchell was named to the original roster, but the Chicago Bears’ Nashon Wright was announced as his replacement on Monday.
Hurts is coming off an inconsistent season, just one year removed from earning Super Bowl MVP honors. His 64.8% completion percentage ranked 16th in the NFL among 33 qualified passers, while his +.01 expected points added per drop back ranked 12th, according to Next Gen Stats. Expected points added per drop back measures the average amount of expected points added on drop backs by a quarterback.
Still, Hurts threw a career-high 25 touchdowns while tossing just six interceptions. His 1.3% interception rate tied a single-season career low achieved in 2022. Hurts also became the third Eagles quarterback in franchise history to register a perfect passer rating in a game, when he went 19-for-23 for 326 yards and three passing touchdowns in the Week 7 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
In his fifth season as the full-time starter, Hurts also rushed less frequently. According to Next Gen Stats, he averaged a career-low 1.7 designed rush attempts per game in 2025 after notching at least 2.3 per game in each of the last five seasons.
Hurts is set to join the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott and the Detroit Lions’ Jared Goff to form the trio of quarterbacks on the NFC roster.
A new docuseries will provide an in-depth look at the history of Black quarterbacks in the NFL. With a history that spans John Walton, Randall Cunningham and Jalen Hurts, the Eagles will likely play a starring role.
The first episode of Peacock’s four-part docuseries, Field Generals: History of the Black Quarterback, will premiere on Feb. 5. The remaining episodes of the series, which was executive produced by NBC Sports’ Maria Taylor, will be released on the following Thursdays and close on Feb. 26.
Field Generals: History of the Black Quarterback will document the stories of the league’s pioneering signal callers. It will focus on how race, politics, and culture shaped their playing careers from the AFL-NFL merger to the turn of the 21st century.
The show will feature interviews with Cunningham, Donovan McNabb, Michael Vick, and Rodney Peete, who all played quarterback for the Eagles. Cunningham, the first Black quarterback to be a starter for the Eagles, enjoyed a 10-year career after joining the team as a rookie in 1985. Peete, McNabb, Vick, and Hurts followed Cunningham for the Eagles.
The series also will feature interviews with non-Eagles, including James Harris, the first Black quarterback to start a playoff game; Warren Moon, the first Black quarterback to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame; and Doug Williams, the first Black quarterback to both start and win a Super Bowl.
“This is truly a brotherhood,” Vick said in the trailer for Field Generals.
Prime Video released a three-part series in 2024 titled Evolution of the Black Quarterback, the first episode of which featured a conversation between Vick and Hurts.
“I do know that the city of Philadelphia is receptive to any quarterback, Black or white, as long as you’re winning,” Vick told The Inquirer in 2024. “Fortunately, we had some great ones, myself, Donovan, Rodney, Randall … I feel like the evolution of the Black quarterback started in Philadelphia.”
Hurts is not listed as an interview subject in Peacock’s announcement of Field Generals. The only active player included is Lamar Jackson, one of two Black quarterbacks to win the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award twice.
The other is Patrick Mahomes, who started Super Bowl LIX opposite Hurts. The Eagles’ 40-22 win over the Chiefs was the first time in NFL history two Black quarterbacks started in the Super Bowl.
A record-setting 16 Black quarterbacks started their team’s opening game in 2025. For the first time in the history of the NFL, exactly half its teams had Black starting quarterbacks.
The previous record was set in 2024, when Hurts and Mahomes were among 15 Black quarterbacks to start under center in Week 1.
“As we celebrate the rich history and all the great ones that come before me, you realize how monumental it is for the furtherance of the game and the position,” Hurts said after a screening of Evolution of the Black Quarterback in 2024. “I know this [year] is the record for Black quarterbacks starting in the NFL, and that’s something to be noted because it’s come a long way.”
