Philadelphia Eagles: 3 free agents who could replace Marquise Goodwin
By David Esser
The Philadelphia Eagles could be in the market for a new veteran WR.
Following the news of wide receiver Marquise Goodwin recently choosing to opt out of the 2020 NFL season, the Philadelphia Eagles are now one less pass catcher deep. While they did draft a handful of rookie wideouts in this year’s draft, it’s unlikely they’ll be instant contributors in their debut season.
One of the biggest reasons Goodwin was initially traded for was to act as “DeSean Jackson insurance”, in case the veteran speedster goes down again. The Eagles really need a deep threat in their offense, and having a plethora of depth at the position is something they severely missed in 2019.
With all that in mind, the idea of the Eagles adding a last second free agent to replace Goodwin has started to float around, and I think it’s quite reasonable. Competition is always good, and anyone added at this point in time would be on a relatively small contract. Here are three currently available players Howie Roseman could turn to:
Taylor Gabriel would be an upgrade over Goodwin.
An idea initially proposed by NJ.com’s Mike Kaye, adding Taylor Gabriel would be the best (and likely the most expensive) way to replace Goodwin’s role on the team.
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After brief stints with both Cleveland and Atlanta, Gabriel really developed into the best version of himself with the Chicago Bears. During the team’s 12-4 season in 2018, Gabriel recorded a career-high 67 receptions and 688 yards. He put up back to back 100-yard games in weeks four and five, and finished the year third on the Bears in terms of receiving yards.
Gabriel saw a sizable step back in terms of production in 2019, but a majority of that can be attributed to poor QB play and some concussion issues. He played in just nine total games, recording 353 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Standing at 5-7 and 168lbs, Gabriel is almost a carbon copy of the type of player Goodwin is (Goodwin is 5-9, 180lbs). Gabriel primarily uses his speed and elusiveness to get open, and an average deep threat at worse. At just 29 years old, Gabriel would be a pretty low risk option this late in free agency, and in all reality is probably better than Goodwin.
However, with other teams starting to experience opt-outs as well (Packers just lost Devin Funchess), the competition for someone like Gabriel could pick up soon. The Eagles don’t have the future cap space to enter a bidding war for a fourth string wideout.