Philadelphia Eagles continue to contradict their “get younger” mantra

Auburn offensive lineman Prince Tega Wanogho (76) high fives fans after the game at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. Auburn defeated Texas A&M 28-20.Jc Auburntamu 68
Auburn offensive lineman Prince Tega Wanogho (76) high fives fans after the game at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. Auburn defeated Texas A&M 28-20.Jc Auburntamu 68 /
facebooktwitterreddit

Following the Philadelphia Eagles first-round playoff exit at the hands of Seattle last season, general manager Howie Roseman expressed a desire to “get younger” and “get faster” moving forward. They definitely got faster (drafted Jalen Reagor, John Hightower, and Quez Watkins), but they (unsurprisingly) failed to commit to a youth moment the way they had initially promised.

The Philadelphia Eagles have lost yet another rookie for zero return.

The latest instance of the Eagles – as an organization – failing to properly value their young talent came on Saturday when it was announced that 2020 sixth-round pick Prince Tega Wanogho would be signing with the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad. An offensive tackle out of Auburn, Tega Wanogho spent the entirety of the 2020 season on the Eagles practice squad, failing to see a single rep of actual game time.

Tega Wanogho was viewed by most as a “steal” for the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth-round. He was a promising talent coming out of college whose draft stock only fell due to some injury concerns. Considering the Eagles massive issues at offensive line this past season, many felt he was a guy who deserved a bit of game action. Guys like Brett Toth and Matt Pryor were used at tackle instead – both struggled greatly.

More from Section 215

It’s normally standard for teams to sign their practice squad players to “futures contracts”, which are fairly low-risk in nature. The assumption is that the Eagles wanted Tega Wanogho back for the 2021 season (they did just draft him after all), but he chose to sign elsewhere due to a lack of opportunity. Brandon Lee Gowton of BleedingGreenNation.com had the following to say on Tega Wanogho jumping ship to KC:

"The Eagles likely wanted PTW back, for the record. Signing him to a futures contract would’ve been a no-risk deal. It’s standard practice (nearly formality, even) for teams to sign their end-of-year practice squad players to such contracts.The guess here is that PTW didn’t want to re-up with the Eagles. He probably figured he didn’t have much of an opportunity in Philly moving forward behind the likes of Jordan Mailata, Andre Dillard, Lane Johnson, Jack Driscoll, Brett Toth, and Matt Pryor on the depth chart."

There’s little to no guarantee that Tega Wanogho would’ve been a contributor on the 2021 roster (in fact I’d say the odds are low), but this now marks the second time the Eagles have lost a 2020 draft pick. Casey Toohill was infamously stolen away by Washington earlier in the season, as the Eagles tried to make way for a returning 32 year old(!) Vinny Curry.

Outside of the Eagles physically losing rookies for nothing in return, the team also put little effort into developing young players this season. Travis Fulgham had his playing time axed for Alshon Jeffery, Quez Watkins and John Hightower were healthy scratches on multiple occasions, and third and fourth round picks Davion Taylor and K’Von Wallace barely played.

Next. Philadelphia Eagles 7-round mock draft: New head coach…new QB?. dark

For an organization that has emphasized “getting younger” the last year plus, they’re doing a really bad job at it.