The Philadelphia Eagles' offseason has already been among the more interesting in the NFL, as they've signed players like AJ Dillon while letting other veterans go in free agency.
General manager Howie Roseman always seems to be active, leaving no stone unturned in an effort to keep the Eagles among the elite teams in the league. As we saw with Mekhi Becton last year, sometimes that means encouraging players to change positions entirely for the betterment of the team.
They've seemingly done that once again. In announcing the re-signing of 24-year-old Ben VanSumeren, the Eagles listed him as a fullback now instead of his previous position of linebacker.
The Eagles announced the signing of Ben VanSumeren.
— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) March 12, 2025
Also notable: They officially labeled him as a fullback — not a linebacker.
Eagles Change Ben VanSumeren's Position to Fullback From Linebacker
As pointed out by Philadelphia insider Zach Berman, VanSumeren was officially labeled as a fullback by the Eagles.
That represents a change from his first two years in the NFL, though he began his college career as a fullback. His versatility was on full display during his high school career as VanSumeren set the Michigan state record with 1,259 receiving yards while rushing for over 1,000 yards and throwing four TDs.
He's primarily been a special teams player in Philadelphia, appearing in 20 games total during his two seasons, notching 16 total tackles in the process. Based on his special teams acumen, head coach Nick Sirianni could find unique ways to deploy VanSumeren in offensive packages, perhaps using him as either a rusher, receiver, or blocker.
Regardless, it's clear that the Eagles value VanSumeren and his willingness to do whatever is asked of him. He's a true football player, happy to fill any role if it means he gets to play. This seemingly increases his chances to sticking with the organization long-term and hopefully suggests his snap count will rise this fall.
How Philadelphia plans to use him remains to be seen, though VanSumeren will be an interesting player to watch throughout the summer.