The Philadelphia Eagles face a huge offseason after imploding towards the end of the 2023 NFL season. Expect general manager Howie Roseman to be quite busy in the coming weeks with 19 Eagles slated to hit free agency in March, per Spotrac.
While some of Philadelphia's pending free agents should be shown the door, the Eagles must do what they can to keep others locked down. Yes, the 2023 campaign was far from perfect, but some of the upcoming FAs are more than capable of helping the franchise return to next year's Super Bowl.
Here are five Eagles free agents who must be re-signed this offseason.
1. D'Andre Swift, RB
The Eagles had big shoes to fill after running back Miles Sanders departed for the Carolina Panthers last offseason. The former Penn State rusher was a key reason why Philly had one of the better ground games in 2022, turning 259 carries into 1,269 rushing yards with 11 touchdowns.
To replace Sanders, the Eagles acquired RB D'Andre Swift and a 2023 seventh-rounder in exchange for two picks during the NFL Draft. Although he didn't perfectly replicate his predecessor's output, Swift still had a great year, racking up a career-high 1,049 rushing yards with five TDs on 229 carries. He also caught 39 passes for another 214 yards with one score.
Even though he was a streaky player at times, Swift still racked up at least 70 rushing yards in seven of his 17 appearances between the regular season and playoffs.
The Eagles now head into free agency with Kenneth Gainwell and Lew Nichols III as their only RBs under contract. In other words, figuring out a way to re-sign Swift is a must. Spotrac lists Philadelphia as having over $20.8 million in cap space, so bringing him back on another cheap one-year deal isn't unfathomable.
2. Brandon Graham, DE
Philadelphia has one of the most stacked defensive lines in the NFL, but the unit could take a hit this offseason. Most signs point to long-time Eagle and six-time Pro Bowl defender Fletcher Cox leaning towards retiring this offseason.
If that's the case, the Eagles can't afford to lose Brandon Graham in free agency.
Graham has been a Philly fan favorite ever since he was drafted 13th overall in 2010. He's suited up in 195 games for the Eagles across 14 seasons, earning Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro honors while also ranking fourth in team history with 73.0 sacks.
While he wasn't as dominant as in past years, Graham was still solid in 2023 for a player who turned 35 last April. He recorded 11 solo tackles and 30 pressures (23 hurries, 5 sacks, 2 QB hits) across 17 games without a start while his 80.2 pass rush grade ranked fourth-best on the team, per Pro Football Focus.
If the Eagles lose Cox to retirement and then Graham to free agency, the defensive line could be in horrible shape next season. Considering everything that the former Michigan Wolverine has done for the city and franchise, bringing him back — even if just for one more season — is the right thing to do.
3. Jack Stoll, TE
Jack Stoll is one of those players who is important to the Eagles' success even if he doesn't light up the box score.
His receiving stats aren't all that impressive. Over the last three seasons (50 games), Stoll has only been targeted 27 times for 20 receptions and 183 yards without a touchdown. However, it is worth noting that seven of his 20 catches were for a first down, highlighting his reliability.
Where Stoll truly excels is in the run game as a blocker. Of the tight ends who played at least 200 run-block snaps this season, the 26-year-old ranks fifth on PFF with a grade of 65.6. For those curious, he also ranked 24th in both 2022 (57.4) and 2023 (58.2), showing just how much of a leap he made in his third year.
Considering how important the ground game is to the Eagles' success, losing Stoll this season could hurt a lot. Other teams would kill to have a blocker like him on the roster, meaning it's up to Roseman to pay the ex-Nebraska TE what he deserves this offseason.
4. Olamide Zaccheaus, WR
In a season where the Eagles' passing game was average (225.5 passing yards per game, 16th), one could argue that Olamide Zaccheaus was somewhat underutilized.
After four decent years with the Atlanta Falcons, Zaccheaus joined the Eagles on a one-year deal last offseason. Unfortunately, the 26-year-old veteran didn't see a ton of opportunities to excel despite not missing a game.
Zaccheaus was only targeted 20 times while playing 471 offensive snaps (41%) throughout the 2023 season. Having said that, he made the most of his limited opportunities, hauling in 10 balls for 164 yards and a pair of touchdowns. It might be a small sample size, but his 16.4 yards per reception were better than both A.J. Brown (13.7) and DeVonta Smith (13.2).
That isn't to see that Zaccheaus would outperform Brown and Smith with more opportunities (he wouldn't), but he could've been used more efficiently. Considering how the Eagles don't have any legitimate everyday wideouts under contract outside of the aforementioned duo, bringing back Zaccheaus should be a no-brainer.
5. Shaq Leonard, LB
The Eagles' linebacker room was quite a mess this season. Nicholas Morrow, Zach Cunningham, and Nakobe Dean all missed time throughout the year, resulting in Philadelphia bringing in veteran LB Shaq Leonard following his release from the Indianapolis Colts in November.
Even though he wasn't as dominant as in past years, Eagles fans were thrilled that Leonard arrived as a reinforcement. After all, the former 2018 Defensive Rookie of the Year is a three-time Pro-Bowler and four-time All-Pro defender.
Leonard's time fluctuated upon joining the Eagles, playing anywhere between 17% and 86% of defensive snaps. He wound up tallying 11 solo tackles with a sack across five games and looked much better than he did with the Colts (outside of tackling), proven by the PFF grades below.
Team | Defense | Run Defense | Tackling | Pass Rush | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Eagles | 66.6 | 69.2 | 51.8 | 78.2 | 57.2 |
Colts | 60.3 | 64.3 | 69.4 | 49.2 | 56.4 |
With Cunningham and Morrow (as well as Shaun Bradley) hitting free agency, the Eagles can't afford to lose Leonard. I don't think re-signing him will cost that much money given that 1) he's no longer as elite as he once was and 2) has a good connection with head coach Nick Sirianni from their time in Indianapolis together.
After looking solid across the five games that he did suit up in, I'm curious to see how Leonard would look during a full season with the Eagles.
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