Safety Dance

We finally got a resolution to the Chauncey Gardner-Johnson saga on Sunday night. He signed a one-year deal with the Lions, ending the exodus of key free agents from Philly.

Shockingly, the deal was only for $8M. CGJ was expecting to make $12M to $13M per year. He was the top safety on the market and one of the top free agents. How in the world did he not get a better deal?

Skinny on why C.J. Gardner-Johnson is no longer in Philly:

– #Eagles made multi-year offer early in FA.
– He was looking for more.
– They moved on, signed Bradberry, extended Slay.
– He/agent overvalued not realizing market/league viewed him as risk.
– Settled for prove-it deal.

— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) March 20, 2023

The free agent market was disappointing for the vast majority of players this year. Teams didn’t have a lot of money to spend. The free agent class wasn’t great and that certainly didn’t help matters.

The Eagles wanted CGJ back…at the right price. They made an offer and it wasn’t what he wanted.

Think about things from his perspective. He was a mid-round pick and waited four years for a chance at free agency. In his contract year, he ties for the NFL lead in INTs. He plays well in the Super Bowl. CGJ was listed as a Top 10 free agent on everyone’s list. He thought he had nailed the process and was due for a big payday. The offers weren’t close to what he wanted or expected. Imagine waiting all year for Christmas and being told about this awesome bike you’re going to get and you run downstairs on December 25th to find a dictionary sitting under the tree. Ugh.

CGJ probably didn’t handle getting mediocre offers very well. He waited for a few days, but finally took the Lions offer on Sunday night. This whole situation didn’t go as he wanted. Now he’s a Lion for a year and will get a second bite at the apple in March of 2024. Teams should have more money to spend at that time. If CGJ has another big season he might just get the deal he wanted. Or he could be in for another disappointing Christmas.

One thing that won’t help him is his agency.

https://twitter.com/UniSportsMgmt/status/1637658249506742273

Not good for a couple of reasons. You don’t air business like this out in public. You go to someone in the media and have the stress the positive side of the deal. There are a ton of guys who do favors for agents.

The other issue is that the logic isn’t good. Teams do all kinds of crazy things when they structure contracts. It helps them deal with the cap. The agency here is making the offer look bad with a poor explanation or a lie. Neither is a good option.

Good luck next year.

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So what do the Eagles have at safety?

Eagles are signing S Justin Evans, per league source, as @MikeGarafolo/@RapSheet reported.

Evans, 27, started 4 games (played 15) with the Saints last after season and missing previous two years. He was a 2017 2nd-rd pick.

This is a depth signing; more moves coming at safety.

— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) March 20, 2023

Okay.

Reed Blankenship will be one of the starting safeties. I think he played well enough last year to deserve a starting spot. After him, things are open. K’Von Wallace played his best football last season, but he’s not shown enough to make you want him as a starter. I think Evans and Wallace will compete for backup roles.

Jimmy Bama has a piece up on Evans that offers more detail on his bizarre NFL history.

I was not a fan of Evans coming out of college. He was a sloppy tackler and that was a big turn-off for me. I haven’t studied his NFL tape. I’ll do that after the draft to get a better feel for him. Evans has solid size and athleticism. He’s been an effective player in the NFL. The biggest issue has been injuries. He played in 15 games last year so that is an encouraging sign that maybe the issues are behind him.

As for the “more moves” comment, we’ll have to wait and see. Could be a draft pick or a free agent or even a trade. Remember that CGJ didn’t become an Eagle until August 30 last year. The Eagles have time left to figure things out. I’m sure they have a plan. That doesn’t mean it will work out as they want, of course. They are keeping their options open for now.

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Bijan Robinson appears to be visiting the Philadelphia Eagles tomorrow https://t.co/ODSwT5TfKD

— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) March 21, 2023

What? Bijan at 10!!!

No, not likely at all. First, you do this to take a look at the prospect and see what you think. You also want the teams around you to think you like Robinson. If one of them wants him, trade up with the Eagles to make sure you get him.

There is also the possibility of the Eagles trading back from 10 and taking Robinson in the middle of the first round. I think that is unlikely, but it is possible. Taking him at 10 would shock the whole world. That’s just not going to happen.

I think mostly this is to make other teams think the Eagles are interested, but it doesn’t hurt to take a closer look and make sure he’s not worth breaking tradition for.

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https://twitter.com/RobDeMelloKHON/status/1637608783152312320

Good interview. Mariota has a great line. “The NFL is a beautiful game, but it is an ugly business.”

100 percent true. He and Jalen have already talked and Mariota seems to be embracing the mentor/backup role.

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