Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Big Man Gets A Big Deal

Posted March 7th, 2026 | 2 Comments »

The Eagles finally got going with an offseason move. It wasn’t a trade for Maxx Crosby. He’s now a Raven. AJ Brown hasn’t gone anywhere. He’s still an Eagle. The Eagles did lock up one of their own.

Good move. You always want to pay your own players when possible. Davis earned this deal with a strong showing in 2025. His career got off to a slow start. He was never a bad player, but just didn’t show signs of being the difference-maker the Eagles hoped for when they took him 13th overall back in 2022.

One of the problems with Davis is that he wasn’t in good enough shape. Vic Fangio took over the defense in 2024 and Davis started to improve his conditioning. He played better as that season went along and then finally had his breakout in 2025. Davis finished with 72 total tackles, 4.5 sacks and 8 TFLs. You may also remember him running back a blocked FG for a TD.

Davis finally had the stamina to take advantage of his ability. He was a stout run defender, but also made his share of hustle plays.

I think Fran makes a great point there. Davis hasn’t reached his ceiling. The best is yet to come. Or at least it should be. Let’s hope he celebrates his new deal with some grilled chicken, kale and ice water.

As for the economics of the deal, the numbers are a bit skewed. You combine this extension and his fifth-year option and Davis is under contract for the next four years for just over $90M. That still buys a lot of Funyuns to be sure.

The move should help to open up some additional cap space for this season. The Eagles need that to give them enough room to make a few deals. They won’t be overly active, but Howie is going to get some stuff done.

The most pressing piece of business is still figuring out AJ’s future. The Bills and Ravens are out of the running. That would seem to leave the Pats and Chargers as the likely suitors. New England is reportedly not willing to give up a first round pick. If the offer isn’t good enough, AJ isn’t going anywhere. That would make plenty of Eagles fans happy. The key is whether it would make AJ happy. We’ll have to wait and see about that.

The next item for Howie is trying to keep Jaelan Phillips. We haven’t heard anything on that front. As much as Phillips likely wants to stay in Philly, his agent wants him to at least test the market. Khalil Mack just signed a 1-year deal to stay with the Chargers. He got $18M guaranteed.

The edge rusher market is very much up in the air right now. Mack and Crosby are gone. Trey Hendrickson will have several teams coming after him. The Vikings have let it be known that Jonathan Greenard is available via trade. Odafe Oweh and Phillips are two of the key targets. You just don’t know if people will throw huge money at them. Each player has some question marks. Let’s hope Howie can get something worked out with Phillips.

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Jalen Carter’s name was mentioned as part of some trade discussions. This may or may not mean anything. First, 31 other teams can call and ask about a player. That doesn’t mean he’s being shopped. The other thing to remember is that the Eagles get talked about a lot because of Howie’s reputation as a deal-maker. Not every report that comes out is true. Agents and other teams leak info to help create a market at times.

It is possible that the Eagles talked to other teams about Carter. If someone made a huge offer, Howie might be tempted. You’d rather not give up a special DT, but economics are a factor. The Eagles will have to extend Carter sometime soon. And he won’t be cheap.

Always consider your options.

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I’m surprised the Eagles haven’t cut Michael Carter yet. They can create cap room by letting him go. Normally the Eagles cut those guys quickly so they can hit the market and find a new job. The fact they are hanging onto him makes me wonder if they are trying to get him to re-work his deal and stick around.

Carter offers depth at nickel and safety.

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Things will get going Monday at noon so there is still lots of work to be done on Sunday. We don’t know if the Eagles will get anything finished, but you can bet Howie and his staff won’t be sitting around watching college basketball.

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Finally, for those who want an update on my personal situation…here you go.

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In the Air

Posted March 5th, 2026 | 2 Comments »

Can you feel it? Free agency is just days away and things are starting to happen. Only rumors with the Eagles so far, but the action is picking up around the league. I’m starting to get genuinely excited about the offseason.

The big domino was the Bills trading for a WR. They got DJ Moore from the Bears for a second round pick. This move affects the Eagles in a couple of ways. First, it takes away a suitor. Buffalo might have had interest in AJ Brown. Not anymore. It does put pressure on other AFC teams. They see the Bills taking action. The Pats just cut Stefon Diggs, who was their best receiver. They desperately need a #1 receiver.

Alec Pierce is a good receiver and will be available as a free agent. Mike Evans will hit the market as well. Teams do have options, just not many. And certainly none as appealing as AJ Brown.

We still don’t know if AJ will be dealt, but we do have a better sense of his value. If Moore is worth a second round pick, Brown is worth a first and more.

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Bears fans thought adding the pick in the Moore trade made them frontrunners to get Maxx Crosby. Adam Schefter said he doesn’t think Crosby will go to Chicago. So where then? Dallas looked into it, but it doesn’t sound like that is going to work out. The Cowboys are now thought to be focusing on Trey Hendrickson.

That tweet doesn’t mean a thing. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say it got my attention. Crosby would be a fun addition to this defense, if the price is right.

The prudent thing would be to just re-sign Jaelan Phillips and keep your draft resources. But Crosby is enticing because he is more productive and more of a difference-maker. He averages 10 sacks and 19 TFLs per year.  Phillips has never had more thann 8.5 sacks in a season and only has 32 career TFLs. And we know Howie does love to add difference-makers.

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We are seeing teams cut a lot of guys. That adds to the free agent pool and could give the Eagles more options when they go shopping. There is some thought that the Bills trading for Moore means they might have to cut TE Dawson Knox. If that happens, he could be of interest.

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The Eagles don’t have a lot of cap room so they will have to be selective shoppers. Howie Roseman isn’t the type to do nothing, though. Here is an interesting idea from EJ Smith and the PHLY gang.

I tend to think the Eagles will go cheap at CB since they have to pay Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean in the near future. But Howie does like adding talent when the price is right.

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There is a lot of uncertainty with the Eagles right now because there are so many things in the air. Howie could finalize some big deals and blow us away. Or this could all blow over and nothing significant happens. AJ stays in Philly and the big focus is on keeping Phillips.

The good news is that the Eagles have a strong roster and can choose to be aggressive or to sit back. Howie doesn’t have to force things. We can speculate and talk about what we want to happen. That’s the fun of the offseason. Between free agency, trades and the draft, Howie will have a lot of options. Choosing the right ones is what makes him so good at what he does.

The next week or so could be a lot of fun. At the very least, it should be interesting.

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