Philadelphia Eagles Broke the Bank in 2016 with Quarterbacks

Howie Roseman and the Philadelphia Eagles made some big moves this offseason, but none bigger than the ones at the quarterback position

Signing Sam Bradford to a cap-friendly two-year contract was originally the best option for the Philadelphia Eagles on March 1, 2016.

The franchise hired their third head coach since 2013 and sat towards the middle of the NFL Draft. To make matters worse, the free agent market presented slim, long-term pickings at the most important position in all of sports.

Based on how Bradford’s contract was drawn up, the former first overall pick was given what is essentially a one-year deal.

He receives the bulk of his money in 2016 and is given the chance to prove himself in a more pro-style offense under the recently-hired Doug Pederson.

One week later, Chase Daniel was signed away from Kansas City to be the primary back-up to Bradford.

Should Bradford go down with another long-term injury, the Eagles had a guy who already understood Pederson’s system their time with the Chiefs, and could keep the ship afloat towards the end of the season.

One day after signing Daniel to a three-year contract that carried a $5 million cap hit in 2016, the Eagles announced a trade with the Miami Dolphins . Howie Roseman cleared the Eagles of the massive contract given to Byron Maxwell during the prior offseason, while also moving linebacker Kiko Alonso and the 13th overall pick.

In exchange, the Eagles got the eighth overall pick from the Dolphins and cleared a substantial amount of cap space.

More from NFL Mocks

• 2024 NFL Mock Draft Journal: Cardinals, Falcons tank for USC QB Caleb Williams
• Patriots News & Rumors: Ezekiel Elliott talks fun in Foxboro; Mills to Packers?
• Fantasy Football: 5 reasons Colts QB Anthony Richardson can be a top-end option
• Packers’ Lukas Van Ness will make a Lambeau leap into the NFL in 2023
• 2024 NFL Draft: Hunter Haas’ Top 50 Big Board

This deal was one the Eagles presumptively made with the hopes of getting someone such as Vernon Hargreaves from Florida, or Ronnie Stanley of Notre Dame ahead of teams such as Miami or the Giants. Additionally, freeing up cap space allowed them to make franchise-altering moves over the next two months.

Then Carson Wentz, the 6’5 gunslinger quarterback from North Dakota State, came into their view. Everyone from Doug Pederson, Howie Roseman, offensive coordinator Frank Reich, and quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo fell in love with the kids’ potential.

On April 20, just over a week prior to the NFL Draft, the Philadelphia Eagles traded their first round pick, a third round pick, and a fourth round pick in 2016, along with next seasons’ first round pick and their 2018 second round pick to the Cleveland Browns for the second overall selection and a conditional pick in 2017.

With the second overall pick, the Philadelphia Eagles selected Carson Wentz to develop and be the future face of their franchise.

No more playing mediocre guys such as Nick Foles, Kevin Kolb, Mike Vick, or Matt Barkley. The Eagles had a franchise quarterback for the first time since Donovan McNabb in the early 2000’s to lead them to their first championship since the 1960s.

The new plan was simple. Let Wentz develop behind Bradford just as McNabb did behind the Eagles newest head coach, Doug Pederson, nearly two decades prior. Because of his contract structure, the Eagles could cut Bradford after one year with little damage to their salary cap and have a stable Chase Daniel behind Carson Wentz going forward.

Between Wentz’s rookie contract, which pays him about $50,000 more than Sam Bradford in 2016, and the Daniel and Bradford’s contracts, the Eagles have an astounding $43 million devoted towards the quarterback position in 2016.

The next team with that much cash guaranteed towards the quarterback position in 2016 are the Baltimore Ravens, who devoted just under $32 million to Joe Flacco, Ryan Mallett, Josh Johnson, and Jerrod Johnson.

Going back as far as the 2013 season, no team has ever paid their quarterbacks more than $40 million in one season combined.

So what gives? Why sign Sam Bradford and Chase Daniel to a large deal? Because the Eagles could not have imagined on March 1 they could move from the 13th overall pick all the way up to the second overall in the NFL Draft. Carson Wentz was a pipe-dream for Howie Roseman that miraculously came true.

More from NFL Free Agency

• Ideal landing spots for Dalvin Cook, Ezekiel Elliott and other free agent running backs
• AFC East Buzz: Ezekiel Elliot visits Patriots; Dalvin Cook-Jets rumors heat up
• NFL Free Agency: 5 most intriguing landing spots for Dalvin Cook
• AFC South Buzz: Titans nab DeAndre Hopkins; Engram gets paid
• 5 Teams That Should Sign Free Agent WR DeAndre Hopkins

And, it is not as if the Eagles went broke thanks to these moves. They signed top-tier free agents Rodney McLeod and Brandon Brooks to be instant-impact starters in 2016 to large, yet reasonable, contracts.

Roseman also signed Rueben Randle, Stefen Wisniewski, Leodis McKelvin, Nigel Bradham, Ron Brooks, and Chris Givens to compete for starting jobs.

Additionally, he re-signed players the Eagles drafted and/or felt were part of a championship-core going forward to several lucrative (even historic) contracts.

Players who were included in the Eagles spending splurge were: Fletcher Cox, Vinny Curry, Mychal Kendricks, Lane Johnson, Malcolm Jenkins, Zach Ertz, Brent Celek and Nolan Carroll.

What does this mean for the Eagles going forward? Sam Bradford is the starter for 2016, despite his minor holdout after reportedly demanding a trade out of Philadelphia. He will attempt to regain some value to earn himself a new contract for 2017, whether that be in Philadelphia or elsewhere.

Chase Daniel will be suited up and ready to go should Bradford succumb to injury yet again.

As for Carson Wentz, the plan is to have him learn the Doug Pederson west coast offense for one season, and stay wrapped in bubblewrap while holding a clipboard on the sideline.

He will get his snaps in the preseason against mediocre talent and tempt the Eagles to give him the starting job on Week 1 against the Cleveland Browns. But, don’t expect the Eagles to sway off their current course.

Following the 2016 NFL season, the Eagles only have $25 million devoted towards the quarterback position. Sam Bradford can either be traded or released with a dead cap hit worth only $5.5 million.

Carson Wentz will (presumptively) be the starting quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017 for just over $1 million, and Howie Roseman will have more cap room to play with and very few expiring contracts to extend.

Stability has finally returned to the City of Brotherly Love. The Eagles have their franchise core designed, the 76ers reportedly plan on drafting Ben Simmons with the first overall pick, and the Phillies and Flyers have some of the top prospects in their respective sports.

The future is, once again, sunny in Philadelphia