Philadelphia Eagles Cut Trent Cole

Nov 23, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker Trent Cole (58) reacts after a sack against the Tennessee Titans at Lincoln Financial Field. The Eagles won 43-24. Mandatory Credit: Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Earlier this afternoon, the Philadelphia Eagles decided to cut one of their former stars, Trent Cole, in a move to create more salary space, after talks of restructuring his contract fell through.

Dec 7, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker Trent Cole (58) celebrates a tackle against the Seattle Seahawks during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey G. Pittenger-USA TODAY Sports

Trent Cole was drafted by the Eagles all the way back in the 5th round of the 2005 NFL Draft. Cole has played suited up in midnight green for ten seasons and was one of the leaders on the defensive side of the ball for the Eagles, throughout his tenure.

The reason the Eagles were forced to make such a difficult decision was due to Cole’s cap hit. His contract was going to count $11,625,000 million against the Eagles cap, according to spotrac.com, and quite frankly, Cole wasn’t worth nearly that much.

When Chip Kelly was hired, the Eagles switch from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4 defense, forcing Cole to switch from a defensive end to an outside linebacker, and while he gave it his all, Cole was far from a natural.

Since Kelly was hired, Cole has only registered 14.5 sacks and his coverage skills are well below average, making him a bit of a liability at times.

While he was a fan favorite, his departure is not a surprise. There were talks that the Eagles and Cole were going to try to find a way to restructure his contract, but ultimately those talks fell through, and Cole will become a free agent in the coming days.

Teams who run a 4-3 defense will covet a player like him. He will bring leadership and a wealth of experience to a team, and his numbers should improve with a transition back to defensive end.