The Eagles didn’t draft a tight end. What does that mean for Dallas Goedert?
Goedert's future is unresolved for Eagles GM Howie Roseman. The trade market could determine whether the veteran tight end plays for the team this season.
The NFL draft came and went this weekend and Dallas Goedert may be closer to staying with the Eagles than it appeared before the three-day extravaganza.
At least, that’s how it looked from the team’s side after the Eagles didn’t use one of their 10 picks to select a tight end, and how it sounded when general manager Howie Roseman was asked about the 30-year-old’s future in Philadelphia.
“Dallas is part of the team as we speak,” Roseman said Saturday following the draft’s conclusion.
The GM’s initial response wasn’t exactly a commitment to Goedert returning for next season. But when asked again about the possibility, Roseman expressed great fondness for the homegrown player he drafted seven years ago.
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“Dallas is a heck of a player — a heck of a player, a heck of a person,” Roseman said. “Certainly don’t want to do anything publicly where we’re discussing anyone’s business, but I have so much respect for him. Been to two Super Bowls together and obviously would love him on this team.
“You always love having Dallas on this team, but we’re not there right now on any of that. But, love Dallas Goedert.”
So why has his spot on the roster been in question? Why have the Eagles entertained trade offers for one of their best players? And why can’t Roseman commit to 2025 when Goedert has one year left on his contract?
The simple answer is money, but of course it’s never that simple. Goedert is slated to earn $14.25 million next season, and with none of it guaranteed, the Eagles have decided he isn’t worth that amount, especially considering their fiscal challenges this offseason.
But even if they thought they could afford Goedert, it’s unlikely that number would be their valuation. He’s been a top-tier tight end for years, but he’s north of 30 and has missed 15 games to injury over the last three seasons.
The Eagles want Goedert back, but they likely want him to agree to a pay cut or a restructure that extends the contract and helps spread the salary cap charge over future years. Roseman wasn’t quite pleading to his tight end, but Goedert has a choice to make: Take the haircut or find another team prepared to offer him more than the Eagles.
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It’s likely his agent has been given the freedom to find a trade partner willing to give up in compensation what the Eagles want for losing Goedert — a fifth-rounder might get it done — and one that would sign him to a more lucrative deal.
But nothing happened during the draft, when player movement sometimes increases the likelihood of trades, and nothing may happen for a while with five tight end-needy teams selecting starting-caliber prospects in the first two rounds.
Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren went to the Bears and Colts, respectively, in the first round, and Mason Taylor, Terrance Ferguson, and Elijah Arroyo landed with the Jets, Rams and Seahawks, respectively, in the second round.
The Eagles, meanwhile, drafted linebacker Jihaad Campbell in the first round and selected safety Andrew Mukuba late in the second round when a projected next-tier tight end — Harold Fannin — was still available. Fannin went to the Browns in the third round, three picks after Mukuba.
Roseman could have moved up for a tight end in the second round. He had the ammo with approximately 20-plus picks this year and next. But Taylor, Ferguson, and Arroyo went 22, 18, and 14 spots ahead of the Eagles at No. 64. A trade up would have been costly.
As for the rest of the draft, when maybe Roseman could have taken a developmental tight end, the Eagles’ draft board led them to other positions.
“There were some points where it was close,” Roseman said, “but it was never at the time we were selecting the best player.”
Ultimately, neither the Eagles nor Goedert gained much leverage with how the draft played out. The former didn’t add a possible replacement and the latter now doesn’t have as many suitable landing spots.
» READ MORE: Eagles go on a run of selecting defensive players, then add O-line depth on Day 3 of the NFL draft
Which is why a reunion of sorts — Goedert was never actually out the door — may make sense for both parties. The Eagles are still a better team with him, and it’s unlikely they can trade for someone who is better should he leave.
The Raiders’ Michael Mayer could be on the market. Drafted in the second round in 2023, he saw his prospects in Las Vegas decrease after All-Pro Brock Bowers delivered one of the best rookie seasons ever for a tight end.
Mayer has some similar traits to Goedert. He’s tough after the catch and he’s an able run blocker. He doesn’t project to be as good, but he’s also only 23. There’s room to grow.
Maybe there’s a veteran that shakes free from one of the teams that invested draft capital in a tight end. The Rams’ Tyler Higbee missed most of last season to injury, but the 32-year old was still effective when healthy.
But the position just isn’t a fertile one. The Eagles still have Grant Calcaterra, who filled in admirably for Goedert during his absence. But the former sixth-round draft pick doesn’t project as a No. 1 tight end, despite his improvement, especially as a blocker.
Roseman signed a couple of low-cost free agents — Harrison Bryant and Kylen Granson — to one-year contracts last month. And they could either compete with Calcaterra for snaps or provide depth, but they don’t have high ceilings.
» READ MORE: Why the Eagles offense could look for Grant Calcaterra and Will Shipley to step forward
It’s been a long time since the Eagles have been substandard at tight end, but they have pieces at the other skill positions that would help offset a regression. And maybe that’s another reason Roseman can justify losing Goedert.
A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith form as good a receiving tandem as there is in the NFL and they went underfed last season with the Eagles’ running game renaissance led by running back Saquon Barkley. Slot Jahan Dotson ran as many “for the love of the game” routes as any receiver.
Still, it came as a minor surprise that the Eagles didn’t select a single offensive skill position in this year’s draft. Some will arrive as undrafted rookies. And Roseman has plenty of time to acquire talent in other ways.
But Goedert’s future remains the GM’s most unresolved roster decision. There’s plenty of time to trade him and to find a replacement. Sometimes the best moves are the ones you don’t make.
Roseman and his tight end may eventually come to that resolution.