NFL free agency updates: Eagles land Saquon Barkley, add two defenders; Birds free agent tracker

The Eagles have agreed to terms with free-agent outside linebacker Zack Baun, according to an ESPN report.

Baun, 27, played his first four seasons with the New Orleans Saints primarily as a core special-teamer and a depth linebacker. He has 14 career starts, including six last season and has some versatility to play either as an outside linebacker on the line of scrimmage or a true off-ball linebacker.

A third-round pick out of Wisconsin in 2020, Baun had one interception, two pass breakups, two sacks, and 30 total tackles last season. He played 27% of the Saints’ defensive snaps and 83% of their special-teams snaps, both of which were career-highs. He blocked a punt against the Tennessee Titans last season and played on all but one of the Saints’ special-teams units.

I like the Saquon Barkley signing, mostly because it probably means he is a much bigger upgrade at running back than the Eagles could have gotten for the money at any other (more valued) position of need. Which could be a whole different issue.

We’ll see if Jalen Hurts starts throwing to his running backs. Saquon’s receiving and route running ability is a huge part of his value, but the Eagles have all but ignored their backs in the pass game the last couple of years

All that said, Saquon breaks the mold a little bit as far as my usual belief that you’re better off paying minimum wage backs. He is one of the rare guys who is a true value add. Not as much as his early years. But he isn’t just a take-what-the-defense-gives-you back

New York has always had the best shopping. Little wonder then, when the free-agent market opened, Howie Roseman hit the Big Apple hard.

First, Roseman snagged the best available young pass-rusher, Jets end/linebacker Bryce Huff.

Then, he landed the best running back available, Giants superstar Saquon Barkley.

A former NFC East foe is set to become the face of the Eagles’ rushing attack.

The Eagles have agreed to terms with former New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley on a three-year, $37.75 million deal, NFL sources confirmed to The Inquirer on Monday. ESPN was first to report the news.

The deal includes $26 million fully guaranteed. The contract is worth up to $46.75 million.

The Eagles have agreed to terms with free-agent edge rusher Bryce Huff.

Huff, 25, will sign a three-year deal worth up to $51.1 million with $34.4 million guaranteed according to Bleacher Report.

A former undrafted free agent, Huff played his first four seasons with the New York Jets and is coming off a career year in which he had 10 sacks and 21 quarterback hits. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound rusher has even better advanced numbers, ranking eighth in ESPN’s pass-rush win rate metric, which measures how often a rusher beats his block within 2.5 seconds.

There could be some value to be had in this year’s group of free-agent running backs.

Last year’s suppressed market has led to a handful of featured backs returning to free agency while still in their prime. Saquon Barkley, Austin Ekeler, and Derrick Henry were all productive last year to varying degrees, but each could struggle to find a long-term deal with meaningful guarantees.

The Eagles will certainly need to pick up someone, with D’Andre Swift’s reported departure to the Chicago Bears leaving the Birds’ depth chart at the position relatively sparse. Two potential Eagles’ target – Tony Pollard and Josh Jacobs – have reportedly signed with other teams.

Less than 15 minutes into the opening of the negotiating window on Monday afternoon, one of the Eagles’ top pending free agents is reportedly already off the market.

The Bears have agreed to terms with running back D’Andre Swift on a three-year, $24 million deal, according to multiple media reports.

The NFL Network first reported the news. ESPN reported that the deal includes $15.3 million guaranteed.

The NFL's free agency negotiating window is now open, meaning the Eagles and other teams are able to officially negotiate with unrestricted free agents.

Just don't call it "legal tampering," says NFL Network host Andrew Siciliano.

"Please do not call it 'legal tampering,'" Siciliano repeated on air a couple of times Monday afternoon. "It's just negotiations... You can do the deal, you can shake on it, you just can't sign it."

The Eagles signed Landon Dickerson to a four-year contract extension worth up to $87 million, a deal that makes him the highest-paid guard in the NFL, according to several media reports.

Dickerson, 25, has become a cornerstone for the Eagles’ offensive line since the team selected him in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft. He’s made two Pro Bowls in his first three seasons, forming an imposing duo with Jordan Mailata on the left side of the Eagles’ offensive front.

His new deal, which has $50 million guaranteed, will stretch through the 2028 season and net him $20 million at signing.

The mass exodus of quality safeties in the name of cap savings last week bolstered an already-deep class of free agents at the position and could set the Eagles up well.

New defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s system puts more of a premium on the safety positions than the Eagles have in the past. The need for a versatile, instinctual player to pair with Reed Blankenship shouldn’t be too difficult to address considering the number of options, which starts with Justin Simmons.

Simmons, 31, may not be the type of ascending young player the Eagles are hoping to build around for years to come, but he’s got experience playing at an All-Pro level with Fangio as his coach dating back to their shared time in Denver. He’s either been named second-team All-Pro or earned a Pro Bowl nod in each of the last five seasons and is coming off a year in which he earned both. The Broncos released Simmons to clear salary-cap space, freeing up about $14.5 million. If Xavier McKinney and Kamren Curl set the market around $14 million, Simmons figures to come in slightly below that number despite being the most proven player available.

The Eagles head into free agency with an eye towards rebuilding their defense under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. 

So who are some players the Eagles could target in free agency?

Inquirer reporter EJ Smith highlighted nine potential free agent targets on defense, including Giants safety Xavier McKinney, Bears safety Eddie Jackson, and a potential reunion with safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson. They could also take a look at Broncos linebacker Josey Jewell, who has experience playing in and calling Fangio’s defense. 

» READ MORE: Nine defensive free agents the Eagles could target

The Eagles have received calls from teams seeking to trade for Josh Sweat as they have granted the defensive end permission to shop his services, NFL sources said.

NFL Network was first to report Sweat’s availability.

That he is obtainable comes a month after reports surfaced that the team had given Haason Reddick, Sweat’s counterpart on the edge, freedom to find a trade partner. The Eagles would need suitable compensation to make either deal.

Former Eagles safety Kevin Byard is signing a two-year deal with the Chicago Bears, according to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Byard's time in Philly was short after being acquired in October in a trade with the Tennessee Titans. The 30-year-old All-Pro played every defensive snap with the Eagles, but finished the season with a career-low three pass breakups and one interception.

The Eagles released Byard earlier this month, clearing $13 million in salary cap space going into free agency.

Last year, nearly a dozen Eagles starters hit the free agency market in March. This year it's much less.

Two Eagles defensive starters are set to become free agents on Wednesday – linebackers Zach Cunningham and Nicholas Morrow. There's also D'Andre Swift, who rushed for 1,049 in 15 starts for the Eagles last season.

Also slated to hit free agency is quarterback Marcus Mariota, who attempted just 23 passes last season as Jalen Hurts' backup.

It may sound unfathomable now, but Fletcher Cox didn’t start immediately upon his entrance into the NFL.

For the first six games of his career, Cox was behind the forgetful Derek Landri on the Eagles’ defensive tackle depth chart. He played more snaps early on, but then-coach Andy Reid didn’t want to burden the first-rounder with labels after his two previous top draft picks struggled in their first seasons.

It was more than just Cox’s in-game performance that ultimately led to his promotion midway through the 2012 season. He so thoroughly dominated the Eagles’ already decimated offensive line in practice — sometimes inflicting injury — that Reid once had to call the rookie into his office.