In continuing our NFL free agency series, today, we look at the NFC East. We examine their top free agents, other players’ contract statuses, and each team’s biggest team needs as we approach free agency and then the NFL Draft.
Let’s dive into the latest surrounding the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, and Washington Commanders.
Latest NFL Free Agency Rumors
Dallas Cowboys
It’s not exactly a secret that the team is projected to be very tight against the salary cap –even with the rise of over $30 million per team this season. With that being the case, the front office has no choice but to lower QB Dak Prescott’s cap number of an unhealthy $59.5 million.
Prescott, who is coming off a very good season in 2023, clearly has leverage here. A veteran contract negotiator who we talked to last week pegged the average per season on his new deal to be between $57-$60 million per season.
Prescott, who signed a four-year extension in March 2021, earned $40 million annually on that deal, which will currently expire after the 2024 season.
The Cowboys did a simple restructure last March by converting $29 million in Prescott’s base salary into a signing bonus, which increased his cap number for future years. Keep in mind they did the same thing the previous March, which is why his cap number is so high (second highest in NFL).
As for running back, word around the NFL in scouting circles is that no player at that position should be selected in the first two rounds, so the Cowboys may have to go bargain hunting in March if they choose not to re-sign Tony Pollard, who played on their franchise tag of $10.1 million last season.
There were questions around the NFL in terms of whether Pollard should be a lead back, but he did not have a season that met the value of the money that he was paid.
One player to keep an eye on in terms of his contract and status with Dallas is veteran WR Michael Gallup, who has $4 million of his $8.5 million base salary becoming fully guaranteed on March 17, a source confirmed. His cap number is just under $14 million ($13.85), and his role with their passing game was smaller than expected last season.
Gallup, who re-signed with the team in March 2022 for five seasons at $11.5 million per year, is seen around the league as essentially the fourth option in Dallas’ passing game.
Philadelphia Eagles
While Philadelphia doesn’t have many needs on offense, new OC Kellen Moore runs more of a spread scheme, a coaching source told us, which means lots of “11 personnel” (1 TE, 3 WR). So the Eagles, who don’t have a third receiver under contract, will need to add one, and their depth under contract at receiver is non-existent.
There is a belief around the NFL that D’Andre Swift, who did not catch many passes last season with Philadelphia, would be a really good fit for Moore’s scheme, where the backs typically are featured in the passing game.
The Eagles, we’re told, did not make a serious offer to former starting RB Miles Sanders prior to him signing with the Carolina Panthers (four years, $25.4 million), who was coming off a career year. Thus, it’s unlikely they will pay market value to keep Swift, who is coming off his first 1,000+ yard rushing season.
Yet, that doesn’t mean Philadelphia won’t try to re-sign him, considering Swift finally stayed healthy for a season.
Strangely enough, Boston Scott, who was barely used on offense, was Philly’s highest-paid player at the position at $2 million last season.
The Eagles were close to signing veteran QB Andy Dalton last offseason, a league source said. Philadelphia, however, wound up signing Marcus Mariota instead after Dalton chose the Panthers.
Jack Stoll, who has been the Eagles’ main blocking TE over the past few seasons, is unlikely to be tendered due to the salary ($3 million), a league source said. But that doesn’t mean the team won’t try to re-sign him at a lower number.
Defensively, Philadelphia has several needs to fill for new DC Vic Fangio. They ran their version of his scheme the past three seasons with really good success over the first two but really dropped off last season.
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Some team observers felt it was a combination of coaching and a quality of personnel on that side of the ball. Look for GM Howie Roseman to address the personnel issue, particularly in back-seven, where they really struggled last season.
The Eagles could have three new starters in the secondary, two at linebacker at the very least. With a good amount of projected cap space due to the larger-than-expected rise in the salary cap for all NFL teams, look for Roseman, who is known in league circles as being one of the most aggressive, to address needs either by signing veterans or the trade market ahead of this year’s NFL Draft.
New York Giants
The Giants are going to be in good salary cap shape to begin free agency, and they’ll need to use those resources to add major help to their offensive line with only one blue-chip player (OT Andrew Thomas) on their roster.
In speaking with multiple league sources during Senior Bowl week about how they see the Giants’ roster, some mentioned that the team not only has questions on the offensive line, but one personnel source said Saquon Barkley’s tape last season would lead him not to place their franchise tag on the veteran back if it would be his choice.
We asked the source how he would handle the situation, in which he said he would offer him a much lesser one-year deal with some upside (incentives).
Other sources mentioned the obvious lack of a true No. 1 receiver and how that has to be addressed going forward. Also at the position, veteran Darius Slayton has a non-guaranteed roster bonus of $2.4 million due on March 17, a league source confirmed.
Defensively, the big decision looming is whether to re-sign the talented Xavier McKinney. GM Joe Schoen didn’t draft him, but that shouldn’t matter. At the very least, McKinney should be a candidate for the franchise or transition tag. The difference in the tags is about $3.3 million (transition is lesser of the two).
Washington Commanders
This is a team that badly needs a makeover, and they’ll get one beginning at quarterback in this year’s NFL Draft.
While third-year QB Sam Howell did a very solid job under the circumstances last season, he’s not seen as a franchise type of player (starter for the next 7-10 years) from talking to league sources with connections to the team.
Keep in mind that neither the new front office nor the coaching staff was around when Howell was drafted. Jacoby Brissett is seen around the league as the top backup at his position, which is why he was paid $8 million last season.
For the immediate future, look for new GM Adam Peters, who has personnel control, to address their offensive line, which is largely seen around the NFL as a bottom-five unit.
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The one key free agent to possibly re-sign is Kamren Curl, who turned out to be a gem of a seventh-round pick (2020) and started 53 out of 60 games he played in for the team.
The Commanders have a ton of cap space available (highest projected total of over $80 million), so re-signing Curl won’t be an issue. The question remains in terms of what his price will be on the open market. A league source said Curl could command anywhere from $14-$16 million annually based on deals at the safety position over the past three years.
With DEs Chase Young and Montez Sweat traded last year, Washington can spend on a solid free agent or two at the position as well and can address the lack of pass rush in the draft.
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