The Philadelphia Eagles have looked great this season on offense. Jalen Hurts has come into his own, looking like the kind of franchise quarterback that not many people thought that he could be when he was selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
He has made huge strides as a passer to prove all of the naysayers wrong. The front office putting some excellent talent around him has certainly helped as well. Acquiring A.J. Brown from the Tennessee Titans in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft gave Hurts a go-to No. 1 receiver to pair with DeVonta Smith and tight end Dallas Goedert.
That trio has been very productive this season, essentially taking turns each week as Hurts’ go-to option in the passing game. Could the passing game be getting even more help in the near future?
The free agent pursuit of Odell Beckham Jr. has garnered plenty of headlines recently. He received full clearance a few weeks ago and started his free-agent visits last week. The Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants and Buffalo Bills have hosted him, but the Eagles were recently suggested as a potential sleeper in the pursuit of him.
Mike Florio of ProFootballTallk said that the Eagles were a team to watch, surmising they could join the fray if Beckham’s market isn’t as strong as he was hoping it would be. Seeking a multi-year deal, that may not be on the table, which leaves Beckham in a quagmire. The goal is to land a long-term deal, but if that isn’t going to be presented this year, he will need to pivot.
Signing a one-year prove-it deal would only work if Beckham is afforded as many chances at playing as possible. That would mean signing with a team that looks ready to make a deep run in the postseason, which the Eagles would qualify as.
Head coach Nick Sirianni spoke very highly of the wide receivers already on the depth chart, but he didn’t shut the door on Beckham being added when he was asked about it. At the end of the day, Sirianni doesn’t make the call on whether or not to sign Beckham, but keeping not shutting down the talk altogether is telling.
While he may like the depth that he has, there isn’t very much depth at the position. Philadelphia has gone all season pretty much using only four wide receivers offensively in Brown, Smith, Quez Watkins and Zach Pascal.
One injury could throw this offense out of whack, so having a veteran of Beckham’s caliber waiting in the wings would certainly be useful. Philadelphia could also be motivated to sign him just so that he doesn’t end up in Dallas or New York. That is as motivating as anything as the Eagles would much rather sign him than see him join one of their rivals that they could have to face for a third time in the playoffs down the road.
