Eagles Get Stability at Their Top Position

by Marc Narducci; Photo Marc Narducci | Jun 12, 2019

The Eagles have received salary stability at their most important position when Carson Wentz recently signed a four-year extension.

Wentz who had two years left on his rookie deal, is scheduled to make $154 million over the next six years according to ESPN.

That would make his average for the next six years to be $25.7 million, which for a franchise quarterback, is well within line.

Eagles GM Howie Roseman has done a great job managing the team’s salary cap and he appears to have done so concerning Wentz at this time.

Plus, Roseman got this done before two players from Wentz’s rookie class, Jared Goff of the Los Angeles Rams and Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys sign extensions.

While Goff led the Rams to last year’s Super Bowl and Prescott won a playoff game and has led the Cowboys to the postseason in two of his three seasons, Wentz has the potential to be the best among the three.

The key question with Wentz is staying healthy.

He did play all 16 games as a rookie in 2016 despite suffering a preseason rib injury. In 2017 he suffered a season-ending ACL against the Rams in the 13th game of the season. Wentz missed the first two games last season while still recovering from the knee injury and then suffered a season-ending back injury that caused him to miss the final three games.

Everybody has been raving about Wentz in OTAs, how he has looked so sharp, isn’t wearing a knee brace and appears ready for a breakout year.

The one difference for the Eagles is that they don’t have the safety net of Nick Foles serving as backup. Foles stepped in and won the Super Bowl in the 2017 season and last year won a playoff game against Chicago.

It wasn’t realistic salary-cap wise to keep Foles, but with his departure is the unknown of whether the Eagles have a player who can step in if Wentz is sidelined.

The Eagles are thinking more positive.

Wentz has been urged to not take as many hits, to get rid of the ball if he doesn’t see an open receiver and not scramble around so much and endure so many hits.

Wentz said during the OTAs this year that he has a changed diet and feels healthier than ever.

He is 26-years-old and turns 27 on Dec. 27. That means he will be 31 when this contract expires, which is old for most football players but not for quarterbacks.

Had Wentz not been hurt, he likely would have been the MVP in the 2017 season. And many don’t realize but his passer rating of 102.2 last year was actually better than in 2017 (101.9). For his career he has 70 TD passes and 28 interceptions, an enviable ratio.

So if healthy, a phrase we will hear a lot in the next few years, Wentz should be an annual MVP candidate, especially with all the offensive weapons the Eagles have around him.

One thing is for sure – Wentz won’t get complacent with the security of his contract extension. He will continue to work hard and be a leader on the team and the Eagles were eventually going to have to re-sign him eventually and doing it now seems like another solid move by Roseman.

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Author: Marc Narducci; Photo by Marc Narducci

Eagles Get Stability at Their Top Position

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