Two Eagles players crack PFF’s top-25 upcoming free agents for the 2023 offseason
The Philadelphia Eagles have been downright dominant in 2022, but the front office will have their work cut out for them once the offseason rolls around.
A whopping 18 Eagles players (nine starters) could become free agents in March. With QB Jalen Hurts’ potentially massive contract extension on the horizon, Howie Roseman will have to be meticulous with his approach to resigning players this offseason.
Pro Football Focus recently released their top-25 upcoming free agents for the 2023 offseason and two Eagles player cracked the list, DT Javon Hargrave and CB James Bradberry.
Hargrave came in fourth on that list as the highest ranking non-quarterback. The three players ranked ahead of him were Lamar Jackson, Geno Smith, and Tom Brady.
I’d have to imagine Hargrave will be Howie’s top priority this offseason outside of Hurts. The Eagles value their defensive lineman immensely and Hargrave is arguably the best player on the unit. He’s having a career year in 2022, posting a career-high in sacks with 10, while racking up 49 combined tackles, nine tackles for loss, and 14 QB hits.
As PFF points out, Hargrave’s 91.8 pass rushing grade since 2020 trails only Aaron Donald and Chris Jones. His 19.2 percent pass rush win rate also ranks third during that time.
Although Hargrave will be 30 years old entering next season, we’ve seen plenty of interior defensive lineman remain productive well into their 30’s.
The Eagles defensive line certainly won’t be as deep next season as it is right now; Fletcher Cox, Linval Joseph, and Ndamukong Suh will all likely be gone. With that trio of veterans leaving, it makes retaining Hargrave even more important. He’s a cornerstone of this front-four and I’m sure Roseman and Co. view it the same way.
That brings us to Bradberry, who came in 19th on PFF’s ranking.
When the Eagles snagged Bradberry late this past offseason, the acquisition was widely assumed to be a one-year rental. Even though he’s played at a Pro Bowl level opposite of Darius Slay this season, that sentiment still reigns true.
It would be amazing if Howie could somehow make the money work in order to keep Bradberry around. But by the looks of it, his market will probably be too expensive to compete with. Cornerback is arguably the most valuable defensive position in the sport right now. Bradberry is a top-10 player at his position; he’s going to get some pretty hefty offers during the free agency period.
Not to mention, Bradberry is one of three starters in the secondary set to become free agents. The starting safety duo of Marcus Epps and CJ Gardner-Johnson both have expiring contracts, and I’d have to think resigning at least one of them is a higher priority than bringing back Bradberry.
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