The Philadelphia Eagles made two major signings on Sunday, August 6, signing veteran linebackers Myles Jack and Zach Cunningham.
The Eagles announced the signings of both linebackers shortly following the release of fourth-year linebacker Davion Taylor and undrafted free agent wide receiver Charleston Rambo. As reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, both linebackers are being signed to one-year deals.
“The Eagles have agreed to terms with former Steelers LB Myles Jack and former #Titans LB Zach Cunningham, giving both one-year deals,” writes Rapoport.
Eagles Sign Two Very Experienced Veteran Linebackers
Both are veteran linebackers with loads of experience. The 27-year-old Jack most recently started for the Pittsburgh Steelers, leading the team with 104 tackles during his lone season with the club during the 2022 season. Prior to his stint with Pittsburgh, Jack started for the Jacksonville Jaguars, starting 82 of his 88 appearances with the franchise, while posting three separate 100-tackle seasons with the Jaguars.
Meanwhile, the 28-year-old Cunningham entered the NFL as a second-round draft pick of the Houston Texans in 2017, starting 66 of his 72 games with the Texans. Cunningham led the NFL with 164 tackles during the 2020 season. He was released by the Texans midway through the 2021 season and spent the next season-and-a-half with the Tennessee Titans. However, Cunningham spent much of his stint in Tennessee injured, playing just six games before landing on injured reserve for much of the season.
Eagles Make Signings Shortly After Nakobe Dean’s Injury Scare
The need for more depth at linebackers became apparent following an injury scare to starting linebacker Nakobe Dean a few days prior. While Dean’s ankle injury on Thursday, August 3, sidelined him for just one practice, it became obvious that Philadelphia needed more veteran depth at the linebacker position, as Sports Illustrated’s John McMullen pointed out.
“Without the 2021 Butkus Award winner, Philadelphia’s starting linebackers were Christian Ellis and Nick Morrow with Shaun Bradley, Davion Taylor, and rookie undrafted free agent Ben VanSumeren mixing in from there,” Eagles Today reported.
The decision to sign Jack isn’t exactly surprising. In fact, Harrison Reno of Sports Illustrated mentioned the veteran linebacker as an option following Dean’s injury scare.
“One of the players available has already been linked with a move to Philadelphia this offseason, as 2016 second-round pick and former Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack remains unsigned after spending last season with the Pittsburgh Steelers,” writes Reno.
Jack was also predicted to sign with the Eagles as far back as May by ESPN’s Bill Barnwell.
“Jack seems like an obvious fit,” wrote Barnwell. “The 27-year-old was originally drafted by the Jaguars in 2016, and their general manager at the time was David Caldwell, who now works for the Eagles. Jack’s calling card has typically been his range in coverage, but his numbers haven’t been impressive over the past couple of years. He allowed passer rating marks north of 100 in his final season with the Jaguars and his lone year with the Steelers.”
With Jack and Cunningham in the fold, they now project as the top backup linebackers along with 2023 first-round draft pick Nolan Smith. Philadelphia’s projected starters at linebacker are Dean, Nicholas Morrow and Haason Reddick.
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Eagles Sign Former Leading Tackler, Ex-Steelers Starter Amid Roster Moves