Getty Allen Robinson
Wide receivers were flying off the shelves at ridiculous prices when free agency opened in mid-March. The Philadelphia Eagles were thought to be in serious conversation with a few of the top targets but decided not to break the bank.
Instead, the Eagles executed a draft-night trade for A.J. Brown. Which ended up costing them a team-friendly $100 million; yes, general manager Howie Roseman masterfully structured Brown’s deal. He’ll earn a $986,000 base salary in 2022 with a potential out in 2025. It was a stroke of good fortune and perfect timing.
Philadelphia’s top target was Calvin Ridley until an investigation into his alleged sports gambling blew that trade up. The deal was done until the league handed him an indefinite suspension. But the Eagles had a Plan B and his name was Allen Robinson. Not Christian Kirk or D.J. Chark.
The most tumultuous WR off-season in NFL history now has resulted in this, so far:
🏈A.J. Brown is an Eagle.
🏈Marquise Brown is a Cardinal.
🏈Tyreek Hill is a Dolphin.
🏈Davante Adams is a Raider.
🏈Allen Robinson is a Ram.
🏈Amari Cooper is a Brown.
According to Inside the Birds’ Adam Caplan, they had productive talks with Robinson and talked “real money.” Then the Los Angeles Rams swooped in with a three-year, $46.5 million deal. That was too rich for the Eagles. Caplan wrote the following:
After Calvin Ridley [trade fell through], it was going to be Allen Robinson. They were in pretty good, we had heard, but the Rams blew him out of the water. I would not say that the Robinson deal was close, but they talked real money. They were never in it for [Christian] Kirk because, like every team, when they had heard what his agent thought he was getting, they were never in. The Eagles have had, and every NFL team has done this, dozens of players in free agency over the years where they target a guy, then find out what the guy wants and end the discussion.
Can’t wait ’til we get to see @AllenRobinson at training camp… ⏳
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Howie Roseman Climbs Up Top GM List
NBC Sports Edge’s Patrick Daugherty recently ranked all the general managers in football – well, 27 of them since the league saw five new hires – and Howie Roseman was pretty high up the list. The Eagles top executive held down the No. 8 spot for the way he cleaned up Chip Kelly’s mess and won a Super Bowl. The way he has handled a short rebuild following the Carson Wentz trade earned him extra points, too.
“If [Jalen] Hurts lacks a second gear, Roseman has left himself well positioned to find his replacement with another pair of 2023 first-rounders,” Daugherty wrote. “Roseman is a whirlwind, but one that has made the playoffs four times in five years and has a Lombardi Trophy to show for it.”
NFL’s Best GMs 2022. Ranking and evaluating all 32 of the league’s general managers, including this year’s new hires. t.co/cAS3H7xJ7Z
Hurts Looking Jacked in Workout Photos
It’s the time of the year when players share eye-popping photos from their offseason workouts. Lane Johnson does it all the time. Ditto for Brandon Graham and A.J. Brown.
But the biggest gains might be from Jalen Hurts who looks jacked with lean muscle. His biceps are bulging and veins exploding in a new Instagram post. Yes, Hurts appears ready for the start of training camp on July 26.
Yeah… so Jalen Hurts looks ready for training camp 👀
#Eagles (📸 Hurts on IG)
