Who is the Philadelphia Eagles top 2021 free agent priority?

Ranking the Philadelphia Eagles 2021 free agent priorities

The Philadelphia Eagles are in the midst of preparing for the 2020 NFL season but with looming salary cap decisions that’ll have to be made, it’s necessary to take a look ahead to the team’s 2021 free-agent class.

Unless Howie Roseman chooses to hand out an extension or two between now and the next offseason, the Eagles will enter the 2021 free agency period with 31 players available to hit the open market per Spotrac.

The list is exempt of huge names but several key players on the Eagles roster are competing on one-year deals and it’s not certain that they’ll all return.

Players like Jalen Mills, Sidney Jones, Will Parks, Nickell Robey-Coleman, Nate Sudfeld, Cre’Von LeBlanc, Jatavis Brown, Rasul Douglas, and Nate Gerry are among the Eagles bigger named players up for new deals.

With the Eagles possibly facing some serious cap issues going forward, we highlight some of the players who could be top priorities during the 2021 free agency period.

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1. Jalen Mills S/Slot

Mills returned to the Eagles on a one year deal and got switched to the role of a hybrid-safety, replacing Malcolm Jenkins.

With Will Parks coming over from the Broncos and K’Von Wallace being the future at the position, Mills is either playing to impress another team or hopeful for a modest long-term extension with the Eagles.

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Bengals have serious work to do on projected 2021 free-agent class

The Bengals have some key names set to be free agents next offseason.

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The free-agency outlook for the Cincinnati Bengals next offseason just got a little more complicated in the wake of the team declining John Ross’ fifth-year option.

Next offseason was a mess for the Bengals well before the decline added Ross’ name to the mix of players potentially slipping to the market.

The top of the list slated for free agency about a year from now reads as follows:

  • A.J. Green
  • John Ross
  • Auden Tate
  • Joe Mixon
  • William Jackson
  • Mackensie Alexander
  • Shawn Williams
  • Carl Lawson
  • Ryan Glasgow

And that’s just to highlight the really big names.

Granted, we think the Bengals should wrap up Ross on an extension quickly. And extension talks with A.J. Green and Joe Mixon are ongoing. With Mixon, the Bengals are ready for a potential holdout this summer.

Complicating matters over the long-term like this is the team’s massive, unexpected spending in free agency this offseason. The cap space update after Andy Dalton’s release is timid right now.

Which isn’t to say the Bengals can’t find a way to keep most of the guys they want. Green and Mixon could end up settling for affordable rates given injury history for the former and positional value for the latter. Mackensie Alexander was on a prove-it deal. Carl Lawson and Ryan Glasgow have had injury issues. Ross might have to settle if he wants a long-term deal. Shawn Williams is starting to see more names added at safety.

If nothing else, it’s just something to think about from a long-term perspective for the team and a factor to keep in mind to help explain the upcoming extension talks (or lack thereof) this summer.

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