June 18, 2026
Geoff Burke/Imagn Images
A down season would force the Eagles to make a tough decision next offseason on Saquon Barkley.
Even without A.J. Brown, the Eagles have a roster loaded with talented players at every position. Many of them are young, and have the potential to stick around for a while.
When you have as much young talent as the Eagles have, especially on defense, you can't afford to pay everyone. Difficult decisions must be made. The team has already let good players hit the exits in recent years, with Mekhi Becton, Milton Williams, Jaelan Phillips, and Reed Blankenship being examples.
By this time next year, the Eagles will have some homegrown talent that will be eligible for extensions and who the team will surely want to retain for the long haul, including All-Pro defensive backs Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean, each of whom will command either market-resetting deals or top-five salaries for their position. Jalen Carter is already eligible for an extension that will surely be a blockbuster when he signs it. DeVonta Smith should already see an extension on his current deal either this offseason or next, and Jalen Hurts will surely be in store for another massive pay day if he's successful in 2026.
With so many extensions and big pay days lined up in the next 12 months, there will be other deserving Eagles who the team just won't be able to play.
With that in mind, we looked at several Eagles starters and significant role players who could be playing their final season in Midnight Green in 2026:
DT Moro Ojomo: The fourth-year pro enters the final year of his rookie deal. He's been a steal of a seventh-rounder, exploding last season for 6.0 sacks and 12 QB hits on 66% of snaps, compared to 37% in 2024. Ojomo appears to be following in the footsteps of Milton Williams, who left for a blockbuster free agent deal from New England after the 2024 Super Bowl season in which produced 5.0 sacks and 10 QB hits. Ojomo will be poised for a major free-agent deal if he just duplicates his 2025 output. The Eagles are already locked into Jordan Davis for big money and have Jalen Carter to figure out. They can't have three DTs each making top-market money. They'll happily accept another third-round comp pick for Ojomo departing in free agency.
RG Tyler Steen: Also entering his fourth season, Steen is good enough to be a starter at right guard for the long haul, but the Eagles are already locked into big money at the other four o-line positions. It's been helpful for them to have at least one lineman on either a rookie deal or cost-efficient one-year deal during the Nick Sirianni era. The Eagles have 2025 fifth-round pick Drew Kendall and 2026 sixth-round pick Micah Morris waiting in the wings. They also used a third-rounder in 2026 on Markel Bell, a tackle who some scouts felt could play inside. If LG Landon Dickerson and C Cam Jurgens bounce back from injury-plagued 2025 seasons and remain with the team in 2026, they won't be able to pay Steen.
CB Riq Woolen: This one's fairly simple. If he excels on his one-year deal, Woolen will have plenty of teams lining up to throw boatloads of cash at him. The Eagles, who will need to take care of Mitchell and DeJean, won't be able to match the insane offers that Woolen would command. If Woolen isn't very good or is just average, he won't be worth another $12 million in 2027. That's already a big number for a one-year deal.
TE Dallas Goedert: It was somewhat surprising that he returned this season after taking a major pay cut last year. But the free-agent market wasn't what had hoped for, so he came back on another one-year deal. The Eagles have much more depth now at his spot, including second-round pick Eli Stowers.
QB Tanner McKee: He enters the last year of his four-year deal. It's already weird the Eagles are giving second-team reps to Andy Dalton, a veteran journeyman. McKee has shown enough promise for some QB-desperate team to sign him to a moderate QB deal – heck, Malik Willis got $22 million per year from Miami – that will benefit the Eagles in the comp pick formula.
EDGE Nolan Smith Jr.: The Eagles picked up his fifth-year option for 2027, so they wouldn't just cut him if Smith doesn't perform well or deals with more injuries this season. However, with Jalyx Hunt potentially in line for an extension next offseason, the Eagles could look to move Smith, whose one-year price tag would be very attractive for teams looking to add edge depth.
RB Saquon Barkley: This is the final year of Barkley's entire salary being guaranteed. In 2027, only $2.5 million is guaranteed. Barkley will be 30 going into the 2027 season. All things to keep in mind as he attempts to have a bounce-back year. He's still a tremendous athlete and hasn't shown signs of losing his burst, so the Eagles wouldn't be looking to move on unless they had a good reason.
LG Landon Dickerson: He already took a small pay cut after an injury plagued 2025 season and had considered retirement before deciding to return. He's had multiple surgeries, both in college and the pros. If he continues to be a shell of himself in 2026 – the final season of guaranteed money on his contract – Dickerson will be replaced by 2027. Heck, he might even retire if he's not capable of meeting his own expectation.
K Jake Elliott: One of just three players on both Eagles Super Bowl-winning teams, Elliott's struggles the past two seasons resulted in him taking a pay cut for 2026, another Eagle whose guaranteed money runs out after this season. He needs a major bounce-back to be on the roster in 2027.
RT Lane Johnson: The mainstay lineman seems pretty enthused about the new offense and bummed about how his 2025 ended. Johnson will be the right tackle in 2027 if a) he decides he wants to play, and b) he plays at relatively high level in 2026.
QB Jalen Hurts: Make no mistake, Hurts isn't getting cut if he struggles this season. He has $22 million in guaranteed salary for 2027. But if he doesn't perform well – or plays great but for some reason wants out – Hurts would be traded. The more realistic scenario is he plays well and gets an extension.
ILB Zack Baun: Baun is about to enter the second year of a landmark three-year extension he signed after the Super Bowl. His guaranteed money is up after this season. The Eagles did some finagling on his contract this offseason to create some cap flexibility down the road. Bottom line: Baun will be 30 at the start of the 2027 season, and the Eagles have first-round pick Jihaad Campbell and some Day 3 guys they like – Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and Smael Mondon Jr. – waiting in the wings, both on rookie deals. It is way more likely that 2027 is Baun's last season with the Eagles, but any sudden, dramatic decline in play this season could jeopardize his standing for the following year.
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