One of the biggest offseason fears among Eagles fans was losing Jordan Hicks to free agency. Although the Texas Linebacker expressed an interest to stay, the 26-year old is nowhere near his prime and is already surging in the right direction, with only injuries holding him back.
Those worst fears have been realized today, as it has been announced that the Cardinals have signed the former Eagles linebacker to a 4-year contract with $20M guaranteed, $36M altogether.
The Cardinals could probably afford to give Hicks that kind of money, while the Eagles simply couldn’t given their cap restrictions and how many holes they have to fill.
Hicks became a fan favorite during his short time with the Eagles, with some stunning plays against the Dallas Cowboys sending him straight into celebrity status. But for all his production and athleticism, the point remains that he’s only played one full season since being drafted by the Eagles four years ago. When healthy, Hicks becomes a natural leader in the defense…but when he’s not, his absence stings massively.
The Eagles have made a flurry of roster moves this week and losing Hicks all but makes linebacker one of their biggest needs as free agency opens up. The idea of drafting Devin Bush Jr. in the first round is enticing and the Eagles do have some leverage with Paul Worrilow returning to complete the season that was stripped from him one year ago.
The Eagles will need a new middle linebacker to captain their defense, with Bradham leading the outside and a combo of Kamu Grugier-Hill and Nate Gerry captaining the other, but will they draft a new leader of the Animal Kingdom or source one elsewhere?
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