The Philadelphia Eagles have finally ended the drama at TE. After a year of negotiations and the eventual trading of Zach Ertz, the team have gone all-in on Dallas Goedert, making him their franchise tight end.
His contract will now run through 2025 and is worth $59M, with $35M guaranteed. That number is ironically $2M more than amount paid to Travis Kelce during his big payday, making him the second-highest paid TE in the league. Considering that the Eagles were refusing to pay Zach Ertz the same kind of money Austin Hooper makes, this is a much more aggressive move.
Goedert is clearly the future of the TE position in Philadelphia, but he’s suffered a myriad of minor injuries that have prevented his big breakout. He’s flashed elite YAC potential time after time, but has never been able to tie it all together. The Eagles and Howie Roseman will be paying for the potential that he has and the belief that said breakout season is just around the corner.
Through 51 games (34 starts), Goedert has 166 receptions for 1,894 yards and a total of 14 touchdowns. He’s had a great start to 2021, mostly because of the free range he’s been given now that Zach Ertz is no longer pushing a glass ceiling over him. He currently leads all NFL TE’s in first-down percentage and leads the position in yards per catch (14.8). He also ranks fourth in YAC, and eighth in total receiving yards with 429.
It’s reassuring that Howie has seen the signs and isn’t prepared to let Goedert walk. He’s clearly developing a rapport with Jalen Hurts in the same way that Ertz once did with Carson Wentz. They’ve had more than enough time to gauge just how good he can become and he seems to be stepping closer and closer to that level, overcoming setbacks in the process.
The Eagles have paid a premium for his potential and were always going to since the market decided to ramp up the TE value. Roseman left this one late in a bid to see how Goedert would fare in a TE1 role and the results have clearly been more than enough to warrant a $59M investment.
The passing of the baton is now complete. All that’s left to do is sit back and watch the San Diego State product run riot in Sirianni’s offense.
Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
