The Eagles have missed out on a few wide receivers already this offseason. Some situations, like the Calvin Ridley suspension, had factors outside of football get in the way. Others, like Christian Kirk, have just been out of their price range. As we get closer to the month of April and the first wave of signings are all but completed, the Eagles seem to be on the lookout for a veteran wide receiver – Jarvis Landry.
Should the Eagles pursue Jarvis Landry?
Jarvis Landry has been in the NFL for eight seasons now and was recently cut by the Cleveland Browns. The 29-year-old, five-time Pro-Bowler has had great success with both the Browns and Dolphins. There have reportedly been numerous teams interested in bringing him in, with Philly being the latest name.
Landry played in only 12 games last year, while dealing with a sprained MCL in the process. He finished with over 50 catches, 570 yards, and 2 touchdowns. While he is getting up there in age, the experience and route-running Landry possesses offer a unique and extremely helpful target for Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles.
After losing out on JuJu Smith-Schuster, DJ Chark, Calvin Ridley, and Allen Robinson, it’s clear the Eagles are looking for a solid veteran receiver to help bolster the passing attack. It’s pretty clear almost all of them either got overpaid like Kirk, or just didn’t want to come here, like Robinson.
The question will be if Jarvis Landry will end up wanting to come here. We can assume that he won’t be the star in the room given he’ll be sharing targets with DeVonta Smith and his target-share could only decrease as a result. If he thought the Browns liked running the ball, Philly would be a very unpleasant surprise.
Is Jarvis Landry a good fir in Philadelphia?
Then, there’s the contract situation. Fresh off of a five-year, $75-M contract, it’s unlikely that Landry is going to come cheap despite his recent regression. Injuries, poor QB play, and a weirdly constructed offense left Landry with a declining role as time went on. The world knows he still has plenty of upside and while he may not fetch Christian Kirk-level numbers, there’s every chance he wants a bump in guaranteed money.
On top of that, he’s going to be working from the slot. We know that Quez Watkins is held in very high regard by the Philadelphia front office and rightly so. The question becomes one of fit. Do they want to move Quez outside and prepare to move on from Reagor, or leave him in the slot, where he thrives, and find a possession-based receiver to play opposite DeVonta? The answer is likely going to be B…making this acquisition hard to get behind.
Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire
