Every season there are players who breakout and become candidates for a big pay day and prove that they could be a valuable member of the team moving forward. For the Philadelphia Eagles, you don’t have to look any further than linebacker Zack Baun. Baun, an under the radar type signing in the offseason after starting his career with the New Orleans Saints as a special teamer who majority of fans had to search him to learn more about him, has exploded into one of the top linebackers in the NFL.
Signing a one-year, $1.6 million contract to join the Eagles is typically a deal a team would give a player who will provide more depth to a position opposed to being a premiere starter. Baun has turned into the latter and continues to impress. He was recently named a First-Team All-Pro selection after posting a career-best 151 tackles, which was tied for sixth-most across the league, to go with 11 tackles for loss, five forced fumbles, four pass deflections and an interception.
How significant is that in regard to the Eagles? Baun is the first linebacker since 2000 when Jeremiah Trotter was named a 1st-team All-Pro selection at linebacker and just the third linebacker in franchise history since 1974 to earn the honors with all-time great Bill Bergey being selected in 1974 and 1975. Trotter and Bergey arguably are the best linebackers to every wear an Eagles’ uniform.
Baun told PSN’s Anthony DiBona that switching to inside linebacker and grinding his way to where he is has all to do with his work ethic that never wavered. The 28-year-old who has revitalized his career, also was named to the Pro Bowl which was a goal he didn’t think he could reach when he saw an incentive in his contract with the Eagles to start the season.
Taking More Responsibility
With Nakobe Dean tearing his patellar tendon in the Wild Card round win over Green Bay, the Eagles will need someone to step up and run the defense with the “green dot” as the call leader for the defense. Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio confirmed on Tuesday that Baun will be the next man up to handle an extremely important role, especially in the playoffs.
If Baun succeeds in this expanded role, it will only add to the impressive season he’s put together all while piling on the dollars and importance that the Eagles retain him after this season. Eagles’ GM Howie Roseman might have indicated that a contract extension will be in the cards to keep Baun in midnight green for the foreseeable future when he appeared on Jason Kelce’s late night show on ESPN.
What Would the Extension with the Eagles Look Like?
What will it cost to keep Baun on one of the best defenses in the league? That’s the big question. This is a franchise who has settled for sub-par linebacking play for nearly two decades. Last season, the combo of Nicholas Morrow and Zach Cunningham combined for 180 tackles. Just 31 more than what Baun put together in the regular season.
Going back further, since 2004, the Eagles have had 13 seasons where a linebacker had over 100 tackles in a regular season with six of those seasons being represented by the same player including T.J. Edwards in 2021 and 2022, Alex Singleton in 2020 and 2021 and DeMeco Ryans in 2012 and 2013. Only Edwards’ 159 tackle season in 2022 is higher than Baun’s total tackle number this season. Other linebackers to do hit the 100-tackle mark include Nigel Bradham, Mychal Kendricks, Stewart Bradley, and Omar Gaither.
To take a quick snapshot of the unwillingness to resign proven tacklers at the linebacker position, the Eagles opted not to resign Edwards heading into 2023 and he signed a $19.5 million contract with Chicago. Singleton was paid $850,000 by the Eagles in 2021 after racking up 137 tackles but let him walk after the season and he inked a $1.1 million deal with Denver before reupping for a 3-year, $18.5 million contract in 2023. Ryans signed with the Eagles for $7.5 million but was on the back half of his career.
With Dean being out to anywhere from six months to a year based on the timetable for a full recovery from his injury, there’s a chance he will miss the start of the season. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is under contract and a potential option to be a starter, but the Eagles more than likely will need to sign another linebacker to fill the void until Dean returns.
Can Baun sustain this type of production moving forward at age 28? That remains to be seen. However, if this season is any indication, the Eagles simply can’t afford to let their best linebacker and potentially one of the best in the NFL moving forward sign elsewhere.
Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
