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It was a rather simple decision. The Philadelphia Eagles weren’t just going to give Derek Barnett away for a bag of footballs, especially after they had a glimpse of what life without him was like last year.
It wasn’t terrible, mind you, not with the emergence of Josh Sweat and his career-high 11 sacks, the realization that Brandon Graham can be more effective with fewer snaps, and then, of course, the trade for Robert Quinn that cost the Eagles a fourth-round pick in this past spring’s draft.
“That's a position for us which you see with the 53-man roster, it's a priority,” said general manager Howie Roseman. “So, we're going to keep as many of those guys as we possibly can. Last year we got in a little bit of a bind and had to give up a pick and had to sign guys in the middle of the year.”
The Eagles value the defensive line so much, that 13 of the 53 players they kept on cutdown play there, with seven defensive tackles and six edge rushers.
With such depth, Barnett and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, wanted to explore trade avenues in the days leading up to Tuesday’s final cuts. Their logic is that there won’t be enough reps for Barnett to put up numbers that will lead to another contract following this season when his restructured deal with the Eagles expires.
The Eagles will listen to any trade offer, but it has to make sense for the team.
“I think you know us well enough that any conversations we have with players are private,” said Roseman. “Tremendous respect for Derek and the player and person that he is and what he brings to this football team. Love having him here. That's why we bring him back.
“…So, for us having those (defensive line) guys let us sleep a little bit better at night, and Derek is certainly one of those guys.”
Barnett seems fully recovered from his ACL and had a summer in which he stood out, though sometimes, as is the case with him, not for all the right reasons. He squared off in a boxer’s stance during one joint practice with the Cleveland Browns after Jalen Carter forced a fumble from quarterback Deshaun Watson and Barnett scooped it up and began banging into Browns.
It’s no secret that when he’s on the field you have to hold your breath that he won’t pick up a person foul penalty for his aggressive, sometimes-after-the-whistle play.
“I just think he has had a great camp and so excited that he is a part of this football team,” said head coach Nick Sirianni. “I love his toughness, his edge, and his ability that he brings to this team every day.”
The coach isn’t concerned that Barnett may not be thrilled with the probably-limited role he is facing with the start of the regular season on the horizon.
“No, because we've had discussions with him,” said Sirianni. “Like Howie said, we'll keep those discussions that we have with our players private.”
Prior to suffering his injury, Barnett played at least 60 percent of the defensive snaps in four straight seasons.
He only had two sacks in 16 games in 2021 and has just 21.5 in his career, unable to quite live up to what the Eagles had hoped they were getting from a player they drafted 14th overall in 2017 after he broke Reggie White’s sack record at the University of Tennessee.
More must-reads:
- Cowboys QB Dak Prescott provides significant update on contract negotiations
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- The 'AP First-Team All-Pro tight ends' quiz
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