The Philadelphia Eagles are once again about to make some difficult choices regarding how to balance a loaded roster inside the salary cap, which is why the idea of trading sack-master Haason Reddick is a very real one.
And an NFL source tells CowboysSI.com that the idea of the Dallas Cowboys investigating ways to acquire Reddick is real, too.
Eagles GM Howie Roseman is dealing with the issue while at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday.
“Haason obviously is an unbelievable player for the Philadelphia Eagles,” said Roseman. “Local kid, great success story. … Love having Haason.”
But?
“I think that anything you’re trying to do, you’re trying to blend obviously what you’re trying to do this year and how you’re going to look in the future,” Roseman said. “I think that’s the hardest job. I don’t want to get into any specifics with any conversations with players, but (I) have tremendous respect for the player and the person.”
The Cowboys have “respect” for Reddick as well, which is why our source mentions Dallas and Jacksonville as among the teams that are “interested” in making a move. (There are rumors mentioning Detroit, Houston and New England here, but we have not confirmed.)
Among the issues in Dallas? The Cowboys share the same cap concerns as the Eagles do, and Reddick is the subject of trade talk – he was reportedly recently granted permission to seek a suitor (though Reddick denied the specificity of that story) – because of what his salary demands might be. (He’s a $15 million APY standout who it seems wants a raise.)
Additionally, of course, there is the understandable obstacle of Reddick, who will turn 30 in September, being dealt within the NFC East. An Eagles source tells us that (obviously) Philly would prefer to not do that.
And one more thing: Reddick is from Haddon Heights, N.J., just outside of Philly. He played at Temple, right there in Philly. Stranger things have happened, but Reddick in a Dallas uniform would surely feel odd to so many.
But Reddick is the best pass-rusher on a big-time defense. He registered 11 sacks last year and has totaled double-figure sacks for four straight seasons. And if Dallas is truly going “all in” (“truly” being the pivotal and maybe dubious word here)? A stellar edge to add to a defensive front led by Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence would be a huge get.
The matter of compensation coming back in a trade for Reddick? It’s anybody’s guess right now … especially because if Philly wants to do something cap-friendly, it needs to be post-June 1 … at which time getting draft picks for him will be about 2025.
The Cowboys and other teams could force the Eagles’ hand and hope he gets released with a post-June 1 designation, in which case the Eagles could cut him and save $16 million under the salary cap.
“This is our salary-cap money,” Roseman said. “We’ve got to make sure we’re still making good decisions with it because, at the end of the day, as we go forward, we do have a lot of guys making a lot of money.”
Take that as a hint that Philly might have to say goodbye to a very good player. What Jerry Jones’ Cowboys do about it might be a great way to take the temperature regarding what “all in” really means inside The Star.