One Eagles free agent target remaining at each position: Quarterback

This week, I will be examining each position on the Eagles roster and looking at the remaining free agents waiting for contracts, either at training camp or in the coming seasons. Some positions may use an initial caliber free agent and one is not available; some do not need much but have many options in today’s market. Then for some it will be easy; and for some it will be difficult.

Here, we will start with the factory position: quarterback.

If the Eagles have to sign a free-agent quarterback this year, something went terribly wrong. Such is the nature of the quarterback room they have built. With Carson Wentz entrenched as the long-term initiator and Nate Sudfeld as the short-term quality backup, they didn’t need much in the first place, and then added rookie QB Jalen Hurts as a long-term backup and device option. His quarterback triple is as safe as any in the NFL.

So if they’re adding a free agent, it’s probably a response to an injury at Carson Wentz. They can’t lead a fourth quarterback unless he’s on the practice squad, which is a position Kyle Lauletta probably has already filled. He’ll be a veteran passer, but he would have to be a veteran passer who would add more value to Philly in a year of provisional play than the Eagles would get by starting and developing Hurts, or trusting Nate Sudfeld.

However, the list of veteran quarterbacks is not impressive. With Cam Newton signed in New England, here it is the remaining harvest of major free agents 2020.

The best name on that list is probably McCown, whom the Eagles saw last season in the playoffs when Carson Wentz suffered a concussion. McCown was fine in that capacity, but if that’s what you bring to play long-term, it’s hard to imagine you wouldn’t get anything better from Hurts, both in short-term offensive power and long-term value of his development.

So really the only name of interest is the player not on that list: Colin Kaepernick.

No one knows for sure if Kaepernick would be a better player in 2020 than McCown would be, just because Kaepernick hasn’t taken meaningful photos since 2016. What we do know for sure is that, between the two, Kaepernick was the best player ever. through his career up to this point. In fact, he kept an initial job, gave presentations, accumulated statistics, and was successful in the playoffs. Kaepernick also brings the QB mobility that the Eagles seem to be appreciating with the Hurts team.

So if any QB free agent goals remain for the Eagles, it must be Kaepernick, who could start in place of Carson Wentz and win some games. Again, there is a justified question: Is it better for the Eagles than allowing Hurts to start and develop by 2020? Or is the money spent on a Kaepernick contract worth losing that cap space, relative to just starting Sudfeld and trying to win with him?

The Eagles have been listed as logical landing place for Kaepernickand attended his training last November. Given his penchant for high-profile QB acquisitions and a history of activism in the Eagles’ locker room under Jeffrey Lurie, Kaepernick would not be a firm the Eagles shied away from for the extra attention he would give the team. The only major deterrent would likely be the size of the negotiated contract, as the Eagles need to retain the cap for future years, and shouldn’t be looking to add money anywhere.

Who do you think is the only QB free agent that the Eagles are more likely to target in 2020? Let us know in the comments below.