It wasn’t like ripping up an NCAA bracket after a couple of fledgling Cinderellas pulled off upsets but quite a few “Stay or Go” exercises in the Delaware Valley were derailed when the Philadelphia Eagles decided to bring back veteran tight end Albert Okwuegbunam on a one-year deal.
Hoping to upgrade the position after veteran starter Dallas Goedert, the Eagles took a flyer on Okwuegbunam at the initial cutdown to 53 last August by swapping late-round picks with Denver.
The Eagles got the final year of Albert O’s rookie contract as a fourth-round pick out of Missouri and a 2025 seventh-round pick for a 2024 sixth-rounder.
It seemed like a solid swing from GM Howie Roseman because Okwuegbunam had teased in Denver with his outstanding athleticism and the Eagles, who stood 31st on the waiver wire, understood the Broncos were about to move on and they were unlikely to get the TE in that fashion.
Okwuegbunam’s 4.49 speed at 6-foot-5 and 258 pounds is rare and he pulled in 54 receptions for 546 yards and four touchdowns as a backup TE with the Broncos from 2020 to 2022.
That’s not a ton of production but considering what the Eagles have been getting from Jack Stoll, who is primarily a blocker, and Grant Calcaterra behind Goedert, it served as a potential upgrade, at least in the receiving end.
However, that sentiment never manifested itself in 2023, and Okwuegbunam was an afterthought, being buried on the depth chart even when Goedert missed three games with a fractured forearm.
Okwuegbunam played just 57 total offensive snaps in 2023 and was targeted just one time all season before being placed on injured reserve in December.
With an expiring contract, it seemed a fait accompli that Okwuegbunam would hit the open market in March but the Eagles offered up a new one-year deal nearly three weeks ahead of the new league year.
Perhaps new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who has a history of doing solid things with tight ends, wants to look at Okwuegbunam over the spring and summer. Meanwhile, starting from square one with position coach Jason Michael helping refine both technique and route-running concepts instead of being the late arrival on the eve of the regular season should also give Okwuegbunam a better opportunity to earn a role.
Essentially, the extension is not only about the contract but also the time on last year’s August trade to the initial cutdown in 2024.
The decision also doesn’t exclude the Eagles from other avenues to improve the TE situation in free agency or the draft. If things don’t work out over the offseason in a positive fashion with Okwuegbunam, it should be relatively easy to move on from him.
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