Nick Piccone
Howard Eskin recently appeared on NFL HQ on the NFL Network and said that Fletcher Cox recently turned down an offer by the Eagles which would have paid him $60 million guaranteed. Here’s what Eskin said:
This is ridiculous because Fletcher Cox, a lot of these guys listen too much to their agent. His agent is Todd France. The Eagles, I have been told, have offered him over $60 million guaranteed. Now, the contract would be over $100 million, but Todd France has told Fletcher Cox not to accept that and that’s ridiculous because the Eagles could have his rights for three years. The year the contract left this year, they can franchise him two more years, $60 million guaranteed, and Fletcher Cox is not a guy that spends a lot of money, but Todd France represents other defensive linemen, so, and people believe this in football, that he’s trying to get an unbelievable deal for Fletcher Cox so his other players’ scale of salary would increase and he’d use this to try to get those guys more money.
It’s ridiculous that Fletcher Cox has not signed a contract, which guarantees him over $60 million. And a couple years ago, he had some back issues and, I mean, any player can go down, so that’s the problem. The Eagles have offered him a lot of money and his agent, Todd France, said “Nope,” and I think he’s using Fletcher Cox for his other players down the line.
If Eskin’s report is true, it’s a little disconcerting. The Eagles should be able to lock Cox up, but it’s interesting that after making a splash in re-signing the likes of Brent Celek, Zach Ertz, Vinny Curry among more, Cox hasn’t signed a new deal yet. I’m willing to bet negotiations haven’t really moved into a hot zone yet, so it doesn’t bother me that much. But, if they can’t sign Cox… yikes.
Here’s the audio of Eskin, if you wish to listen to his golden vocals.
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Now, if this tickles your fancy, Eskin was asked before about the Eagles and the possibility of them drafting a quarterback in the first round of the draft, and said the team has reservations about drafting Carson Wentz because he only played two years of college, which was at North Dakota State. He also states that Jared Goff like him better than Wentz because of his experience, and they may try to leapfrog the 49ers to draft him, but they won’t spend a lot.
Eskin thinks they’ll trade back to recoup a second-rounder and take an offensive lineman in the first round, but that remains to be seen.