The Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl thanks to a dominating performance from their defense. Last season, the defense collapsed in the back half of the season, causing an early exit from the playoffs. This season, Vic Fangio crafted a suffocating defense that stymied Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. A big part of that defense was linebacker Zack Baun. Throughout the playoffs, he was all over the field, making big plays at key moments. He is one of the biggest free agents for the team, and a new report indicates the Eagles may get outpriced.
Philadelphia Eagles Zack Baun Market
It isn’t hard to see why the market for Zack Baun will be competitive. After spending the first four years of his career with the New Orleans Saints, he was signed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal by the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s safe to say he outperformed that contract. He racked up 151 total tackles, 93 solo tackles, five forced fumbles, and 3.5 sacks. In the playoffs alone, he had two interceptions. The Eagles would love to re-sign him, but according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, that may be difficult.
“I really expect Zack Baun to have a great market after having the year he had. There are a lot of teams in on Zack Baun. He’s going to be expensive for Philadelphia, if they want to do it. I just think they may get outpriced there.”
Many teams have plenty of cap space, especially after the NFL announced a record-high salary cap for 2025. Baun is a young player who could captain a defense for years to come. The Philadelphia Eagles definitely want to keep him, but they might not be able to make the money work. They already have contracts out to Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown, and Devonta Smith. Other rising stars like Jalen Carter will have extensions coming down the line, and the team will have to manage the cap to continue to field a Super Bowl-worth team.
Free Agency Questions
The Philadelphia Eagles have other impending free agents that should command top dollar on the open market. Josh Sweat, who had 2.5 sacks in the Super Bowl, is a free agent, and many believe he is likely to move on. Philadelphia has a plethora of pass rushers and will look to develop those players instead of paying him. While the team has made it no secret that they want to keep Baun, they also may let him go at a certain price.
There is always risk in signing players who have one career year. Prior to this past year, Baun only had 88 total tackles in four years with the Saints. Some of this could have been a coaching staff that didn’t see the potential, or it could have been a bad scheme for his playstyle. However, we’ve seen deals like this go bad. De’Vondre Campbell signed a similar deal with the Green Bay Packers and had a career year where he was first-team All-Pro like Baun. He was rewarded with a huge contract, only to never live up to it. This is not to say the same thing will happen to Baun guaranteed, but it is something the Eagles should consider.
Final Thoughts
The Philadelphia Eagles have a Super Bowl window. Regardless of what happens to Baun, the combination of Hurts, Smith, Brown, and Saquon Barkley will have this team in contention. The defense has some young rising stars as well. However, if they were to keep the young linebacker, this could be a dominating team in the NFC for the immediate future.
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