PHILADELPHIA − For the Eagles’ rookies, the 2022 season was a glorified redshirt season.
Jordan Davis, the first-round pick, played just 10 snaps on defense in the Super Bowl, or 18% − and that was 10 more snaps than the other early-round draft picks, second-rounder Cam Jurgens and third-rounder Nakobe Dean.
But Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said not to mistake that for the three not being good enough to play during a season in which the Eagles reached the Super Bowl, losing 38-35 to the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 12.
EAGLES FINAL TAKEAWAYS:Does Carson Wentz contract mistake impact Jalen Hurts’ deal? 4 takeaways from Eagles brass
DREAM OFFSEASON:How Eagles can pay Jalen Hurts, keep both DBs and still have money to sign a top free agent
“They were ready to play this year,” Roseman said. “They just had great guys in front of them.”
Davis, a defensive tackle, was in a rotation with four veterans with a combined 15 Pro Bowl selections in Fletcher Cox (6), Javon Hargrave (2), Ndamukong Suh (5) and Linval Joseph (2).
Jurgens was behind center Jason Kelce, who was recently named to his sixth Pro Bowl. And Dean, the Eagles’ third-round pick, was behind starters T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White.
That will change in 2023 because it has to for the Eagles to get back to the Super Bowl. And that is also true for the upcoming draftees as the Eagles have four picks in the first three rounds, including two first-rounders at No. 10 and No. 30.
After all, the Eagles will have upward of 20 free agents beginning next month, and most of them will not be returning due to the NFL’s salary cap.
“I think we have obviously a large number of free agents that we knew going in,” Roseman said. “And we always look at this team over not just this year, but over a period of time. We knew we needed to get additional picks.”
All Roseman needs to do for an example is look at his counterpart in Kansas City in Chiefs general manager Brett Veach, a former University of Delaware running back/wide receiver. Veach got the Chiefs back to the Super Bowl even after trading their best wide receiver, Tyreek Hill, last summer.
In return for Hill, the Chiefs received five draft picks spread over the 2022 and 2023 drafts. The Chiefs started four rookies in the secondary against the Eagles in the Super Bowl in first-rounder Trent McDuffie, second-rounder Bryan Cook, fourth-rounder Joshua Williams and seventh-rounder Jaylen Watson.
During the regular season, the four combined to play more than 2,000 snaps. As a team, the Chiefs’ rookies ranked seventh in playing time, but the six teams ahead of them all missed the playoffs.
The Eagles will have to follow this model next season. In 2022, the Eagles’ rookies played the least amount of snaps in the NFL. Davis played 17% of the defensive snaps this season, while Jurgens and Dean each played just 3%.
Davis, Jurgens and Dean, however, received an education that they say will help them next season when they’re expected to play much bigger roles.
“I never really looked at it like I’m not getting any playing time. It’s just the experience,” Davis said. “(Cox, Hargrave, Suh and Joseph) are 10-plus years into their careers. Those are guys that I watched growing up. … And now you get a chance to work with them and be with them and see their families and connect with them.
“It’s a crazy experience and surreal for me. They have so many tricks of the trade. They acquired a lot of knowledge, a lot of information. Some stuff that I haven’t been able to fathom, they already know.”
All four of those players will become free agents next month. At most, one or two will return. That will open up a spot in the rotation for both Davis and Milton Williams, the Eagles’ third-round pick in 2021.
Joseph learning from four top veterans will only benefit Davis.
“He’s going to be a helluva player,” Joseph said. “He has a great motor. He’s very smart, and he wants to be great. I feel like his situation of being around so many good guys is going to make him better.
“To come into the league and those are your mentors, those are guys that you’re playing with − it’s crazy. Now that I really think about it, it’s crazy. This will never happen again.”
It’s the same for Jurgens, who cross-trained at right guard during the season. Jurgens could end up starting at center next season if Kelce retires, something Kelce will contemplate for a fifth straight offseason. If Kelce returns, Jurgens could end up at right guard, the presumption being that Isaac Seumalo will then leave in free agency.
The Eagles would be more inclined to re-sign Seumalo if Kelce retires.
Jurgens said he’s not worried about not knowing what position he’ll be playing in 2023, at least not now.
“I know I’ll be on this team next year, and that I’m a football player,” Jurgens said. “So I don’t care. Whatever they tell me, I’ll be back here being a football player, and I’m totally fine with that.”
Jurgens was then asked if he’ll talk to Kelce to get an idea of which direction he might be leaning?
“I’m sure I’ll be talking to him throughout this time,” Jurgens added. “He’s got a baby on the way. I think he’s got a lot of stuff to deal with. I’m sure he’s excited about the arrival (of his child).”
Dean should also have a spot opening up for him next season. Both Edwards, who finished second in team history with 159 tackles, and White, are free agents. It’s expected that the Eagles will bring back only one, and chances are it’ll be Edwards, whom the Eagles originally signed as an undrafted free agent in 2019.
The Eagles signed White last March to a one-year deal worth $5 million. That was before Dean fell to the Eagles in the third round of the draft. He was expected to go in the second round, or possibly late in the first.
Dean got most of his playing time as a core member of the Eagles’ special teams units.
“It’s definitely a stepping-stone,” Dean said about this season. “It’s a lesson to learn from. I’m going to use it to fuel me … to be the best version of myself for the rest of my career. This offseason, I’m going to work to be the best I can be to get this team to another level.
“You best believe that I’m gonna seize every opportunity that I get, no matter what.”
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
