Eagles Free Agent Evaluation: Richard Rodgers

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By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor

Leading up to the start of free agency, Sports Talk Philly and Eagledelphia will be taking a look at the players on the Eagles roster who are scheduled to become free agents this offseason and how the team should look to handle each.

In this edition, we will be covering tight end Richard Rodgers.

A third-round pick of the Packers in the 2014 NFL Draft, Rodgers made an immediate impact in Green Bay. Rodgers developed into a blocking-first tight end who had the ability to run routes and make catches when needed.

It was his sophomore season that he took over as a starter and saw a career high in snaps, targets, receptions and yardage as well as nearly every other statistic. His grip on the starting role didn’t last however as the position returned to a mix of Rodgers and Andrew Quarless the following season.

In his four seasons with the Packers, the team made the playoffs three times and Rodgers played in seven games, averaging 19.7 yards per playoff game.

Rodgers signed with the Eagles in the 2018 offseason and seemed in line to be the backup to Zach Ertz with Trey Burton leaving via free agency and Brent Celek becoming a cap casualty before retiring. The Eagles then drafted Dallas Goedert in the second round and he made an immediate impact with the team while Rodgers landed on IR prior to the first game of the season and played only 42 snaps for the Birds this season.

The Eagles have Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert essentially locked into the first and second spot on the roster. They also have Josh Perkins and Will Tye under team control and both will at least be in training camp in 2019.

Ertz and Goedert will combine for a high cap hit, so the Eagles will not have the ability to spend much for a third tight end. The team does use two or even three tight end sets, so having that third tight end is vital to the team’s success. Tye may just be a camp body, but he has NFL experience with the Giants which could help him earn that roster spot while Perkins proved his talent while on the Eagles roster early this season – prior to his landing on IR and essentially swapping places with Rodgers.

Rodgers has never been a really big name and signed a veteran minimum deal with the Eagles when he reached free agency for the first time. I would be surprised if any team offered him more than a veteran minimum especially after he spent much of the season in injured reserve and then barely contributed after he was healthy.

Rodgers could be a cost-effective option and may be a good body to bring into camp. That said, Josh Perkins showed a lot more potential and is even cheaper than any contract Rodgers would sign. If I were the Eagles, I’d be looking to develop Perkins just as they did with fellow undrafted free agent tight end Trey Burton. If the team can develop him into half of the player that Burton is, the team has an even more cost-effective option as the third tight end once again. Maybe Rodgers returns to camp and competes, but Perkins seems to have the inside track for that third tight end spot.