By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor 
While there had been some chatter about the Eagles potentially trading Fletcher Cox, fans may have felt a bit blindsided by the Eagles roster move Thursday afternoon.
NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported the news that longtime Eagles defensive lineman Fletcher Cox had been released by the team.
Fletcher Cox was released by the #Eagles with a post-June 1 designation, sources say. At 4p, $18 million would have become fully guaranteed. Cox is now a free agent but the team and his representatives continue to have discussions about a possible return.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 17, 2022
The move appears to have been a cap saving one.
As Garofolo reports, $18 million of Cox’s salary would have become guaranteed at 4pm, so this move lowers the Eagles total cap hits over the next few seasons as a result of Cox’s last contract. The move, with a post-June 1 designation, should create a bit over $2 million in additional space for this season.
Cox spoke about previous trade rumors saying he had preferred to stay in Philadelphia rather than head elsewhere. With the Eagles making cost-cutting moves, that will appear to be tested as the two sides remain in contact on a potential new deal but it would seem unlikely the Eagles hand him another mega deal following this move.
The Eagles appear to be counting on Milton Williams and Javon Hargrave, each of which was impressive last season (Williams as a rookie).
With Hassan Ridgeway having signed elsewhere, the Eagles lack experienced depth options at the position for now. 2021 rookies Marlon Tuipulotu (draft pick) and Marvin Wilson (UDFA) join the recently signed Renell Wren as the only other defensive tackles on their currently expanded roster. Re-signing Cox or bringing in other options at the position seems like a certainty at this point.
For his part, Cox was the Eagles first-round pick in the 2012 draft and has since made six Pro Bowls, six NFL Top 100 lists and one All-Pro first team.
The 2021 season was not a great one for Cox, who registered just 3.5 sacks in addition to 35 tackles and a pair of forced fumbles.
Cox played 70% of defensive snaps last season.
