By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor 
On Monday, it was reported that the Eagles were shopping defensive end Michael Bennett at the NFL Combine. In response, I wrote a piece on how shopping the defensive end was a masterful move. Well, that can be thrown out the window.
My piece was reliant on the idea that the Eagles had no need to get rid of the veteran defensive end and that he had proven that he could be a contributing member to a locker room rather than a cancer. On Friday, both of those ideas were smashed.
Reports have emerged that, should the Eagles be unable to deal Bennett in a trade, they will most likely just release him. This takes nearly all the bargaining power away from Howie Roseman. It puts them in the same situation they would have been in with Nick Foles: why should a team trade for a player they could just sign a few days later? The Eagles would now be reliant on multiple teams outbidding each other just to prevent themselves from missing out on him in free agency.
Not only that, but Bennett made himself even less valuable and a possible locker room issue by appearing on GMFB.
Michael Bennett on GMFB this morning: "I'm not willing to take a pay cut. I actually want a pay raise at this point, and whatever happens just know that whatever team I go to I want to get paid more than I get paid right now." pic.twitter.com/osdCKtCxc9
— The Bitter Birds (@AdrianFedkiw) March 8, 2019
Bennett implies the Eagles wanted to restructure his deal and keep him around, but the game is all about money for him. He publicly stated he wants more money, which further causes the Eagles to lose leverage.
Now any team acquiring Bennett knows they will get a disruptive, unhappy player should they choose to keep him in his inexpensive deal, meaning they will likely have to give him a new contract anyway. Over the last season, we have seen Le’Veon Bell demand a raise and Antonio Brown demand a new team.
Here is a list of all the teams willing to trade something of value for Bell after he demanded his raise:
These are the teams banging down the door for Antonio Brown and his huge contract following his demands for a new team:
It would seem that a release is more likely than a trade.
Now not all is doom and gloom. Moving Bennett creates room for a new player.
A draft filled with defensive line talent would be difficult to pass up for the Eagles. They certainly need help on the inside of the defensive line to help Fletcher Cox, so a defensive tackle will almost certainly be picked with one of the Eagles three picks in the first two rounds, but a draft this deep means that the Eagles may look to select a defensive end with one of those picks, as well. The team already has Graham, Long, Barnett and Bennett on the outside as well as second-year man Josh Sweat.
Moving Bennett would allow a drafted player to see a meaningful amount of snaps in the rotation, but keeping him may limit the snaps that they all see unless Jim Schwartz decides to line up Bennett and Graham inside more.
It could also allow for a free agent who is looking to win. Someone like Cameron Wake could be an ideal fit. The former Penn State defensive end had the second-best pressure rate among edge defenders on the NFL in 2018 and has played for the Dolphins his entire career.
Cameron Wake proved in 2018 that he can still rush the passer with the best of 'em pic.twitter.com/Qr48WgtUNM
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) March 6, 2019
The man is 37, but he clearly still has something to give – and he can maximize the time he has left to play as well as give himself a chance to win a championship to join the rotation in Philadelphia.
The team also saves cap space with the move (as shown below).
Eagles Salary Cap Transaction Table
| Transaction | Salary Change | New Cap Space |
|---|---|---|
| Cap Space as of February 25, 2019 | – | $3,613,815 |
| Eagles Extend Brandon Graham | +$10,000,000* | -$6,386,185 |
| Eagles Decline Tim Jernigan’s Option | -$7,000,000 | $613,815 |
| Eagles Extend Jason Kelce | -$4,000,000 | $4,613,815 |
| Eagles Extend Isaac Seumalo | +$800,000 | $3,813,815 |
| Lane Johnson Restructures Deal | -$8,200,000 | $12,013,815 |
| Eagles Trade/Release Michael Bennett | -$7,200,000 | $19,213,815 |
* – Indicates number is a projection and not yet official
The Eagles will need around $7 million to sign draft picks, giving them a bit over $12 million to use in free agency.
Update: Bennett has been traded to the New England Patriots.
