Not much has gone according to plan for the 2026 Eagles which means we have had to reset the expectations for 2026 in terms of both the roster and the salary cap. We knew Lane Johnson wasn’t likely to be around, but the losses of Cam Jurgens, Jordan Davis, and maybe even Jalen Hurts are serious shockers. Let’s take a look at the numbers.
Salary Cap
The NFL base salary cap will not be finalized until the league new year on March 11, so this is just an estimate. It is expected to be as low as $320m or as high as $330m, so we are splitting the difference. The Eagles could also have cap credits from the AJ Brown trade and other transactions, but we will have to wait and see on those.
- Projected Cap: $325m
- Eagles Rollover: $10m
- Total Cap: $335m
Dead Cap
There’s always confusion about dead cap. This is NOT money being paid to these players. It is the remnants of clever Eagles accounting finally hitting the ledger.
- A.J. Brown: $27.1m
- Jordan Davis: $15.4m
- Cam Jurgens: $14.9m
- Lane Johnson: $12.3m
- Tariq Woolen: $8.6m
- Hollywood Brown: $3m
- Arnold Ebiketie: $2.4m
- Brandon Graham: $1m
- Other: $3.3m estimate
Starters Who Probably Won’t Be Back
Nothing is set in stone yet, but the likelihood of these players being back again isn’t nothing, but it’s far more likely they are either retired, on different teams, or back on completely different contracts.
- Landon Dickerson: $5.4m
- The writing his on the wall for Dickerson who sacrificed his body for the good of the team but is no longer in the franchise’s long term plans. Whether he is cut or traded, it won’t make a difference as long as it is after June 1.
- Dallas Goedert: $8.2m
- Goedert is not under contract next season. While there is a chance the team brings him back next season (which would lower his cap hit), the plan is probably to release him after June 1 to minimize his dead cap. His contract specifically allows the team to do this by pushing his void date back past the deadline.
- Free Agents: Tyler Steen, Tanner McKee
- If they came back, it wouldn’t be very surprising, but it would be under completely new contract terms.
Locks
As this season has taught us, almost no one is truly a lock to stick around on the Eagles, but I can say these players are as close to it as possible. Why? Because the deals are signed, not up for an extension, and not likely to be going anywhere via trade. If you are wondering where some names like Drew Kendall and Willie Lampkin are, they are on minimum salaries and part of the “Rest of the Top 51” calculation.
- Jalen Carter: $9m
- There was trade speculation, but he is simply too good and too young to trade
- Jake Elliott: $5.1m
- He’s been dependable this season
- Makai Lemon: $4.7m
- Rookie deal
- Jihaad Campbell: $4m
- People want him traded, and while it’s possible, he is also on a rookie deal.
- Dontayvion Wicks: $3.6m
- Good when healthy
- Braden Mann: $2.2m
- Has he been the best player on the 2026 Eagles?
- Andrew Mukuba: $2m
- He’s been bad, but is still VERY cheap
- Eli Stowers: $2m
- Rookie deal
- 2027 1st Round Pick (#5): $9.6m estimate1
- 2027 1st Round Pick (#25): $3.9m estimate2
- 2027 2nd Round Pick (#37): $2.5m estimate
- Rest of the Top-51 roster: 30 x $1.4m = $42m3
Extension and Trade Candidates (current cap hit shown)
I’m not saying these guys are definitely getting traded or definitely getting extended, but the likelihood of them playing on the numbers below are slim. This is where Howie Roseman earns his money in manipulating the salary cap. A likely extension for Q will not raise his 2027 cap hit much if at all.
- Jalen Hurts: $42.1m (traded post June 1 $20.7m + $24m in 2028 )
- I know I am in the minority about this, but I am pretty terrified that Hurts has played his last NFL snap. If he has, the whole calculus changes. If a medical retirement happens, technically it would act as a post June 1 cut and the Eagles would have $50m+ cap hits in both 2027 and 2028. However, there would be a way for the Eagles to actually stash him for an extra year, rework his contract, and split the cap hit over 3 years if Hurts was willing to play ball. It’s also not out of the question that he gets a monster contract extension.
- Jordan Mailata: $18.3m
- Mailata is both out of guaranteed money and underpaid compared to other LTs. He will likely get an extension.
- DeVonta Smith: $14.8m
- Same as Mailata above.
- Saquon Barkley: $13m (traded post June 1 $8.6 + $17.9m in 2028)
- The reason Barkley wasn’t traded at the deadline is because his 2027 cap hit would have more than doubled to $26.5m. It was never happening. An offseason trade after June 1 though? That’s on the table.
- Zack Baun: $11.9m (traded post June 1 $6.4m + $16.1m in 2028)
- Baun was a sleeper pick to be traded this deadline, but that goes up considerably after June 1 this offseason. Why? He only has 1 year left on his contract and it is not guaranteed.
- Jonathan Greenard: $11.1m (traded post June 1 $4.7m + $14.1m in 2028)
- This has not been the best year for the injured pass rusher and the team will likely try to move on from him over the summer. His value would be low and his contract high though making the likelihood of a deal minimal but not impossible.
- Quinyon Mitchell: $4.7m
- Quinyon will likely become the highest paid CB in football next March
- Nolan Smith: $4m
- Smith is on his 5th year option which he opted to restructure early. It was an odd move without an extension coming. He could just as easily be traded as extended.
- Cooper DeJean: $3m
- DeJean is not having a great season. 6 months ago, he was looking at a $100m+ contract this offseason, but that is in serious jeopardy now. While Q has a 5th year option keeping him in Philadelphia regardless of his extension status. DeJean only has 2027 before he hits free agency. Both sides probably want to wait.
- Jalyx Hunt: $1.8m
- Like DeJean, he will be extension eligible and without a 5th year backstop. The leap everyone was hoping for hasn’t come this season
Free Agent
One of the biggest incidental news pieces to come out of the Trade Deadline was that the Eagles were looking to extend Moro Ojomo. Well, this seemed silly until Jordan Davis was traded. Now it is a legitimate possibility. I’ll have a full piece on this up soon.
Totals
Dead Money: $88m
PWBB Dead Money: $13.6m
Locks: $90.6m
Ext/Trade Candidates: $124.7m
Total: $316.9m
All in all, that comes to about $18.1m in cap space next season. This could end up being more or less depending on what happens with cap credits, the cap itself, and extensions so stay tuned.
- This is an estimate based on the #5 pick. The higher it goes, the more it would be, maxing out at an estimated 11.5m for #1 ↩︎
- Should the Jags win the Super Bowl, this would be the #32 pick and estimated to cost around $3.4m ↩︎
- This is not exact, but it is close enough for mid-November ↩︎
Photo: Public Domain via Arlington National Cemetery (cropped and edited)
Sources: Overthecap.com
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