Submitting one among this decade’s premier contract years, Zack Baun moved the needle in an enormous method towards the Eagles’ second Tremendous Bowl championship. The Eagles usually are not letting the veteran linebacker return to free company.
Baun was set to affix different Eagles starters available on the market, however a Wednesday payday will as an alternative come to go. The Eagles are protecting Baun on a three-year, $51M deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Baun may have two totally assured years on this contract, as Schefter provides $34M can be locked in at signing.
The Eagles had expressed interest in keeping Baun, who in flip wanted to stay with the team he simply helped to a dominant Tremendous Bowl win. Baun will take himself off the market, with the 2 totally assured years doing properly to persuade the ex-Saints draftee to go on a second free company go-round. Baun performed a central position within the Eagles’ newest championship, and he has scored a top-market ILB deal consequently.
At $17M per yr, Baun turns into the fourth-highest-paid off-ball linebacker. He sits behind fellow first-team All-Professionals Roquan Smith and Fred Warner and Bears 2023 signee Tremaine Edmunds. Baun, nonetheless, lands his contract at an older age than that trio did. Baun turned 28 late final yr. The Eagles are prepared to put money into his late 20s, on the very least, earlier than reassessing. The previous third-round decide gave the defending champs loads of purpose to take action.
Baun went from researching special-teamer contracts as comps to being a first-team All-Professional. The Wisconsin alum totaled 151 tackles — a cool 121 greater than his earlier profession excessive — and added 3.5 sacks, 5 compelled fumbles and 11 TFLs. Baun’s 5 fumbles compelled have been second within the NFL, and his diving Tremendous Bowl LIX interception successfully ensured viewers wanted to brace for a blowout. Baun’s 2024 goes within the contract-year corridor of fame.
This settlement comes a day after the Eagles extended
Saquon Barkley, who was already beneath contract via 2026. The famous person operating again acquired a big assure bump after hovering previous 2,000 yards. Baun didn’t take pleasure in fairly that productive of a season, however his breakthrough was extra stunning. This continues Howie Roseman‘s latest zags in relation to these positions, because the Eagles had gone some time since paying a operating again and a linebacker earlier than Barkley and Baun’s arrivals.
The Eagles’ 2024 free agent class, thanks largely to those two, in all probability goes down as an all-timer. The crew should determine on 2024 cut price purchase Mekhi Becton quickly, however this Baun settlement — coupled with the crew already having 4 well-paid offensive linemen — factors the mammoth guard to the market.
Two different Eagles Tremendous Bowl standouts — Josh Sweat and Milton Williams — are en path to free company. It could appear the Eagles made Baun the highest precedence right here. They don’t seem to be anticipated to retain Sweat, and Williams — with Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis rostered — will in all probability fetch a greater provide elsewhere. However the Eagles will nonetheless guarantee some front-seven continuity in Baun, who will assist as Nakobe Dean is prone to miss time in 2025.
