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Former Eagles fan favorite safety Patrick Chung is a free agent no longer. The veteran safety signed a new deal with the team where he originally started his career: the New England Patriots. It's likely an inexpensive deal that doesn't even guarantee Chung will make the roster. Apparently our Patriots SB Nation site, Pats Pulpit, approves of the move:
It looks like [Chung is] coming back and I actually really, really like this move.
Hear me out: he knows the system. He was promising at one point in time. He was forced to play out of position in his final seasons with the Patriots due to the distinct lack of free safety (they made him cover the sidelines instead of stay in the box). He wasn't able to do it and the Patriots let him walk.
Everything has changed and I totally love this.
Chung was released from the Eagles around a month ago on the first day of 2014 NFL free agency. It would be an understatement to say that Eagles fans weren't sad to see him go. Chung really stood out as the weak point of an already unimpressive Eagles secondary. He often couldn't stay healthy, and even when he was, his performance on the field was brutal to watch. Too often he got beat in coverage, missed tackles, or even worse... hit his own teammates instead of the opponent! The Eagles saved $2.25 million by cutting him.
Some potentially good news for the Eagles is that Chung signing with the Patriots might even save them more money. Chung still has a $1M base guarantee left over from the Eagles that includes offset language. What this means is that if Chung makes the Patriots roster, the Eagles save that $1 million in cap room... not that they really need it though.
Chung was signed by the Eagles in free agency last year to a three-year, $10 million deal. The move obviously didn't work out, but in the Eagles' defense, the free agent safety market from last year wasn't that great and they needed to bring someone in anyway. Take a look for yourself.
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In other former Eagles safety news, Kurt Coleman visited the New York Jets earlier this week. He's now scheduled to visit the Indianapolis Colts, where former Eagles front office member Ryan Grigson is now the general manager. The Eagles recently gave Coleman's old jersey number (42) to newly signed safety and special teams ace Chris Maragos.