Which Eagles players from the 2012 draft class deserve contract extensions?

The Philadelphia Eagles enter the 2015 offseason with a number of decisions to make. 10 of the team's players are impending free agents. Some players can be released as cap causalities in order to save money. Then there's another factor to consider: for the first time since being drafted, the players the Eagles selected in the 2012 NFL Draft will be eligible for contract extensions.

Note that the Eagles can extend these players but they don't have to. If they don't, however, these players will be entering the final year of their rookie deal. The Eagles have a number of talented players from that year's class to consider making a long-term fixture on the roster. Philadelphia has ample cap space to take care of their own.

Here's a breakdown of each player along with what the Eagles should do and a prediction about what they will do.

Fletcher Cox

Beast. And he only turned 24 in December. Cox is a such a critical player on the Eagles defense. He can both stuff the rush and get pressure at a very high level. He has a great combination of size and athleticism. This is a really easy call. The Eagles need to do what it takes to keep this guy on the team for years and years to come.

What the Eagles should do: Re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Re-sign

Mychal Kendricks

The development of Kendricks has been really interesting to watch. He suffered growing pains as a rookie before his highly erratic sophomore campaign. It wasn't until last season where he really showed the ability to be a consistent difference maker on defense. He's arguably one of the Eagles best pass rushers. He can also drop into coverage and defend against the run. The only concern with Kendricks is that he's dealt with some injury issues the past two seasons. They haven't been anything super serious but the Eagles will hope to see him on the field more moving forward.

What the Eagles should do: Re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Re-sign

Vinny Curry

Here's where it gets tricky. Curry, a lifelong Eagles fan and New Jersey native, had a great 2014 season coming off the bench for Philadelphia as a 3-4 defensive end. His nine sacks were tied for the second most among players at his position. Only J.J. Watt, who is obviously a freak of nature, had more with 21. Watt also played about 700 more snaps than Curry, too. There's no questioning Curry's ability. What is worth questioning, however, is his ideal fit in the Eagles 3-4 two-gap defense. Curry's not exactly the best run defender so it seems like he won't ever have the opportunity to be more than anything but a pass rush specialist off the bench. There's certainly value in that for the Eagles but Curry might want to earn more playing time somewhere else.

What the Eagles should do: Re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Won't re-sign

Nick Foles

Foles didn't just regress in 2014; he led the NFL in turnovers before suffering an injury in Week 9. Foles has never played a full season without missing games. This is even a little more worrisome when you consider he's only headed into the season as the full-time starter once. Had Foles played in 2014 like he did in 2013, he would have been in line for a big pay day. But now he's not. And now you really have to question the organization's commitment to him. One report emerged during the season that the Eagles were souring on Foles. Chip Kelly denied this report, but later failed to give Foles a strong endorsement at the end of the season. Eagles Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie also denied to give Foles his support at the end of the season. Lurie said the Eagles "have to try to win big and focus on [the quarterback] position at all times." With a statement like that, it seems Lurie knows that "good enough" isn't good enough at the premium position. Further: "You've gotta go from good to great," Lurie said. "We're good, but that's not good enough. We want to be great. That's where we simply have to get better." (And then there's always the Marcus Mariota factor.)

Now, the Eagles absolutely should try to extend Foles to a short-deal while he value is low, but there's just no reason for him to accept a contract like that. If Foles has any kind of belief in himself that he can be good again, he'll turn down those offers and bet on himself.

What the Eagles should do: Re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Won't re-sign

Brandon Boykin

The Boyking wasn't quite good in 2014 as he was in 2013. The hamstring injury he suffered early on in the season seemed to hamper him. He wasn't bad by any means, but he just wasn't as impressive as he was in his six-interception sophomore season. According to Pro Football Focus, Boykin didn't allow a touchdown despite being targeted 66 times. Quarterbacks had a passer rating of only 77.2 when throwing his way. Despite looking like the best of the Eagles corners, Philadelphia still opted to keep Boykin limited to his slot role. Even when Bradley Fletcher was struggling and injured at the end of the season, the Eagles moved Nolan Carroll II to the outside instead of Boykin. Moving forward, it doesn't look likely that the Eagles will give him a chance to start on the outside since they haven't done it yet and they are obsessed with having their outside guys to be tall. Boykin might not want to re-sign if he's only limited to slot duty.

What the Eagles should do: Re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Won't re-sign

Dennis Kelly

The Eagles don't seem to be very high on Kelly. He was only forced into playing time in 2014 due to a plethora of injuries suffered by the Eagles offensive line. The Eagles opted to keep Kelly inactive once Matt Tobin returned from injury. Kelly might not make the 2015 roster depending on how the Eagles address their offensive line depth. Perhaps the Eagles could try to trade him this offseason for a very small return.

What the Eagles should do: Don't re-sign
What the Eagles will do: Won't re-sign

Bryce Brown

The former seventh round pick is with the Buffalo Bills now, but just a reminder that the Eagles got a nice fourth round pick by trading him away.

Honorable mention

Chris Polk and Cedric Thornton both signed with the Eagles as undrafted free agents in 2012. They will both be restricted free agents which means the Eagles will be able to keep them by offering them a contract tender. If another team makes an offer to these players, the Eagles will have the ability to match it in order to keep them. Of the two, Thornton deserves a contract extension. But I don't think the Eagles will be rushing to pay him more than they have to when they can just save money and keep him on an inexpensive contract via the tender.