DeSean Jackson praises Carson Wentz, talks about possibility of returning to the Eagles

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it’s been hard to miss all the rumors connecting DeSean Jackson to a potential return to the Eagles. The speculation started as far back prior to the Eagles’ first meeting with Washington during the 2016 season, when Jackson said he wouldn’t rule out a return to Philadelphia. Since then, there have been numerous reports about the two sides having mutual interest in getting a deal done.

Jackson recently spoke on the possibility of returning to the Eagles again in a podcast with ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

It definitely is a great story, I guess you could say. Starting your career somewhere and obviously going to a division rival team and having the possibility of maybe going back. I mean you kind of just think about all of that, where you started from and maybe where you want to finish it. It’s just a lot of speculation of a lot of thoughts. It almost sounds good but you never really know until the final decision is made. But I’m just a firm believer of you work hard, you put in the work, and continuously go out there and show everyone what you’re capable of doing. I think the sky is the limit for me. My agent, Joel Segal, is in a great position. I’m in a great position. Really I’m just going to let him be the expertise guy. He’s the one with all the experience. He’s been doing this for plenty of years. With the conversations we’ve been having, it’s great on our end. The best thing we need to do is stay under the radar, me continuously working out, and from there we’ll just sit back and see what teams are putting out there.

Nothing too revealing there, but Jackson did tell Schefter playing for a team with a great quarterback is a priority for him as he seeks a new contract. And so Schefter asked Jackson to assess Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz.

I think all them guys, man, the NFC East has some great quarterbacks. You can go all the way across the board. Carson Wentz came in and had heck of a year as a rookie. I don’t think a lot of people saw that coming. You know, you had Sam Bradford who was there, he ended up getting traded to Minnesota, so he didn’t have no choice but to step up and be that guy. But that was a gutsy call for the organization to really believe in a young guy like that who just came out of college and give him that shot. I think he killed it. He was lights out, had heck of a year. He definitely showed me he can do it and he has all the intangibles of being a big time quarterback in this league.

Certainly seems like DeSean wouldn’t mind playing with Carson.

At the end of the day, though, Jackson is very likely (and very fairly) going to sign with the team who offers him the most money.

Will that team be the Eagles? Multiple reports indicate Jackson is expected to have a big market. Philadelphia desperately needs help at the wide receiver position, especially when it comes to stretching the field. Jackson would undoubtedly be a nice weapon for Wentz, but the Eagles are tight on cap space so it’s not an easy call. Not to mention Jackson is 30 years old and one can question how effective he’ll be over the span of his next contract.

Speaking of Jackson’s longevity, the veteran thinks he can play four to six more seasons. He also told Schefter he’d be open to playing in the slot later in his career if he loses speed.

It’ll be very interesting to see where Jackson ultimately ends up. He’s publicly said he wants to stay in Washington but that won’t mean much if they don’t show him the money. Will DeSean return to Philadelphia? Will he stay in D.C.? Or will he leave the NFC East entirely? We’ll know more after NFL free agency begins on March 9.