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Well, so much for the Philadelphia Eagles being in the mix for free agent safety John Johnson.
Johnson is leaving the Los Angeles Rams to sign with the Cleveland Browns, according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport. The three-year contract is worth $33.75 million with $24 million guaranteed, according to NFL insider Mike Garafolo.
The Eagles signing Johnson never seemed especially likely due to cap constraints but he would’ve been a nice addition for them. With Jalen Mills and Rudy Ford leaving Philly, the Eagles are down to the following at safety:
- Rodney McLeod (coming off ACL injury, might begin season on PUP list)
- Marcus Epps (29 games played, 5 starts)
- K’Von Wallace (202 career defensive snaps)
- Grayland Arnold (82 career defensive snaps)
- Elijah Riley (4 career defensive snaps)
- Avonte Maddox (unless he’s staying at cornerback, which isn’t perfectly clear)
Malik Hooker is a free agent to watch for the Eagles since he has experience playing for new Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon. The team will also look to address their secondary in the 2021 NFL Draft.
In the meantime, kind of a bummer that one of the only two free agents connected to the Eagles is already off the board. The other is Jacoby Brissett.