February 3, 2025   7 MIN READ

Tale Of Two Signings

Becton, Huff Illustrate Complexities Of Free Agency

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PHILADELPHIA – Mostly every offseason move orchestrated by the Eagles’ longtime roster architect – Howie Roseman – has resulted in remarkable success, adding a prominent layer to the Eagles’ Super Bowl story arc.

Trends were reversed, such as fortifying previous positions of perpetual scrutiny, like linebacker and safety.

Roseman even defied conventional thinking when he signed 27-year-old running back Saquon Barkley to a three-year, $37.75 million deal on the opening day of free agency.

Barkley, of course, provided a considerable return on investment, rolling up 2,005 rushing yards and becoming one of only nine players to join the 2,000-yard rushing club. He’s also a candidate for NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year.

But there were two moves made that told two drastically different stories, one being the signing of a big-ticket pass-rusher, the other being the addition of an intriguing reclamation project with a fleeting future.

Expectations were tempered concerning offensive lineman Mekhi Becton, a 2020 Jets first-round pick who ultimately fell out of favor for multiple reasons. He inked a one-year prove-it deal in hopes of reviving his career.

A post-draft roster addition after the Eagles had failed to come away with an offensive lineman in the early rounds, Becton was expected to provide athleticism, competition, and potential upside on a talent-laden Eagles offensive line.

Pedigree aside, the notion of pairing Becton with renowned offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland only amplified the intrigue.

“I think any time you walk out of the draft, and you think all your needs are filled you probably didn’t have a great draft,” said Roseman, the Eagles’ executive vice president of football operations. “And so coming out of the draft we knew that we wanted to add more competition on the offensive line.

“[Becton] was a really talented guy who was still available and so it was kind an easy decision for us. Whether it was an easy decision for me is probably a different story because we had some guys competing for that job and nobody was gonna say, ‘Hey, you’re the guy.’ But to his credit, he wanted to be here. He wanted to be coached by Stout, and he’s done a phenomenal job.”

Mekhi Becton getty

GETTY IMAGES: RG Mekhi Becton’s career was in jeopardy until he rescued it this year with the Eagles.

Becton, a tackle by trade, engaged in spring- and summer-long transitions inside to guard, a position he’d never before played.

Still, Becton’s willingness to accept Stoutland’s directives and philosophies were evident from the earliest days of training camp.

And when an injury occurred to presumed starting right guard Tyler Steen, Becton was there to step in for the second-year pro.

And he never relinquished his starting role.

Becton, nicknamed “Big Ticket,” started 15 games for an Eagles offensive line that produced a 2,000-yard rusher. He even earned some All-Pro votes, a difficult feat considering the talent by which he’s surrounded,

Again, it was Roseman’s conviction and willingness to take a risk that paid off.

And Becton, 25, seized a conducive opportunity to put his career back on track. On a team brimming with otherworldly talent, a one-year contract player who not long ago was cast aside arguably qualifies as the team’s biggest unsung hero.

“I would say, I just proved myself right,” Becton said after the team’s NFC Championship win over the Commanders.”That’s just the main thing. Like I said from jump, if you could just give somebody support, like, it could be so much more if you just support somebody and just uplift them.

“Tell them when they’re right, tell them when they’re wrong, but do it in the right way. It’s not that hard. It’s not rocket science. If you can just uplift your players and actually talk to them like they’re human beings … that’s all I can say.”

Now, back to the pass-rusher who was widely viewed as the belle of the ball in a relatively shallow free-agent crop.

When the Eagles signed Bryce Huff on the opening day of free agency, not only did they expect Huff to fill the seismic void created by the jettisoning of pass-rush stalwart Haason Reddick, but the common belief was that Huff was an ascending talent.

A team bringing him into the fold would be seen as getting Huff in on the ground floor, as the previously unknown Huff was coming off a breakout, 10-sack campaign with the Jets.

The signing didn’t come without risk – hardly a dealbreaker for Roseman – as Huff was a part-time player over his four seasons with the Jets and deficient in run support.

For the money they’d have to pay him, all suitors would be operating under the assumption that Huff could not only undertake a more prominent defensive role, but that a team would be getting the 2023 version of him rather than the one who’d combined for just 7.5 sacks over his previous three seasons.

But given the organization’s philosophical approach and value placed on generating pressure, the Eagles were naturally going to target Huff.

And they got their man, signing the Memphis product to a three-year, $51.1 million deal at the dawn of free agency.

Early returns were minimal, with Huff logging only 30 snaps in the opener and failing to fill the stat column until Week 6, when he notched a half-sack.

Huff would, however, add a full sack the following week against the Giants. But it should also be noted that the 26-year-old injured his wrist during warmups leading up to the team’s Week 9 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars and tried to play through it for a couple of weeks while sporting a cast.

Huff underwent a procedure and returned late in the season, playing a minor role in a 41-7 thrashing of the Dallas Cowboys and closing out the regular season with a season-high 46 snaps.

Pouring cold water on the signing is the fact that Huff never made the impact envisioned after he was expected to become the face of a new-look Eagles pass-rush.

With Huff – and eventually, Brandon Graham – sidelined, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio opted to go with a three-man rotation at edge rusher, with Nolan Smith, Josh Sweat and rookie Jalyx Hunt taking up almost all the snaps.

Huff’s return did little to alter the approach, especially in the postseason, where he has accounted for just 13 snaps over the three games.

Against the Rams in the divisional round, he dressed but didn’t play.

Still, while the returns haven’t been promising, it’s tough to bail on a young player learning a new defensive system who suffered an injury at the season’s midway mark.

In all fairness, all context should be taken into account when assessing Huff’s lone season in Philadelphia. And while his initial season might have conjured plenty of outside questions and skepticism, Roseman remains an ardent supporter, believing the best is yet to come.

“I think the story is yet to be written on Bryce,” Roseman said. “Now, I’m stubborn. I understand that. I’m stubborn on a lot of things.”

Roseman noted that Huff “got home” on two of his three pass rushes against the Commanders in the NFC Championship, adding, “I believe in the player.”

He recalled another past free-agent success, defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, improving in his second and third seasons with the Eagles after four years in Pittsburgh.

“Sometimes it takes longer,” Roseman said. “I think the guy’s got unique ability in his body. Obviously, he got hurt. When he got hurt, he was starting to come on.

“And for him to use his hands and be able to throw that, obviously it was bothering him, that’s why he ended up having the surgery. But I’ve seen it.

“It’s a little different for me in free agency with those kind of signings than it is maybe with draft picks in terms of, you’ve seen them go against guys in the NFL and do things well. And I believe in the player.”

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.

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