Byard’s Remorse

The Philadelphia Eagles’ safety room is set to look different once again in 2024.

Per ESPN, the team is releasing Kevin Byard.

Eagles are releasing safety Kevin Byard, per source. Eagles acquired Byard from the Titans last October in exchange for a fifth-round pick and a sixth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft along with safety Terrell Edmunds. pic.twitter.com/uClJ0gOYCc

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 1, 2024

With a $14 million cap hit from mostly non-guaranteed money, it was an expected move for the Eagles that need to rebuild much of their defense after a historic 2023 collapse and now have over $13 million more to do so.

The 30-year-old was acquired by his hometown team in October with the hope that he could be the final piece for a Super Bowl secondary.

But Byard could not rediscover his two-time All-Pro form on a defense where almost nothing went right over the final half of the season. He recorded one interception and 75 tackles in 10 games.

There is no word yet on whether the Eagles would have interest in bringing back Byard on a cheaper deal. Greg Cosell identified several free agent safeties that could be worth a look on the open market. 30-year-old Eddie Jackson, who previously had major success under Vic Fangio, is also a free agent after being released by the Chicago Bears.

For now, only one healthy safety is under a real contract with the Birds: Reed Blankenship. Sydney Brown showed promise in his rookie 2023 campaign, but it ended with a torn ACL in the final game of the regular season.

– Benjamin Paul is a staff writer for InsideTheBirds.com.