Jaelan Phillips‘ $30MM per yr contract with the Panthers was the largest payday of any player to hit free agency.
Multiple teams were within the hunt for his signature, including the Eagles, however the 26-year-old said on Monday (via The Athletic’s Joe Person) that Carolina’s offer was “more attractive” than Philadelphia’s.
The Eagles moved a third-round pick for Phillips on the 2025 trade deadline, and he put up a powerful second-half performance, though his counting tallies of two sacks and 4 tackles for loss don’t show it. Within the last nine games of the season, he led the defense with 44 pressures, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). He finished the yr with 76 total pressures and a 18.4% pass rush win rate, each top-10 marks amongst edge rushers.
Those results created an enormous marketplace for Phillips in free agency, and he cashed in. The Eagles will now be in line to select up a third-round compensatory pick within the 2027 draft, per OverTheCap, as a consolation prize after being outbid by the Panthers.
Carolina didn’t have to make such an aggressive offer to Rasheed Walker, who drew surprisingly little interest in free agency after three years because the Packers’ starting left tackle. He was aiming for a multi-year contract with a $20MM AAV, based on Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, comparable to what Dan Moore received from the Titans last yr, but needed to accept a one-year, $10MM cope with the Panthers.
Moore’s contract didn’t age well, so teams can have been hesitant to pay for starting experience reasonably than true high-end talent. Walker has graded out well as a pass blocker, but his run-blocking grade has never been higher than 56.3 and his pass blocking efficiency has never topped 96.5.
Carolina is a superb situation for Walker to attempt to push his valuation into the market he desires. Left tackle Ikem Ekwonu is recovering from a ruptured patellar tendon in his right knee, and provided that the injury happened in the primary round of the playoffs in January, he may not play in 2026. Walker will take his spot for the season within the hopes of a much bigger payday this time next yr.