Shortly after the Eagles walked off the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and returned to the NovaCare Complex on February 14 and the Super Bowl Parade celebration faded away, the personnel department shifted its focus.
The roster-building season was fast approaching.
The NFL Scouting Combine was merely two weeks away. Free agency unofficially opened on March 10, when teams could negotiate deals with certified agents of scheduled unrestricted free agents.
In other words, there was no time to bask in the glory of a second World Championship in eight seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles.
And as the Eagles looked at their offseason agenda, they put at the very top of the list the importance of taking care of three of their own players who made such a substantial impact in the Super Bowl-winning 2024 season.
So, that's what they did.
The team inked running back Saquon Barkley to a new deal, one that he certainly deserved after earning NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors, rushing for 2,005 yards in the regular season, and finishing with the most rushing yards in a single season, playoffs included.
Then the Eagles signed linebacker Zack Baun to a three-year contract before free agency started, not allowing him to even reach the frenzy, where he no doubt would have been a hot, hot, hot commodity.
Next on the list was right tackle Lane Johnson, the game's best at his position who signed his fifth contract with Philadelphia since the team used the No. 4 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft to select him.
"The first priority is always keeping your own great players, great people, so when we talked about what we wanted to do this offseason, there were a lot of challenges – coming off the Super Bowl, having a lot of free agents, having a lot of young players we would want to extend in the future. But when we looked at those three guys – Saquon and Lane and Zack Baun – difference-making players, difference-making people. It was so important to keep those guys in the building," said Executive Vice President/General Manager Howie Roseman.
The additions of Baun and Barkley in the 2024 offseason earned Roseman a lot of praise and have been called some of the most impactful additions any team has made in free agency, but Roseman is resisting putting any labels on the signings.
They've both been here for one season. They have much more Eagles football to play.
"They elevated this team to help us win another Championship," Roseman said. "They were huge pieces. They earned those deals."
