Eagles’ lingering offseason questions: Dallas Goedert’s status? NFL draft priorities?

The first wave of the NFL offseason has brought the Eagles’ roster slightly more into focus, but there’s plenty of time before that group will actually take the field together.

Between now and then, there will be a handful of major questions facing Eagles general manager Howie Roseman as he works around the margins of one of the league’s most talented rosters.

Here are the five biggest questions across that roster going into the next phase of the offseason, one that features the NFL draft and another cluster of trades and free-agency signings that often follow.

Considering the dominant performance the Eagles’ pass rush provided in Super Bowl LIX, it came as no surprise that key members of the group like Milton Williams and Josh Sweat wound up getting lucrative contracts elsewhere in free agency. And with how much Roseman has prioritized building a talented, deep rotation at both edge rusher and defensive tackle, there’s plenty of reason to believe the Eagles aren’t done rebuilding at the two positions going into the next few months.

The edge rusher group is led by Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt, with Bryce Huff, Azeez Ojulari, and Josh Uche filling out the rotation. As it currently sits, there’s a fair amount of projection required with that group. Smith and Hunt played well enough in the postseason for optimism going into next season, but health and consistency will be the determining factors for the trio of Huff, Ojulari, and Uche. It’s considered a solid year for edge rusher prospects in the draft, although given how young the Eagles already are at the position, a trade for a veteran later in the offseason could make even more sense.

» READ MORE: Thumbs up or down: Eagles beat writers weigh in on the Azeez Ojulari signing

At defensive tackle, the late-season surge from Moro Ojomo could pave the way for the former Texas standout to carve out an expanded role alongside Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis. He finished the year fifth on the team with 39 total pressures according to Pro Football Focus. He also finished the postseason ranked second among his teammates in the site’s pass-rush productivity metric, which measures how often a rusher registers a pressure, quarterback hit, or sack relative to how many opportunities he receives.

Still, the draft will offer a deep class of interior rushers and the possibility to bolster the defensive tackle rotation further, even if the team believes Ojomo is ready for more.

» READ MORE: Young Eagles Cooper DeJean, Moro Ojomo, Jalyx Hunt, and Sydney Brown could be called on to contribute more

After officially signing his contract extension to stay with the team through 2027, Lane Johnson said he hopes to play out the duration of that deal before retiring.

The 34-year-old said he’d also welcome the possibility of the Eagles drafting his potential successor in the near future to give him time to take on a mentorship role similar to the one Jason Peters served for Johnson during his first few years in the league and the one Jason Kelce took on with Cam Jurgens more recently.

“I think that would be an exceptional experience,” Johnson said. “I credit Jason Peters for my development and for keeping me aware of what the culture was like in the city and what I really needed to focus on when I’m playing tackle. He was my biggest mentor. I think where I’m at in my career, I love talking to the younger guys and helping these guys out and you can see their game develop. Being able to pass that stuff down the way it was passed down to me is a cool thing.

“I’d be honored to be a part of that process. Whoever we draft and whoever we bring in, I’ll be there to help.”

Even setting aside the Eagles’ history of prioritizing succession plans for their best players along the offensive and defensive line through the draft, there’s also a natural need for the team to improve the depth chart at tackle anyway. Adding veteran tackle Kendall Lamm will help fill the hole on the depth chart vacated by Fred Johnson as the team’s backup swing tackle last year, but the Eagles could still do well to draft over Lamm given their past prioritization of having a credible backup behind Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata.

A lineman with positional versatility could also compete for the starting right guard spot left behind by Mekhi Becton as well, all of which should make offensive line one of the biggest possibilities in the early rounds of the draft.

The Eagles may have made their balance sheet less daunting by trading away C.J. Gardner-Johnson earlier this month, but they need to shore up the back end of the secondary as a result.

The front office’s internal evaluation of Sydney Brown is the relative unknown here. The 2023 third-round pick didn’t feature much in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s system last season after returning from a torn ACL, which makes it difficult to know how he might look operating as one of the two deep safeties the coach often deploys. Remember, Brown got playing time during his rookie season primarily playing closer to the line of scrimmage in a nickel position that catered more to his aggressive, physical playing style.

Brown was behind Tristin McCollum on the depth chart late last year and couldn’t break into the secondary as the extra defensive back in the team’s dime package, either, but perhaps the offseason will be enough time for him to earn a bigger role. Either way, it’s easy to see the Eagles adding competition for the former Illinois standout, either through the draft or at some point in free agency.

» READ MORE: Eagles three-round mock draft: Birds get upgrades in the trenches and add versatile piece in secondary

Speaking of the Eagles’ balance sheet, Dallas Goedert could be the next domino to fall. The 30-year-old tight end is going into the final year of his contract without any guaranteed money remaining on the deal and, according to The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane, has been dangled on the trade market this offseason. If he does return, he’d likely need to agree to a restructured contract that features a pay cut.

Regardless of whether Goedert returns for another season or gets dealt, the Eagles’ habit of establishing succession plans at tight end would suggest the position will be among the targets in the middle rounds of the draft once again. They drafted Goedert with Zach Ertz entering his age-28 season and selected Ertz with Brent Celek having just turned the same age, suggesting the team is actually slightly overdue in preparing for life after Goedert based on precedent.

As Roseman often does, though, the Eagles have seemingly avoided going into next month’s draft without a contingency plan at the position. In free-agency signings Harrison Bryant and Kylen Granson, the team is in decent shape even without a rookie entering the fold. Still, adding another dynamic player to that group would raise its ceiling, especially given how often the offense used heavy personnel packages last season.

The Eagles enter this next phase of the offseason with Kelee Ringo and Adoree’ Jackson positioned as the two primary candidates in the race for the outside cornerback job opposite Quinyon Mitchell.

What about a third-party option?

At first glance, Jackson, 29, seems like an ideal replacement for Isaiah Rodgers as the first cornerback off the Eagles’ bench. The former Giants defensive back has the versatility to play both outside and in the slot, the long speed to avoid getting beaten deep, and enough experience in the league to warrant confidence in him offering a high floor when called upon in relief duty.

» READ MORE: 👍 or 👎? Inquirer Eagles writers weigh in on the signing of former Giants cornerback Adoree’ Jackson

Ringo is the wild card, with the physical profile to turn into a quality starting cornerback but a lack of experience to truly know whether he’ll make good on that upside. He spent last training camp splitting first-team reps with Rodgers but eventually lost the competition and played just 112 defensive snaps last season, primarily serving as a specials-teams ace.

At least to this point in the offseason, this summer’s competition should give the 22-year-old every opportunity to win the job and make the Eagles’ already-youthful secondary even more so. But plenty can change, especially if the Eagles add another corner to the mix in the early rounds of the draft.