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Eagles extend-restructure DeMeco Ryans' contract

    by Jeff McLane
    Published 

The Eagles announced on Monday that they signed linebacker DeMeco Ryans to a one-year contract extension. They also restructured his deal and lowered his $6.9 million salary cap number for 2015, an NFL source said.

Ryans' two-year deal is for $7.5 million and is worth up to $10.5 million with $6.25 million in guaranteed money. He got a $2 million signing bonus and his 2015 base salary is now $2 million, so the cap number drops from $6.9 million to around $3 million, per the source.

Ryans is coming off the second Achilles tendon rupture on his career. Earlier this month he told The Inquirer that his rehabilitation was progressing as expected and that he anticipated a full return by training camp. Ryan suffered the injury in Houston against his old team the Texans on Nov. 2.

The Eagles have three starting-caliber inside linebackers currently on the roster with Ryan, Mychal Kendricks and the recently-traded-for Kiko Alonso. Eagles coach Chip Kelly said one of his primary objectives this offseason was to address depth at the position.

"I think DeMeco missed eight and Michael missed four," Kelly said last week at the NFL owners meetings. "So it was really getting depth at our inside linebackers, getting more players. It was something that we were really striving to get accomplished in the offseason."

The Eagles also signed former Packers linebacker Brad Jones this offseason. They also have Najee Goode, who missed most of last season with a torn pectoral muscle, and Emmanuel Acho on the roster.

Kendricks is entering the final year of his rookie contract. There had been speculation that the Eagles would approach him about an extension this offseason, but that has yet to occur, and may not before the season with Alonso now in the fold.

"When he was healthy, he played really well for us," Kelly said of Kendricks. "But we missed him for…four games. And the health aspect was a difficult thing. We were a different team without him on the field. But when he played, he played really well for us."