Eagles don’t tender Singleton, letting him test free agency

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Eagles don’t tender Singleton, letting him test free agency

 

The Eagles are not tendering restricted free agent Alex Singleton, a league source confirmed to NBC Sports Philadelphia.

That means the Eagles’ leading tackler the last two seasons will become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins at 4 p.m. on Friday. ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported the Eagles’ decision not to tag Singleton.

Had the Eagles tendered Singleton (at the right of first refusal level) he would have come with a price tag of $2.433 million and a matching cap hit, which was too expensive for them. 

So a reunion with Singleton isn’t out of the question if he doesn’t sign elsewhere and the Eagles can get him for cheaper.

The Eagles have several other restricted free agents too: Boston Scott, Nate Herbig and Greg Ward. Of that group, Herbig seems like the most likely candidate to get a tender. Paying $2.4 million for a key backup offensive lineman isn’t too pricey.

Singleton, 28, has been with the Eagles for several seasons but has been a major part of the defense for the past couple years. In 2020, he played in 16 games with 11 starts and had 120 tackles.

In 2021, Singleton began the season as a starter before being demoted in the middle of the season. After some injuries, he was put back in the starting lineup and played better down the stretch. He ended up leading the team with 137 tackles, just ahead of T.J. Edwards, who had 130.

Singleton worked his way up with the Eagles after being an All-Star in the CFL. He began as a practice squad player and then became a key special teams contributor before earning a spot on defense. Ideally, he wouldn’t have had such a big role on defense, but the Eagles needed him in that role because of a lack of talent at the position in recent years.

As the Eagles prepare for the 2022 season, Edwards returns as their top off-ball linebacker. They also added Haason Reddick on Monday. Reddick will be listed as a linebacker but will be more of a pass rusher in that SAM spot. The Eagles also have former third-round pick Davion Taylor and former sixth-round pick Shaun Bradley on the roster.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/nfl-free-agency-2022-eagles-dont-tender-alex-singleton-source