Curry Confirms Scheme Change Fueled Return

PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) - Vinny Curry always wanted to play for the Philadelphia Eagles but the dreams of a child are often enveloped by the business of adults.

The Neptune, N.J. native, who grew up an Eagles fan, officially put pen to paper by signing a a five-year, $47.25 million contract with $23 million of that guaranteed, big numbers for a player that never toiled in  more than 35 percent of his unit's plays during his first four seasons in Philadelphia.

“I really can’t see myself playing nowhere else,” Curry said at the NovaCare Complex Wednesday. “At the end of the day, man, I bleed green. That’s just what it is.”

It is now but Curry was prepared to move on if 2016 meant staying in the preferred 3-4 philosophy of Chip Kelly and Bill Davis.

"Um, no," Curry answered when asked if another year in the 3-4 was an option.

It isn't, though, because Doug Pederson and Jim Schwartz are now calling the shots.

“I couldn’t stop smiling, man,” Curry said when talking about the hire of Pederson. “I couldn’t stop smiling. You guys know me. I love to smile, I love to joke around, I love to have fun. But at the same time, I couldn’t be happier.”

That smile got even wider when Pederson tabbed Schwartz to be the team's new defensive coordinator, a veteran coach famed for the production he gets out of aggressive fronts in the 4-3.

“I knew I was coming back,” he said. “Because I know who I am. … I don’t want to say I knew I was coming back but I wanted to come back.”

Curry is just the latest player Howie Roseman has signed to an extension in recent weeks, joining tight ends Zach Ertz and Brent Celek, as well as right tackle Lane Johnson.

Curry's deal may look bloated to outsiders because he has been a part-time player during his rookie deal after being selected as the 59th overall pick in the 2012 draft. Other teams around the league see Curry as a natural weak-side rusher with plenty of tread on the tire and there is little doubt he could have gotten more money on the open market.

He now projects as a starting left end in Schwartz's defense and a potential, double-digit sack guy opposite Brandon Graham and an interior of Fletcher Cox and Bennie Logan.

"We're trying to build some continuity here and keep people together for the long run," Roseman claimed. " (We want to ) invest in our own. That doesn't mean there won't be opportunities in free agency or the trade market. But we want to show that when guys we have here play as we think they can, we want to keep them long term."

-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973ESPN.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen