Pederson Wants Peters Back
PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) - Once the party is finally over, the hangover follows.
One of the most difficult questions facing the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles this offseason will be the future of potential Hall of Fame left tackle Jason Peters.
Peters turned 36 late last month and is coming off a torn ACL and MCL that cut short his 2017 season during the Week 7 game against Washington.
In Peters stead, second-year player Halapoulivaati Vaitai held his own for the most part, partially due to the mentoring of the veteran Peters, a team captain who embraced the ability to stay close to a special team by tutoring the younger offensive linemen.
During his season-ending press conference, Wednesday at the NovaCare Complex, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson offered his two cents on the subject.
"This guy is a Pro Bowl left tackle," Pederson said. "Guys like that, in my humble opinion, they can go out [retire] whenever they want to go out. I respect him, and what he's done, and how he's working right now through injury. If you had to hold a gun to my head right now, I'd say 'yeah, he's my [starting] left tackle.'"
Ultimately, however, the Eagles now have a more traditional setup when it comes to football operations and the offseason is for Howie Roseman.
Furthermore, the Eagles are projected to be over the salary cap when the next league year begins so moves have to be made and because Peters has one year remaining on his deal with a cap number approaching $11 million, his contract could be purged if the veteran is unwilling to tweak things.
-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973espn.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen