Eagles Part Ways with Nigel Bradham
The mostly productive Eagles career of Nigel Bradham is over, after the team decided not to pick up the option year in the veteran linebacker’s contract.
Bradham, who is now eligible to be a free agent when the league’s new year begins on March 18, spent four seasons in Philly and helped the Eagles win a Super Bowl in 2017. The decision to let Bradham go was first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Tuesday.
Moving on from Bradham means two things for the Eagles.
First, they will now have an additional $4.46. million in salary cap space, which brings the Eagles' room under the cap to close to $50 million.
Second, they will need to find a replacement. Currently, Nate Gerry is the player who will likely take Bradham’s spot, with T.J. Edwards also in the mix. At this point, Kamu Grugier-Hill is not an option since he is a free agent.
The Eagles will likely look to sign a free agent or take a linebacker in the draft, something they rarely do, at least in the first few rounds. Gerry was a fifth-round draft pick in 2017 and the last linebacker taken.
The last time the Eagles took a linebacker in the first three rounds of the draft was 2015, when they drafted Jordan Hicks in the third round, the 84th player taken overall. Former coach Chip Kelly, however, ran that draft.
Bradham, who will turn 31 in September, played 58 games in Philadelphia after arriving as a free agent from the Buffalo Bills, where he spent four seasons.
He made 58 starts for the Eagles and was consistently in the top five on the team in tackles. His snap count has consistently hovered around 90 percent the past four years with last year the exception when he played 71 percent. Had he not missed four games with an ankle injury that number would have been around what it has been.
While in Philly, Bradham made 348 tackles with two interceptions, five sacks and four fumble recoveries, including one that he returned 47 yards for a touchdown in a Dec. 15, 2019 win against the Washington Redskins.
