Eagles Trade Prediction Lands Them 21-Sack Edge Rusher From AFC Contenders

The Philadelphia Eagles have now officially sent edge rusher, Bryce Huff, to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a conditional fifth round pick, per CBS Sports reporter, Jonathan Jones.

Consequently, the Eagles may feel like they are in need of one more pass rusher to beef up the outside linebacking unit. The team also lost starter, Josh Sweat, in free agency, with second year pro, Jalyx Hunt, set to fill Sweat’s role after a strong finish to the season during the playoffs.

Behind Sweat and Hunt, Philadelphia added both Josh Uche and Azeez Ojulari. Both have demonstrated starter-like qualities, and equally suffered injuries and dips in form over the past half decade or so.

The Eagles relied on an exterior pass rush by committee in last year, with five different players having played significant snaps on defense at the position. Three of them – Huff, Sweat and the now-retired Brandon Graham – are no longer with the organization.

Eagles Could Look To Add Another Defensive End Before September

Unless Philadelphia have truly supreme confidence in their two budding young edge rushers and their two high-upside veteran additions, they may think about adding another reliable face to the unit.

That face, according to Eagles writer, Anthony DiBona, could be Buffalo Bills defensive end, AJ Epenesa, who is on the final year of his 2 year, $12 million deal signed last offseason.

In response to a write-in question asking about any acquisitions DiBona could see Philly making, DiBona claims that the former Iowa Hawkeye could be a “possible target”.

“One player that I mentioned in a recent article is Buffalo Bills edge rusher A.J. Epenesa.” DiBona writes, “He’s heading into the final year of his current contract and Buffalo has made several significant commitments elsewhere on the edge this offseason.”

“Epenesa is a former second-round pick that has recorded six or more sacks in each of the last three seasons. The 26-year-old feels like a player that [general manager, Howie] Roseman would possibly target.”

Where Would AJ Epenesa Fit In The Eagles’ Defense?

Per Spotrac, a trade for Epenesa would leave the Eagles having Epenesa count for just over $6 million against the salary cap in 2025, before becoming a free agent next offseason.

Given the savings from the Bryce Huff trade – despite them having to take on around $5 million in dead cap space – it stands that the Eagles could pay a rotational rusher something in the $6 million territory to add depth to their group.

Since cutting around 15 lbs from when he was drafted back in 2020, the 6’6, 260 lbs Epenesa now has a more OLB body type than just a pure hand-in-the-sand edge rusher. With at least six and less than seven sacks in each of the past three years, Epenesa is almost the antithesis of someone like Uche, who has not managed to replicate anything near his one breakout-year form of 2022, when he accumulated 11.5 sacks.

In a system like that under defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, which has found a way to get the best out of talented individuals, the team may be looking for more ‘high ceiling, low floor’ players, rather than the ‘average ceiling, average floor’ levels of consistency shown by Epenesa.

But they could do much worse than Epenesa if they do decide to add more proven talent to a unit that has currently has some question marks surrounding it.