Philadelphia Eagles: Alshon Jeffery an important piece for future

The Philadelphia Eagles only signed Alshon Jeffery to a one-year deal. However, he is an important piece of their future.

If you asked anyone in the world who the most valuable player on the Philadelphia Eagles roster is, they would say quarterback Carson Wentz. This is an obvious answer and is true, Wentz is the most important. The Eagles need to continue to build around their franchise quarterback and make sure they put him in the best possible place to succeed.

One big move they made to ensure that Wentz will succeed in 2017 is signing free agent wide receiver Alshon Jeffery. The former Chicago Bears pass-catcher has shown he has All-Pro potential in his career but has struggled to stay healthy. With that in mind, the Eagles and Jeffery agreed to a one-year deal.

Howie Roseman and the Eagles were smart only to give him a one-year commitment because if he gets injured again, they can just walk away. However, if he dominates and stays healthy, they can re-sign him, or they can franchise tag him.

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Obviously, the Eagles covered their butts with the one-year deal, but people fail to realize how important it is for Jeffery to stay healthy and remain with the Eagles past 2017. Outside of Jeffery, the Eagles do not have a No. 1 wide receiver. Torrey Smith is a great deep threat option, but I would argue he isn’t even a No. 2 receiver in the NFL. He is a player that you use to take the top off of the defense, not catch 70 or more passes a season.

Wentz is the most important, but after him, it is clear that Jeffery is the second most important player for the future of the Eagles. It isn’t Fletcher Cox and it isn’t right tackle Lane Johnson — it’s Jeffery. If he can get back to being the dominant No. 1 receiver he was in 2013 and 2014, the Eagles will be able to continue to build their roster up.

His importance is so high because if they do not have him after this season, they will need to try and find a new No. 1 wide receiver. That would be the worst case scenario for the Eagles this season. If Jeffery isn’t the guy and is gone, who is the guy? No one. Maybe a free agent, but having a hole at their No. 1 wide receiver spot will have a snowball effect on the entire roster.

Philly will need to draft a tackle or a running back early in the 2018 NFL Draft, depending on which hole they can’t fill in free agency. Those are obvious weaknesses when looking at the team’s future outlook. Howie Roseman has been dominating building the roster, so I am sure he will be able to fill one of those holes. However, if he can’t and the Eagles need both a tackle and a running back in the draft, adding a No. 1 wide receiver to the mix will be detrimental for 2018 and beyond. It will be impossible to fill those holes and hurt the plan Roseman has followed.

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As of now, if Jeffery can stay healthy, the Eagles roster is being built to be a contender. The Eagles are young and have a solid roster built around a solid quarterback. Having a weapon like Jeffery for Wentz will allow them to keep strengthening the roster at weaker spots to try and get their first Super Bowl.

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