PHILADELPHIA — Jeffrey Lurie lied.
It was a lovely little lie, and a lie we should be happy about, but it was a lie just the same.
He indicated that his Eagles were ready to tank. He told us Jan. 11 that he fired Doug Pederson because Pederson saw 2021 as a rebound year, while Lurie — his team already in salary cap hell and facing a salary cap decrease — saw 2021 as a rebuild year:
"A real trough, a real transition period ... I think that's what we're in ... like 2016 ... We have to retrench and rededicate ... My vision is much more: How can we get back to the success we've had ... in the next two, three, four, five years?"
Then he went and kept all of the old guys.
The Washington Post would give Lurie's Jan. 11 address at least three Pinocchios.
It seemed, in January, a great bloodletting was upon us. The 2020 Eagles went 4-11-1, the team's first losing record since Pederson's first season in 2016. Further, the Birds were more than $43 million over the 2021 salary cap.
Solution? Excise 30-somethings making big money: defensive end Brandon Graham, center Jason Kelce, cornerback Darius Slay. Trade them for assets you could develop during the long road back.
But no.
Instead, Lurie apparently told general manager Howie Roseman to squeeze one more year of blood from these greenstones: restructure the deals of Slay, 30; Kelce, 33; Graham, who also will be 33; and right tackle Lane Johnson, who will be 31. It would make sense to do the same for expensive right guard Brandon Brooks, who will be 32. Reports in the past two weeks indicate all either had redone their deals (Slay, Kelce) or were expected to do so.
According to overthecap.com, the Eagles already have saved $12 million against the 2021 cap of $182.5 million, which was an 8% decrease from the 2020 cap. It is the only cap decrease in NFL history not related to a work stoppage.
This is not a "transition period." This is a nostalgia period.
The restructures aren't unwise, just unexpected, given all that "retrenchment" talk. They push the Eagles' cap pain from 2021 to 2022, but by then the pain should be bearable. The Eagles should have plenty of cap space in 2021, when, flush with new TV money, estimates put the cap at around $220 million. That's why Jerry Jones just signed Dak Prescott to a four-year, $160 million contract.,
ESPN on Monday kindly confirmed my report of 3 weeks ago — that Lurie, not Roseman, is making big decisions (and has been since he won Super Bowl LII) — but it went one further. It reported that Lurie has decided Jalen Hurts can be very good.
And, so, no tanking.
Boilerplate disclaimer: The Eagles are Jeffrey Lurie's team. If he likes, he can act as GM, coach, and head cheerleader.
Just be wary when he acts as spokesman.
The tank talk never rang true. The team has too many good players to consider it unsalvageable. Graham, Kelce, Brooks, Johnson, and defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, while old, remain very good players. Tight end Dallas Goedert and running back Miles Sanders could be stars. These strong personalities will provide the foundation and leadership needed both for Hurts and for Nick Sirianni's young coaching staff.
Is there a chance Lurie didn't lie? Did he just change his mind? No.
Lurie had to say what he said to justify the unwarranted dismissal of the only Super Bowl-winning coach in team history. He had to distract attention from his shortsightedness and his need to control Pederson's staff, while placating Carson Wentz. That last part blew up in his face; Wentz forced a trade anyway.
There still will be blood. Tight end Zach Ertz, receiver Alshon Jeffery, defensive tackle Malik Jackson, and maybe even defensive end Derek Barnett could be released. DeSean Jackson already was. But these divorces were likely, if not inevitable, before last season began.
Regardless, for Eagles fans, this is the best news possible. There's never a reason to tank in the NFL. Rosters can be vastly improved in the six-week window between free agency and the draft.
The Eagles failed to win the putrid NFC East primarily because the offensive line got injured, which both amplified and hastened Wentz's horrific play. The NFC East will be just as bad in 2021. As such, there is no reason to not try to win it with eight or nine wins. As the 9-7 Giants showed us in 2011, anything can happen in the playoffs.
And that's no lie.
