It’s not an easy task to reach the Super Bowl in back- to-back seasons, but it has been done a few times in the last decade. 

The Kansas City Chiefs made the Super Bowl in 2020 and 2021, the New England Patriots in 2017 and 2018 and the Seattle Seahawks in 2014 and 2015.

I have said it before and I’ll say it again… what’s most upsetting about this season is the fact the Eagles were the most dominant team. Even though they lost in the Super Bowl, the Eagles were still the better team, just not in that game. 

Still, the most painful part about the situation is the Eagles are losing a lot of key players to free agency and, again, reaching the Super Bowl in two straight seasons is very difficult.

But not impossible.

First step, let’s look at the free agent situation.

After reconstructing Jason Kelce’s contract, the Eagles have about $10 million in cap space to work with this offseason. Quarterback Jalen Hurts’ is set to get a big contract extension, while 18 pending free agents may not return, a list that includes Kelce, Fletcher Cox, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Javon Hargrave, James Bradberry, Kyzir White, Isaac Seumalo, Andre Dillard, Brandon Graham, Boston Scott, T.J. Edwards, Miles Sanders and many others.

Here are some of the key FAs:

Bradberry signed a one-year, $7.5 million deal before the season. He performed at an All-Pro level and most likely will be headed somewhere else on a bigger deal. I really do want to keep him, but it’ll be hard.

Edwards led the Eagles in tackles and will definitely have other offers in free agency. It’ll be great to get Edwards back on a team-friendly deal,  though.

White is another linebacker set to hit the open market. Along with Edwards, it’ll be hard to lose him. However, Nakobe Dean is ready for an increased role, so either  Edwards or White are gone. The Eagles have Haason Reddick returning, too.

Sanders after his 1,000-plus rushing yards with double -digit scores, teams will throw money his way. Sanders has said he wants to stay in Philly. So, maybe Sanders takes a lesser deal to remain in Philly. If not, cheaper running backs are available.

Scott has been great in his complementary role here. It would  be great to have him return, but teams may offer him a better deal. I expect the Eagles to either keep him or Sanders. 

Seumalo was great this year on the offensive line. The Eagles should definitely try to bring him back, but other teams might offer him more money. 

Kelce will be back if he decides not to retire. But Kelce will get about $13 million this coming year, so that will eat cap. 

Dillard is most likely gone. Nothing against the guy, but with his issues to stay on the field, let him find another home.

Gardner-Johnson led the league in interceptions and is deserving of a big deal. If anyone, the Eagles should keep him. The rumor is he wants to stay here and the Eagles are expected to use a franchise tag on him if a deal cannot be reached.

Linval Joseph/Ndamukong Suh are both set to be free agents. They signed one-year deals but won’t be back. Jordan Davis is the main DT going forward.

Marcus Epps had a good first half of the season, then was just OK. If the Eagles consider bringing him back, then it would be very cheap. Epps may look elsewhere.

Robert Quinn is probably gone. Other players should be a bigger priority.

Gardner Minshew is a good backup. I know the Saints game hurt, but he performed well against Dallas. Still, I wouldn’t pay him a lot to return as a backup.

Zach Pascal was a good run blocker and, as a WR, he had 15 catches for 150 yards and one touchdown in 17 games. For very cheap, I wouldn’t mind him returning on another one-year deal.

So the situation is complicated. 

At QB, we know Hurts will get that extension and eat a lot of cap. That’s why Minshew is most likely gone and the Eagles will draft a quarterback late or sign another free agent. At RB, the most realistic situation is Kenny Gainwell earns the starting  job and Scott returns. So, Sanders is probably gone. If Scott is gone too, Trey Sermon is still under contract. 

At WR, AJ Brown is locked-in. DeVonta Smith is still on his rookie deal, but will definitely be in the conversation for an extension next year. Quez Watkins is still under contract. The Eagles should be set there, minus Pascal. He may be replaced. 

At TE, the Eagles still have Dallas Goedert, Jack Stoll and Grant Calcaterra all squared away. The offensive line is a little questionable with the unknowns around Kelce and Seumalo, but Jordan Mailata, Lane Johnson and Landon Dickerson are also in good shape for 2023. Johnson’s contract will probably be reconstructed as he will be a $24 million cap hit next season

The bigger issue is on the defense as most of the free agents are on that side. The Eagles cannot keep them all. Gardner-Johnson has to be a priority. Bradberry is going to be a huge loss, but he wants to get paid.

The Eagles could keep White or Edwards and bring back Gardner-Johnson. But having two great corners in Slay and Bradberry was amazing. I don’t remember being so happy with the Eagles corners, but it’s hard to envision Bradberry returning. Avonte Maddox, Reed and K’Von Wallace will return, too. Losing Bradberry would sting, but there is some returning talent back there. 

It’ll be an interesting offseason. The new league year starts at 4 p.m. March 15. The Eagles have good draft picks in April’s NFL Draft. Howie Roseman had some business to do, that’s for sure. We will just have to wait and see what happens in the next few months.