Derek Barnett will be sticking around Philly through at least the 2021 season. The Eagles will pick up the fifth-year option on the defensive end, reports Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The 23-year-old will see a significant pay increase during his fifth season in the NFL. While he’ll earn $2.2MM in 2020, he’ll see that number jump to at least $9MM in 2021. Last year, a defensive end in Barnett’s draft range (14th overall) would have earned $9.45MM on their fifth-year option, per McLane.
The move isn’t a huge surprise, as the 2017 first-rounder has been productive when he’s seen the field. Barnett compiled five sacks in 15 games as a rookie, and he had the game-clinching fumble recovery during Super Bowl LII.
Core muscle surgery and a torn rotator cuff limited him to only six games during the 2018 season, but he returned and started a career-high 14 games in 2019. He finished this past year with 30 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles.
At only 23 years old, the Eagles are hoping that Barnett establishes himself as a long-lasting starter opposite veteran Brandon Graham. The Eagles selected defensive end Casey Toohill in the seventh round of last week’s draft.
The talent is there. He just needs to stop playing like a dumbass
You should be a coach.
Sounds like some of my coaches…”Damnit boy, you have a bowl of stupid pills for breakfast?”
Red, is that you?
While he has shown some glimpses of hope, at this point I would have expected better from a player picked at that spot.
Strikes me as one of these situations the Eagles like to do where if he plays well enough they’ll try to lower that 5th yr # by signing him to an extension for like 4 additional yrs.
I’d really like to know why, he hasn’t lived up to the billing.