The Philadelphia Eagles' biggest offseason question, besides whether they will trade A.J. Brown, is whether they will be able to bring back edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, who is entering free agency.
There have been concerns that Phillips might be too expensive for the Eagles, as he's projected to make about $17.3 million per year in free agency. While his sack numbers weren't high, he was in the top 10 in pressures and hurries last season, making his midseason trade from the Dolphins to the Eagles one of the best moves of the season.
While the Eagles try to figure out how to pay for Phillips to keep him from leaving, the NFL might have just helped Philly with a simple solution. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that NFL teams were told that the salary cap for 2026 has officially increased to $301.2 million, a $22 million bump from 2025.
NFL just helped the Eagles out in the best way
This announcement is massive for the Eagles as they finally have their golden ticket to bringing back Phillips for the 2026 season. Philly went into the offseason with a cap space of $13.6 million, according to Over The Cap.
The Eagles now have a chance to use $17 million of the $22 million to land Phillips on a new deal and lock him up on a three- or four-year contract. As for the rest of the $5 million, that could be used to re-sign another player who will be a free agent, like Reed Blankenship, Nakobe Dean, or Dallas Goedert.
Another idea for the Eagles with the extra $22 million is that if the Eagles end up trading Brown before June 1, they will lose about $20 million against the cap. The damage of losing Brown will at least be softened by the extra money becoming available.
Read more: Howie Roseman is making sure Eagles aren't being cheated on an A.J. Brown trade
Philly fans should be happy to now have enough money to spend to bring back one of their top defenders from last season and keep their talent in the city if they want to go that route.