When the Eagles broke up their tight-end duo, they gave the younger of the two a chance to prove his worth. He's now cashing in.
Philadelphia has agreed to terms with Dallas Goedert on a four-year, $57 million contract extension that includes $35 million in guaranteed money, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo and NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported. The extension runs through 2025, Goedert's age-30 season.
Goedert's extension makes him the third-highest-paid tight end in the NFL based on average annual value, with his $14.25 million per year placing him between Baltimore's Mark Andrews and Kansas City's Travis Kelce. San Francisco's George Kittle remains the highest-paid tight end at an average annual value of $15 million per year.
"We're really excited for him," Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said of Goedert's extension Friday. "He's the type of guy that we think the world of. He's a great football player, great on and off the field. Just the type of guy you want to succeed and sign contracts like this and keep in the building."
The extension is a significant demonstration of confidence and belief in Goedert's future. If it's anything like the career compiled by the man he officially replaced last month -- Zach Ertz -- it will be well worth the money.
Ertz spent all eight of his NFL seasons prior to 2021 in Philadelphia, and mended fences with the Eagles in time to play six games this year before he was shipped to Arizona less than a month before his 31st birthday.
That move was a necessary evil of the business, of course. The Eagles knew Ertz wasn't getting any younger, and they had a player who was very similar to Ertz -- but younger and in a contract year -- who deserved to get a larger share of the workload before Philadelphia could decide to extend him. Goedert has since seen a slight increase in targets, receptions and yards per game, filling the role vacated by Ertz's departure in what was always easy to see would be a natural fit.
Often, it was easy to confuse the two when they shared the field because of their similar builds and athleticism. In a complementary role, Goedert tallied 166 receptions for 1,894 yards and 14 touchdowns in his first 51 career games (34 starts).
In 2018, the Eagles essentially drafted a younger Ertz to one day replace Ertz, and after three-and-a-half seasons spent together, Goedert's extension now completes that long-term plan.
All that's left for Goedert to do now is embrace and capitalize on his increased role. With the financial work now out of the way, Goedert can focus on becoming a premier tight end the Eagles believe he can be.
