Philadelphia Eagles 5 most fascinating offseason storylines on defense

4. Do they opt out of Nigel Bradham’s deal?

It’s easy to forget this now, but when Nigel Bradham arrived in Philadelphia, he was actually an outside linebacker, but thanks to that revolving door Philly has at the position, Jim Schwartz‘s refusal to put any real effort into making that a position of importance, and the fact that Jordan Hicks could get hurt putting his jersey on, Bradham’s kind of evolved into this team’s middle linebacker.

It began in 2017 when Hicks was placed on the team’s IR (injured reserve) for the second time in three seasons. Bradham was trusted to be the guy with the speaker in his helmet. He was the guy that was getting the calls from Schwartz and relaying them in the defensive huddle. He’s been the guy that has been the most consistent linebacker of the seemingly 30, linebackers they’ve brought in over the course of the past four seasons, but there’s something else that Eagles fans need to know.

Despite signing a five-year, $40 million contract extension that included $14 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $5 million on March 14th of 2018, Philly gave themselves a potential out during the 2020 offseason.

The Eagles and every other team in the NFL must designate franchise or transition players before 4:00 p.m. EST on March 10th. A decision on Bradham’s option for 2020 must be made by 4:00 p.m. EST on March 18th. Will he stay or go? That’s the million-dollar question (pun intended).