Dissecting every Eagles unrestricted free agent: Might anyone return?

LANDOVER, MARYLAND - JANUARY 02: Rodney McLeod #23 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates after an interception during the fourth quarter against the Washington Football Team at FedExField on January 02, 2022 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MARYLAND - JANUARY 02: Rodney McLeod #23 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates after an interception during the fourth quarter against the Washington Football Team at FedExField on January 02, 2022 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /
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Philadelphia Eagles
Steven Nelson (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

Philadelphia Eagles. Steven Nelson. 3. player. 54. . CB

Might the Eagles add Steven Nelson down the road again?

Throughout the season, Steven Nelson received criticism but honestly wasn’t all that bad for a CB2. It’s important to remember the years of watching Bradley Fletcher, Cary Williams, Leodis McKelvin, Nolan Carroll, Jalen Mills, and Ronal Darby. There are a few more names that were left out to lessen the painful memories.

Nelson was far from perfect but could have been a lot worse. On another team with two good outside corners, Nelson could slide inside and be a strong slot corner. Unfortunately, he’ll probably cost more than the Eagles are willing to pay for him on the outside and they already have Avonte Maddox manning sown the slot.

Other teams are much weaker at corner and will likely pay a decent price to have Nelson as their top option on the outside. Philadelphia has much bigger needs to address.

They could always add someone early in the draft or sign a free agent on a cheap prove-it deal as they did with Nelson last summer. If Nelson’s market doesn’t shape up to be as good as expected, the Eagles could always bring him back. Levi Wallace signed for just $5 million AAV. A similar deal might make sense for both Nelson and the Eagles.

Verdict: Let him walk, but that’s, in large part due to the market. Otherwise, Nelson wouldn’t be a bad option opposite of Darius Slay.