The Philadelphia Eagles have been working on righting the wrong of losing out on their top edge rusher, Jaelan Phillips, after he bolted for the Carolina Panthers on a massive four-year, $120 million contract.
While Eagles fans don't blame general manager Howie Roseman for trying to match that contract, it will still sting for the fan base, as so far, Philly has signed Arnold Ebiketie to replace him. That clearly won't be enough, which led to The Athletic's Brooks Kubena to have the Eagles take Auburn edge rusher Keldric Faulk in the latest beat writers mock draft.
​​"Edge rusher emerged as a primary need for the Eagles after the Panthers lured Jaelan Phillips away in free agency with a four-year, $120 million contract. Retaining Phillips was a priority for GM Howie Roseman. But the Eagles weren’t willing to exceed their budget. After Phillips chose Carolina, the Eagles came up short in a bidding war over Trey Hendrickson and considered a trade with the Vikings for Jonathan Greenard. Signing Arnold Ebiketie to a one-year deal did not fulfill the role the Eagles required. That Faulk fell to 23 was surprising. The front office had offensive tackle atop its wish list, but bolstering the defensive front with a talent ranked No. 15 by Dane Brugler matches Philadelphia’s team-building strategy."
Eagles could find Jaelan Phillips' replacement with Keldric Faulk
Last season at Auburn was a solid one for Faulk, but it didn't match the 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks he had in 2024. During the 2025 campaign, he had 29 tackles, five tackles for loss, two sacks, and one fumble recovery, and he had a career-high four pass deflections.
Nolan Smith Jr. and Jalyx Hunt should go in as the starters off the edge for the second straight season, as Hunt showed great improvement in his game after being the first player in franchise history to lead the team in sacks (six) and interceptions (three). Smith missed time due to an injury, but should still be able to play at the high level he did in 2024.
Faulk would be a perfect rotational player off the edge for the first season as he gets used to the NFL game. Once he does that, he could fit in as a starter in 2027 and beyond, depending on what the team does with Smith's contract, which needs to be talked about.
Read more: Eagles' projected 2026 starting lineup has completely flipped after free agency
Last season was a hard lesson for the Eagles to learn about not having a good pass rush, so the hope would be that someone like Faulk in the NFL Draft would ensure the team doesn't take that step back.