The Eagles considered pushing Dallas Goedert out the door. He keeps showing why they didn’t.
After so much uncertainty about his future, with much still lingering, Goedert will get more of the opportunities he did on Sunday, when he finished with four receptions, 77 yards and two touchdowns.
It goes too far to say that the Eagles have been trying to get rid of Dallas Goedert over the last two years, but it is fair to suggest that they’ve been open to other options. They signed him to a one-year contract before last season, then another one-year deal before this one, and those resolutions arrived with the feeling they had settled on him, that they were hesitant to commit to him as they had when he was younger.
This offseason and preseason seemed to bring their own softly tolling bells for Goedert, who will turn 32 in January, and his time here. The Eagles used a second-round pick on a tight end, Eli Stowers — a move strikingly similar to their decision to draft Goedert in the second round of the 2018 draft, when Zach Ertz was in his prime. They signed Johnny Mundt to pick up much of the blocking slack whenever new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion might opt for a two-tight end set. And as Stowers struggled throughout training camp — a slog that culminated with the Eagles’ placing him on injured reserve 24.5 hours before their 24-22 season-opening victory Sunday over the Washington Commanders — Goedert has remain grounded amid the rumors that general manager Howie Roseman might increase the Eagles’ depth at the position by re-signing Ertz.
“Howie’s the GM,” Goedert said just before exiting the Eagles’ locker room Sunday. “Got no control over that.”
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His words were sharp and a bit defensive, and who could blame him? He and Ertz respected each other during their three-plus years as teammates but were not the closest of friends, and no NFL player wants to be told in so many words, and with one possible player acquisition, that he needs help doing his job. Besides, Goedert was just minutes removed from a powerful and productive performance against the Commanders: Four receptions, 77 yards, and two touchdown catches that showed he still had the ability to pull off a big play or two.
The first was a 17-yard seam route on third-and-goal, just when it appeared the Eagles might settle for a field goal. The second was a 43-yard catch-and-run. What’s that country lyric from a few years back? I ain’t as good as I once was, but I’m as good once as I ever was. Goedert was that good. Twice.
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“Dallas is a phenomenal playmaker who, in my six years with him, just has always made plays in really big moments,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “He brings it every day.”
He will have to. For now, the decision to draft Stowers looks like a mistake, a swing-and-miss on a player who might be too big and slow to be a good wide receiver but not stout enough to be a good tight end. His absence, whether for injury or ineffectiveness, puts more pressure on Goedert, on Jalen Hurts, on every player on the offense as they labor through mastering Mannion’s offense. And if Sunday is any indication, that process will take a long while.
“It’s something we’re all experiencing together,” Hurts said. “We’ve got new coaches at almost every position on the offensive side of the ball, especially when it comes to instilling the values and philosophy of this new scheme. And we’ve got new players who are going to make plays for us in new, important roles. The best way to learn is from experience and to reflect upon that experience.”
He has as much with Goedert as anyone else, and he’ll need it. The Eagles sure needed it Sunday, through three sacks of Hurts and two holding penalties by center Cam Jurgens and a rough game for guard Landon Dickerson. Up 17-16 midway through the fourth quarter, Hurts and Goedert brought that shared comfort and familiarity to bear in a big way. After tackle Jordan Mailata committed a false start penalty that pushed the Eagles back to their 31-yard line, Hurts ripped off a 22-yard scramble on third-and-18. Three plays later, Hurts zipped a pass over the middle on third-and-6 to Goedert, who spun to his left and chugged away from three Washington defenders to the end zone.
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“That’s my brother, man,” said Mailata, the Eagles’ final pick in the 2018 draft, the one in which Goedert was their first. “I was super excited that we brought him back. I was happy. I didn’t want to be the last one here from my draft class. So when Dallas came back, I was very thankful for that. Kudos to him for having a great night tonight. I went up to him after that second touchdown, to him and Jalen, and said, ‘Thanks for bailing me out after that false start.’”
That he is still here to make such plays might seem a victory for him in and of itself. He does not view it that way.
“I never lost confidence in myself,” he said. “I always think very highly of myself, and I think everybody in this locker room thinks the same about themselves. If I get an opportunity, I’m going to try to make the most of it.”
After so much uncertainty about his future, with so much still lingering, Goedert will get more of those opportunities. The Eagles at the moment don’t have another choice, and that’s fine with him.
