More details on Eric Wilson’s contract have been reported (per Dave Zangaro): Wilson is guaranteed $2.75 million, with a base salary of $1.5 million. Wilson has a roster bonus of $1.25 million, and can earn up to $500k in incentives.
Additionally, there’s a 2021 cap hit of $1.75 million.
The Eagles have signed former Minnesota Vikings linebacker Eric Wilson to a one-year, $3.25 million deal, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Wilson, 26, went undrafted in 2017 and subsequently signed with Minnesota. In 64 games, Wilson has 234 tackles, eight sacks, and three interceptions.
In 2020, Wilson had the best season of his career. Out of the 16 games he played in, he started 15 of them. Wilson had career-highs in tackles (122), tackles for loss (eight), and interceptions (three) to go along with three sacks and two fumble recoveries.
There’s a lot to like about Wilson- in addition to coming off a very solid season statistically, he hasn’t missed a game since his debut. That’s always a plus for a team that seems to deal with plenty of injuries on a weekly basis.
Of course, there are some weaknessess to Wilson. As Zone Coverage’s Luke Braun wrote, the Cincinnati product struggled when it came to run-defense:
“Wilson is a liability in the run game. This isn’t surprising, since Wilson converted to linebacker in college from safety. As such, he plays smaller than the ideal linebacker. Unfortunately, this isn’t a secret, and teams can tailor their plans to attack it.”
Braun notes that Wilson played much better when it came to pass coverage. Considering how the Eagles secondary has played at times, they might be okay with Wilson succeeding more in pass defense than the run.
Eagles Finally Add Some Much-Needed Depth To The LB Unit
Wilson immediately becomes the most experienced linebacker of the current group, both in career games played and games started (the next closest player in both those categories is T.J. Edwards).
Wilson will likely be starting alongside Alex Singleton or Edwards in the upcoming season.
It’s nice to see the Eagles are trying to upgrade at a position they’ve struggled at over the past few seasons. The best case scenario is that Wilson, Singleton and Edwards are productive, capable starters while young players like Shaun Bradley and Davion Taylor grow.
