Eagles release Pro Bowl guard Evan Mathis
The Evan Mathis saga in Philadelphia has come to an end.
According to multiple outlets (and Mathis himself), the Eagles released the veteran offensive guard Thursday afternoon.
Mathis, who had been with the Eagles since 2011 and earned trips to the Pro Bowl the past two seasons, has reportedly been in a contract stalemate with the team for quite some time. The five-year, $25 million deal Mathis, 33, signed in 2011 was set to expire after the 2016 season.
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According to Pro Football Talk, the Eagles will take a $1 million cap his with Mathis’ release, but will ultimately save $11.5 million in cap space.
Mathis, who missed seven games last season with a knee injury, was absent from the team’s voluntary OTAs this month and his agent had reportedly been seeking a trade after the team declined to restructure his deal. Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said after the draft that the team received no offers for the 11-year veteran.
Kelly also declined to comment on Mathis’ contract situation earlier in the week.
“We’re not going to discuss any players’ contracts. We never have, never will,” he said.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Eagles offered Mathis a restructured deal that would have “increased his yearly salary $1 million” in 2014, but Mathis declined. That deal came when former general manager Howie Roseman was running the show, but was no longer on the table when Kelly assumed authority over personnel matters this offseason.
With mandatory mini camps set to begin next Tuesday, Mathis was facing thousands of dollars in fines if he continued his hold out. However, he told CSN Philly’s Geoff Mosher that he planned to attend.
With Mathis out of the equation, the Eagles have several options to fill in at left guard. According to the Inquirer, Allen Barbre has been practicing with the first-team offense in Mathis’ place throughout OTAs while Matt Tobin, Andrew Gardner and Dennis Kelly saw time at right guard.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
