March 01, 2024

Report: Eagles are releasing S Kevin Byard

The Eagles are opening up cap space this offseason by releasing safety Kevin Byard.

By Jimmy Kempski
PhillyVoice Staff

Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports

Kevin Byard's short stint in Philadelphia will be coming to an end.

As expected, the Philadelphia Eagles are releasing safety Kevin Byard, according to a report from Adam Schefter.

Near the trade deadline, the Eagles acquired Byard from the Titans for fifth- and sixth-round picks in 2024, as well as safety Terrell Edmunds.

During his time in Tennessee, Byard was a playmaking safety who picked off at least four passes in seven of his NFL seasons, including a league-leading eight in 2017. He was named First-Team All-Pro in 2017 and 2021.

He played in 10 games for the Eagles, making 75 tackles, 1 INT, and 3 pass breakups. PFF had him down for 32 receptions allowed on 38 targets (84.2%) for 321 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT.

Byard had one stellar game for the Eagles, which came against the Chiefs, when he picked off Patrick Mahomes in the end zone and was able to hold Travis Kelce to 7 catches for 44 yards on 9 targets. He did not make an impact otherwise.

Philly gets it back. @KevinByard’s 1st INT with the @Eagles!

📺: #PHIvsKC on ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/f0JSux0GFT pic.twitter.com/GHWFoMZ1LH
— NFL (@NFL) November 21, 2023

Byard was scheduled to have a base salary of $9,600,000 in 2024, with a roster bonus of $4 million due on March 15. By releasing him, the Eagles will save a little over $13 million on their 2024 cap. Obviously, that was a no-brainer decision.

On a side note, as we noted in our "stay or go" series, Howie Roseman's batting average at the trade deadline hasn't been great since he regained his general manager status in 2016:

• 2016: No deadline trades.

• 2017: The Eagles were buyers, trading a fourth-round pick for RB Jay Ajayi.

• 2018: The Eagles were buyers, trading a third-round pick for WR Golden Tate.

• 2019: The Eagles traded a fourth-round pick for then-DE Genard Avery. Roseman explained after the season that Avery was a player they hoped would contribute in 2020 and beyond, but they did not expect him to step in immediately and make an impact.

• 2020: No deadline trades, which made sense for a 3-4-1 team at the time of the deadline.

• 2021: The Eagles were kinda-sorta sellers, as they traded TE Zach Ertz to the Cardinals after a loss to the Buccaneers brought their record to 2-4. They also traded Joe Flacco to the Jets to make way for Gardner Minshew to become the No. 2, and they traded a late pick for CB Kary Vincent Jr.

• 2022: The Eagles were buyers, trading a fourth-round pick for DE Robert Quinn to replace the injured Derek Barnett.

• 2023: The aforementioned trade for Byard.

When they've been buyers, they have really only hit on Ajayi. Otherwise, Roseman made bad trades for Tate, Avery, Quinn, and now Byard.