2016 NFL free agency: Who will Evan Mathis sign with?
Where will Evan Mathis sign in 2016 NFL free agency?
Now that Peyton Manning has officially decided to retire from the NFL, the Denver Broncos must quickly move on from celebrating his remarkable career and their Super Bowl 50 championship and begin to focus on offseason preparations for 2016. The biggest question mark for the team – Manning’s decision – has been resolved, and now it’s up to head coach Gary Kubiak, GM John Elway, and the rest of the Broncos’ brain trust to start positioning the team to repeat as champs.
First things first, Denver needs to address a deep pool of free agents, many of whom will be heavily courted in the weeks to come. It should go without saying, but even without Manning’s salary on the books the Broncos are going to have a tough time ponying up the necessary dough to keep many of their biggest names. One such player that might find himself suddenly expendable is veteran offensive guard Evan Mathis.
Vitals
Age: 34
Notable stat: was named a Pro Football Focus All-Pro for three straight seasons (2011-2013)
All-Pro teams: 1 (2013)
Pro Bowls: 2 (2013 & 2014)
Contract comparison
Evans had stints with the Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals before making a name for himself with the Philadelphia Eagles as one of the best offensive linemen in the league. The pinnacle of his career came during those four seasons in Philly; Mathis routinely made All-Pro teams, went to Pro Bowls, won awards, and played under a lucrative five year, $25.5 million deal that made him one of the highest-paid O-linemen in the NFL at the time.
He held from OTAs last summer in hopes of finagling a new deal with the Eagles, but was released by the team instead and ended up signing a one year deal with the Broncos worth $3.2 million. While the money was probably lower than what Evans had hoped for, it ended up paying off in the form of a Super Bowl ring at season’s end.
Mathis’ career is far from over, but the decline has already begun; he’ll turn 35 this season. The best he can probably hope for at this point is a short-term deal that pays him about the same as he made last year.
Estimate: 1 year/$4 million/$2 million guaranteed
Will he stay?
Now that the Broncos seem to be turning their attention to locking up Brock Osweiler as their starting quarterback moving forward, the team needs to also begin working on their other major weakness from 2015: the offensive line. While the unit did seem to gel more and find their footing as the season went on, the early going was rocky, and Mathis wasn’t exactly above the collective struggles.
No one can target the seasoned pro as the worst player on the line last year, but he was also certainly not a bright spot either. Given his age and expiring contract, the popular thinking is that the team will choose to move on from Mathis sooner rather than later, and his release could be imminent.
If he leaves…
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just saw one veteran guard announce his retirement after a long NFL career (Logan Mankins). Maybe the team should take another chance on adding another experienced player to mentor their young line and provide greater stability up front. While the Mankins experiment didn’t go exactly as planned, there’s a good chance Mathis has more to offer at this point in his career than Mankins would have anyway if he’d decided to play another year.
And while it could require some mending of old wounds, a reunion with the Philadelphia Eagles might be in the best interests of both player and team this offseason. The Eagles are a team undergoing a massive transition at multiple levels, and adding a familiar face and fan favorite would give Philadelphia at least a semblance of normality for the first time in years.