Fletcher Cox nearly became a two-time Super Bowl champion a month ago. He's not ready to leave Philadelphia just yet.
Cox is re-signing with the Eagles on a one-year, $10 million deal, NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported.
Sometimes, familiarity can be the deciding factor. The Jets were willing to offer Cox more money to join them in New York, per Garafolo, but Cox decided to stick with the only team for whom he's ever played for at least one more season.
Cox is coming off his best season since his All-Pro campaign of 2018. The six-time Pro Bowler recorded seven sacks -- the most in a year since he had 10.5 in 2018 -- to go along with 43 tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. With Cox playing a key role along a ferocious and deep defensive front, Philadelphia finished with the second-most sacks in a season in NFL history, falling five sacks short of resetting the record.
Retaining Cox is a pleasant surprise for the Eagles, who had been expected to part with Cox due to his age (Cox turns 33 in December), cost and the selection of Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis, whose rookie season was cut short by injury just as it was about to take off. Philadelphia realized it had room to keep Cox, though, once Javon Hargrave agreed to a four-year, $84 million deal with the San Francisco 49ers.
The Eagles' defense watched a handful of starters depart in free agency this week. Hargrave left for San Francisco, linebacker T.J. Edwards signed with the Chicago Bears, and on Wednesday, the Eagles informed cornerback Darius Slay they were releasing him. Philadelphia will at least be able to count on Cox being in the fold in 2023 as general manager Howie Roseman retools his NFC Championship-winning roster amid salary-cap constraints that annually produce considerable turnover for the top-tier teams in the NFL.
Instead of hopping on New York's growing bandwagon, Cox decided it was best if he remained with the team that spent a first-round pick on him in the 2012 draft. After all, the Eagles were just a few plays from potentially winning Super Bowl LVII. Giving it another go with that crew makes the most sense.
