Latest Eagles rumors: Mark Sanchez, Marcus Smith to be cut, no progress on Sam Bradford

The Eagles have made a strong statement thus far during the offseason, striking deals and extensions with veterans Vinny Curry, Malcolm Jenkins, Lane Johnson, Najee Goode, Zach Ertz and Brent Celek.

These moves signify a desire to compete right away, with the aforementioned players all in their mid-to-late 20s and all in their peaks. More moves are expected to come, and according to both CSN’s Ruben Frank andDave Zangaro, the next roster moves could be cuts.

The Eagles writers, along with other sources at ESPN and other media outlets surmise that quarterbackMark Sanchez could be the next casualty. There is a consensus that either Sanchez or Darren Sproles could be let go in the coming weeks (leading up to the March 9th free agency deadline) and each would open up $3 million in space for the Eagles. Sanchez signed a two-year, $9 million deal last offseason when Chip Kelly was calling the shots.

It seems more beneficial to dump Sanchez, as Sproles continues to be one of the NFL’s most explosive players — he was a Pro Bowl return man in 2015 afterall.

A Sanchez release would avail the Birds of more funds with which to bring back Sam Bradford. There has been no report of movement by any of the parties involved to get a Bradford deal done, despite quotes left and right from players, coaches and front office members alike sayingthat he is wanted in Eagles green in 2016.

Should Bradford’s price remain too high, Doug Pederson and others have mentioned Chase Daniel, the backup quarterback with the Chiefs as a potential lower-priced veteran option.

Regardless of who the Birds sign at quarterback, Pederson has made it clear he will not draft a QB and then expect him to contribute right away.

“Unless you need a guy, shelve him for a year. …Let him get in your system and let him grow,” Pederson told CSN Philly.”If you’ve got a guy in place already that he can kind of learn from.”

Marcus Smith, the Eagles’ 2014 first-rounder could be cut as well. Not so much for his salary, just $1.9 million, but because he may not have a spot in the Jim Schwartz defense. This is another move that could take place sooner rather than later.