Reuben Frank and Dave Zangaro bring back Stay or Go in 2026, trying to figure out the futures of every Eagles player on the roster.
Up first: Quarterback
Sam Howell
Roob: Howell is 25, unsigned for next year and hasn’t thrown an NFL pass since 2024 and hasn’t played meaningful snaps since 2023, so my guess is that he wants to go somewhere where he can at least compete for a No. 2 spot. Don’t think there’s going to be a starting spot anywhere for Howell, who went 4-13 for the Commanders in 2023 in his one year as a starter. But I can’t imagine going into his fifth NFL season he’d be thrilled to come back here as a No. 3. Maybe if the Eagles trade Tanner McKee, but even then I would think the Eagles go in a different direction.
Verdict: Goes
Dave: The Eagles traded for Sam Howell in August when Tanner McKee was dealing with a fractured right thumb and he served as the backup early in the season. Howell, 25, didn’t get a chance to play at all in the 2025 season but had to be one of the better No. 3 quarterbacks in the NFL. Howell is a former fifth-round pick who has legitimate starting experience; he got 17 starts in the 2023 season with the Commanders. But he’s a free agent now and it seems unlikely the Eagles will bring him back. For Howell, he should at least try to find a place where he can be a backup quarterback.
Verdict: Goes
Jalen Hurts
Roob: Next year will be Hurts’ sixth as a full-time starting quarterback, a plateau previously reached in Eagles history only by Donovan McNabb (nine seasons), Ron Jaworski (eight seasons), Norm Snead (seven seasons) and Randall Cunningham (six seasons). This wasn’t his best season but he was still pretty good despite the limitations of Kevin Patullo’s offense, and he goes into 2026 coming off his fifth straight playoff appearance, something only six other NFL quarterbacks have done in their first six seasons. There will be a day when Jalen Hurts isn’t the Eagles’ quarterback, but that day is still a long ways away.
Verdict: Stays
Dave: Obviously, Jalen Hurts isn’t going anywhere. But it wasn’t his best season in 2025. He completed just 64.8% of his passes for 3,224 yards with 25 touchdowns and 6 interceptions and the lowest yards-per-attempt (7.1) of his career. Those numbers aren’t awful but he had some poor games and was not nearly as much of a factor as a runner this past season. His attempts, yards and touchdowns were all down along with either his willingness to run or the desire to use his legs from the coaching staff. Hurts will have yet another OC in 2026 but after years of yearning for more stability, that’s probably a good thing for next year. It was clear that Kevin Patullo was not able to get the most out of Hurts. It has to be a group effort to maximize the strengths of players and Hurts clearly has strengths that were not utilized in 2025.
Verdict: Stays
Tanner McKee
Roob: I still think there’s a chance the Eagles trade McKee and try to get something for him before he hits free agency a year from now, but even though it was just one game that Washington performance won’t help his value. He completed just 53 percent of his passes with a TD pass and an interception and did not look like the promising young prospect he looked like in 2024. Is a team really going to give up a draft pick for a 25-year-old former 6th-round pick with one career win? Doubt it. I still think he’s a decent backup, but if the Eagles are going to get anything for him it will likely be a comp pick in the 2027 draft.
Verdict: Stays
Dave: In the Eagles’ Week 18 game against the Commanders, Tanner McKee made the second start of his NFL career. And if you hoped that McKee would light it up and improve his trade value, that didn’t happen. McKee completed just 52.5% of his passes for 241 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception in the loss. And it was a meaningful loss because the Eagles could have improved their seeding in the playoffs if the backups were able to beat the Commanders; they were hoping they would. McKee, 25, still appears to have a bright future. He’s 6-foot-6, 231 pounds and had a live arm. If the Eagles get blown away by a trade request for him, they’d have to trade him in the final year of his contract. But it’s not that simple. Because the backup quarterback is an important position on this team and they can’t trade McKee without a legitimate plan to replace him. Because of his Week 18 performance, I’m not sure the Eagles are going to get that type of offer for McKee. So I have him sticking around for a fourth season before testing the free agent waters in 2027.
Verdict: Stays