The Philadelphia Eagles placed the franchise tag on tight end L.J. Smith Thursday. Smith was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on February 29.
By placing the tag on Smith, the team virtually assures that the former Rutgers star will remain in Philadelphia for the 2008 season. If Smith were to receive a contract offer from another club, the Eagles would have seven days to match the offer. If they choose not to match the offer, the Eagles would receive two first-round draft choices as compensation.
Unless Smith agrees to a long-term deal with the Eagles he would receive a one-year contract equivalent to the average of the top five highest paid tight ends in the league.
"L.J. Smith has been a very productive tight end in our offense," said head coach Andy Reid. "He is healthy and working his tail off so he can have a very successful 2008 season."
Smith, 27, had just 22 receptions for 236 yards and one touchdown in 10 games during an injury-plagued 2007.
In five career seasons -- all with the Eagles -- Smith has caught 194 passes for 2,227 yards and 15 touchdowns.
No comments:
Post a Comment