Even though he pouted his way to the end of the season last year, the Philadelphia Eagles will reportedly use their franchise tag on unrestricted free agent wide receiver DeSean Jackson according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. McLane writes:
They will not let their Pro Bowl receiver - whose contract is set to expire - walk without getting something in return, according to NFL sources. So that means the Eagles will do one of three things before March 5:
- They will franchise Jackson and keep him for the 2012 season.
- They will franchise and then trade him.
- Or they will agree to a contract extension with the 25-year-old, an unlikely proposition at this point
A trade after the franchise tag would seem the least likely, due to what the team has to sacrifice to receive that player. And if a contract extension can't be worked out during the trading process, then they take on the guaranteed franchise tag number and risk Jackson entering free agency the following year.
There was some idle speculation based on connections that could have placed Jackson in Cleveland. And there's the overall interest from the Bengals needing a major wide receiver threat opposite of A.J. Green. Jackson and Green. Could you have imagined?