One of the most amazing parts about the Philadelphia Eagles this season was that they won the Super Bowl with several players in starring roles who had been essentially discarded by their former teams.
Offensive lineman Mekhi Becton was one of those players. Labeled a first round bust after 4 seasons with the New York Jets, Becton signed a 1-year, $2.75 million contract with the Eagles in March 2024 and turned in a dominant season after switching positions from tackle to guard.
In a perfect world, Becton would just stay with the Eagles and continue to help them chase Super Bowls for the rest of his career — he’s just 25 years old and entering the prime of his career. Unfortunately for Philly, Becton represents an unexpected cost the Eagles’ payroll can’t handle at this point and he will almost certainly go elsewhere.
Spotrac has Becton’s market value currently showing he’ll receive a 4-year, $40.9 million contract, while the Eagles have just $18 million in projected salary cap space available and already paying through the teeth for offensive linemen.
Depending how the dominoes fall, the best landing spot for him might be with the Kansas City Chiefs — the team the Eagles and Becton just routed in Super Bowl LIX on February 9.
How Becton Could Wind Up With Chiefs
Perhaps the most sought-after free agent in the 2025 cycle is 6-foot-6, 312-pound Chiefs offensive guard Trey Smith, a Pro Bowler and 2-time Super Bowl champion.
Smith, like Becton, is 25 years old and entering the prime of his career but much more well regarded because he’s spent his entire career with the Chiefs. Unfortunately for Kansas City, Smith is worth a projected 4-year, $78.8 million contract on the open market. While the Chiefs might feel desperate to keep such a player in the fold, Becton might not be such a downgrade if Smith leaves for another team.
According to PFF, Smith’s 78.8 overall grade in 2024 put him 14th out of 135 eligible NFL guards. Becton, in his first year playing the position, graded out at 75.2 and finished 21st. We can safely presume Becton’s understanding of the position is only going to grow more nuanced the longer he plays it — meaning he’ll likely be better in 2025 than he was in 2024.
While there’s definitely a difference between the 2 players right now, NFL contracts are given out based on what you’re going to do in the future. So it boils down to one simple question: Is Smith worth almost $40 million more than Becton over the next 4 seasons? The answer to that is almost certainly going to be that he is not.
Becton’s Time With Jets Defined by Injuries
Becton can hang his hat on one of the great career turnarounds in recent years.
Selected in the first round (No. 11 overall) of the 2020 NFL draft by the Jets in 2020, Becton was a full-time starter as a rookie but only played 1 game over the 2021 and 2022 seasons with knee injuries. He returned in 2023 to play 16 games but was criticized for his play and the Jets declined his fifth-year option — leading him into the open arms of Eagles general manager Howie Roseman.
