PHILADELPHIA — The turbulent Jalen Reagor era has finally come to an end.
The Eagles traded Reagor, the former TCU standout wide receiver, to the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday in exchange for a 2023 seventh-round pick and a conditional 2024 fourth-round pick, which could end up as a fifth-round pick. The completion of the trade is pending Reagor passing a physical.
Reagor, just 23, spent two seasons with the Eagles after he was selected with the No. 21 pick in the 2020 NFL draft, exactly one pick ahead of new teammate Justin Jefferson.
While Jefferson rapidly rose to All-Pro status, compiling 196 catches, 3,016 receiving yards, and 17 touchdowns over two seasons, Reagor failed to latch on — both as a receiver and a returner. Over two seasons, Reagor recorded just 64 catches, 695 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. As a returner last season, Reagor logged 31 punt returns with an average of 7.3 yards per return with zero touchdowns. He also fielded 12 kickoffs with an average of 21.3 yards per return and zero touchdowns.
Reagor’s struggles, by and large, played a main factor in the team selecting former Heisman Trophy award winner DeVonta Smith with its top pick in last year’s draft. The Eagles also added star receiver A.J. Brown earlier in the offseason, in addition to signing wideout Zach Pascal, which meant Reagor dropped to fifth on the depth chart behind Brown, Smith, Pascal, and Quez Watkins.
At the beginning of training camp, coach Nick Sirianni acknowledged Reagor was ‘battling’ for a roster spot.
“Personally, I love a good challenge,” Reagor said earlier in August. “It’s a humbling experience because you go from being a first rounder to you battling, but I like challenges.”
Reagor also dealt with personal hardship during his stint with the Eagles. Last summer, he failed a conditioning test on report day while dealing with the death of a close childhood friend. This summer, Reagor lost another close friend: former Vikings and Cardinals cornerback Jeff Gladney, who died in a car accident on May 31. Gladney and Reagor were teammates at TCU, and the duo trained together during the offseason in the Dallas region.
“We’ve been best friends,” Reagor said in remembrance of Gladney. “We did everything together. We bought our first car together, our first house, everything, so I just always remember he’s next to me.”
He continued: “I want to be here [Philadelphia] for the rest of my career. But it’s a business. It’s a business of production. I’m going to handle my end, and I’ll let them handle theirs.”
Throughout the summer, general manager Howie Roseman aggressively attempted to find a trade partner for Reagor, but wound up keeping Reagor on the team’s initial 53-man roster, which was announced on Tuesday afternoon.
“I think when you look at Jalen, one of the things that one of our scouts said to me today is he was one of the only guys that practiced every day,” Roseman said. “The guy brought it every day. He worked on his craft. He had a great attitude, great energy. Obviously, he’s a talented guy. He’s 23 years old.
“We’re going to do whatever we think is in the best interest of the team, and we felt like there was no doubt in our mind that he deserved a role on this team.”
