Early in the offseason, as he clearly wanted a new contract, the Minnesota Vikings were poised to trade edge rusher Jonathan Greenard. It seemed to be only a matter of time, and on Day 2 of the draft in April, he was sent to the Philadelphia Eagles, with a 2026 seventh-round pick, for third-round picks this year and next.
The void Greenard is leaving behind in Minnesota goes beyond his surface numbers from last season, but they were not equipped to pay him like a top-end edge rusher.
It's also time to see what 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner can do as a full-time starter, after he showed flashes when Greenard missed time last season.
Upon acquiring him, as they were clearly in the market to add and invest in a notable edge rusher, the Eagles gave Greenard a four-year, $100 million contract.
Former Minnesota Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard's tenure with Philadelphia Eagles is off to a tough start
As the Eagles start training camp, we recently got news that Greenard has been placed on the PUP list after suffering a pectoral injury while lifting weights.
Greenard's pectoral injury is apparently not a tear of any sort, so it certainly could be a lot worse. While the move to put him on the PUP list makes news and raises red flags all at once, he can come off the list at any time during training camp.
If he hasn't come off the PUP list by the time final roster cuts and the shaping of the Eagles' initial 53-man roster arrives a month from now, then it'll be a big deal.
It's also worth noting Greenard has played every game in just one of his previous six NFL seasons, with at least four games missed four times.
That lands as a core reason the Vikings weren't willing to give him the kind of contract extension he was seeking, which would have paid him handsomely as he crossed into his 30s. Thus, they were willing to trade him for what some people think was a fairly lackluster return.
The Eagles putting Greenard on the PUP list to start camp is an exercise of caution at a stage where it's viable and practically mandatory to do so with any kind of injury, let alone one that could easily get worse, like his.
Time will tell if it's anything beyond losing some valuable practice reps in a new defensive scheme to be truly concerned about.
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