Eagles sign ferocious veteran who played with their OC to fill a key gap

The Eagles have solved an issue that has plagued them for several years: their ineffective blocking by their tight ends.

Philadelphia has signed former Jaguars tight end Johnny Mundt, one of the NFL’s most ferocious and physical tight ends, to a one-year deal, a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to NJ.com. The person requested anonymity because the deal has not been announced. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo first reported the news.

After getting released by the Jaguars today, Mundt was scooped up right away by Philadelphia, which is logical given his connection to new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion. The 31-year-old tight end played with Philadelphia’s OC when Mannion was a quarterback with the Rams and Vikings. In total, they spent four seasons together in Minnesota and Los Angeles.

In nine total years with the Rams, Vikings and Jaguars, Mundt has only caught 74 passes for 658 yards and four touchdowns, so he won’t make a significant contribution to Philadelphia’s passing game.

But that’s not why the Eagles are signing Mundt. This past season, he ranked 14th among tight ends with a 72.1 run blocking grade and ninth among TEs with a 78.9 pass blocking grade, according to Pro Football Focus. He should help the Eagles’ offense establish the run game and keep quarterback Jalen Hurts upright next season.

Mundt will likely serve as Philadelphia’s No. 3 tight end with two better pass catchers in front of him on the depth chart. He’s a decent bargain-bin signing.

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