Eagles Signing WR Miles Austin?
Miles Austin, a former Cowboys star whose luster has dimmed with age and injuries, seems close to signing with the Eagles. He would bring veteran savvy to the wide receiving corps.
Thickening the plot for this season's Eagles-Cowboys matchups, the Eagles have signed former Dallas wideout Miles Austin, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Monday. A league source said, however, that the deal will not be signed until Austin passes a physical scheduled for Tuesday -- a possibly important caveat.
The Birds, who snatched Dallas star running back DeMarco Murray in free agency, brought Austin in for a workout today. Austin, who turns 31 in June, last played a full NFL season in 2012 and has a chronic hamstring problem stretching back several years.
Austin caught 47 passes for 568 yards and 2 touchdowns last season for the Cleveland Browns, before his season ended after a kidney injury. He is a former Monmouth star who made the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie in 2006 and made the Pro Bowl following the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
At this point, Austin would not be any sort of replacement for Jeremy Maclin, gone to Kansas City in free agency. More likely he would be competing for a fourth wideout job, but you have to wonder about his viability there, given that generally you'd want that role to go to a young, healthy player who could be a special teams standout.
Rapoport's reported figures -- a $2.3 million base and another $700,000 in incentives -- seem in line with that expectation.