Eagles sign 1st-round pick Marcus Smith to a four-year deal
The Eagles signed first-round pick Marcus Smith to a four-year deal on Monday, making the Eagles linebacker the final rookie to sign a deal with the Eagles.
"I knew everything was going to get done," Smith said. "I'm just happy that I finally got it done, go out there and play and do the things I love."
Terms of the deal were not immediately available, but it is similar to the four-year, $7.7-million deal with a nearly $4 million bonus signed by the No. 26 pick in last season's draft.
Smith was the 19th first-round pick to sign. He said the delay in agreeing to a contract was figuring out the money in the fifth year of the deal, which is a team option for first-round picks under the new collective bargaining agreement. The salary for each pick is slotted, which is why draft picks sign earlier than they did under the previous CBA.
Eagles linebacker Connor Barwin told Smith he would not need to treat the linebackers to an expensive meal. Smith said he wants to pay off his mother's debt with the new deal.
"It's been going great," Smith said of his first month with the Eagles. "Connor and Trent [Cole], just to learn from those guys, has been going really good. It was fast, real fast, when we started, but afterwards, two weeks into it, I feel great now."
Extra points
Lane Johnson treated the Eagles' offensive linemen to a $17,747.86 bill at a Philadelphia steakhouse this weekend. Johnson said it was "no big deal," and the group enjoyed the steaks and adult beverages. The offensive linemen go out to eat each week during the season, and usually determine who pays by playing "credit card roulette."…Jim Johnson and Howard Mudd, two former Eagles assistant coaches, were named to the inaugural class of the Paul "Dr. Z" Zimmerman Award for lifetime achievement of an assistant coach. Johnson was the Eagles' defensive coordinator from 1999 until his death in 2009. Mudd spent 2011 and 2012 as the Eagles' offensive line coach.
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