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Doug Pederson explains why Eagles released WR Dorial Green-Beckham, CB Dwayne Gratz

Pederson said he wanted to give Green-Beckham a chance to sign elsewhere. No one has signed him.

Eagles head coach Doug Pederson.
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson.Read more(Michael Bryant/Staff Photographer)

Dorial Green-Beckham was the Eagles' biggest addition during training camp last year, but he did not even last to make a second summer with the Eagles. Green-Beckham was released last month, ending his Eagles stint after one season – a move that coach Doug Pederson addressed for the first time Monday.

"With the additions of some of the young guys picked up this spring, we just felt like it was in his interest and our best interest to let him find another suitor and keep developing our younger guys in that role," Pederson said.

That's a polite way of explaining why the Eagles released the underachieving wide receiver. Green-Beckham has been available for a month and has not been signed, even though the 2015 second-round pick offers a tantalizing size-speed combination and was a contributor for the Tennessee Titans and Eagles during his first two seasons.

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But Green-Beckham did not make enough of his opportunities last season (36 catches, 392 yards, two touchdowns), and the Eagles were less inclined to show patience for him than for Nelson Agholor, another struggling third-year receiver. The Eagles added Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith in free agency and Mack Hollins and Shelton Gibson in the draft, but Green-Beckham's release was as much about him as the additions. That they didn't bring him to training camp showed they had already made up their mind.

The Eagles also released cornerback Dwayne Gratz on Sunday even though Gratz was one of the few cornerbacks on the roster with starting experience. Pederson indicated that the Eagles might not be finished adding at the position.

"It's a position we continue to look outside, like we do every position," Pederson said. "But we're going to look to try to bring in guys that we can to try to create as much competition at that spot. Obviously, it's a spot we're going to keep our eye on throughout camp. For now, it gives a couple younger guys – Jalen Mills and guys like that – the chance to really get in here."

Mills was already ahead of Gratz, so it doesn't affect him. The two players competing with him who will probably benefit the most are C.J. Smith and Aaron Grymes.