The Philadelphia Eagles had pretty much every player at their OTAs practicing on Wednesday, but the beat reporters were quick to catch one notable player who was not there.
Multiple Eagles reporters pointed out that edge rusher Bryce Huff was not seen working out with the team. There's no news that has been reported as to why he wasn't there whether it's injury or another reason.
Huff is entering his second season under his three-year, $51 million contract that he signed with the Eagles last offseason. He had a disappointing debut on the field in the midnight green as he racked up just 13 tackles, four quarterback hits, three tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and one forced fumble in 12 games. Huff missed five games due to a wrist injury and did not record a stat line in the postseason.
Huff can't afford to miss valuable time on the field with the Eagles
Of all the players on the Eagles' roster, Huff was at the bottom of players who can't miss reps on the field. He's not guaranteed to be a starter on the team despite a heavy contract value for the next two years.
Entering the 2025 season, Huff has to beat out Josh Uche, Azeez Ojulari, and Jalyx Hunt for the starting job. The only edge rusher who is guaranteed a starting role is Nolan Smith Jr., who is looking to take over Josh Sweat's position as the top pass rusher on the team.
Huff has been the subject of much speculation regarding whether he will even play for the Eagles in 2025 or if the team will trade or cut him. There has been discussion on whether he can bounce back this season and be a sleeper value player in Philadelphia.
The combination of being hurt during the season and being swallowed up on the depth chart behind Sweat and Smith did not help Huff. One Eagles player that needs to remove the bust label on him and get on the field is Huff so it was worrisome that he did not show up to OTAs.
It's fair to say that this is voluntary OTAs, and he's not required to be there, but after the season he had, it's fair to counter that he needs to show Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio that he can still play at a high level. Not showing up is only going to spark more conversations around Huff's position with the Eagles.
The training camp battle at edge in two months just got a lot more interesting.
