Idon’t know about the rest of you, but I always have rather enjoyed the few times myself or one of my teams wore the scarlet bullseye. It wasn’t the attention. It was a compliment. Nobody cares if you’re losing but everybody loves to hate a winner. It just means you’re doing something right. I’m not sure I thought I’d ever see this day come but it looks like the landscape of the league, in just a few shorts years, has gone from Patriots’ and Chiefs’ fatigue to Eagles’ Envy because the Birds aren’t just beating up on their opponents, they’re beating the NFL at its own game on and off of it. And that has more than a few league owners furious.
The NFL failed to ban the Tush Push. Now it’s coming after the Philadelphia Eagles’ wallet. The Birds are no stranger to playing the villain, but this is different. From sideline whispers to owners’ meetings to Roger Goodell’s carefully coded concerns about “the integrity of the cap,” it’s becoming clear: the league has a Philly problem.
The Eagles aren’t just better coached, better managed, and better built. They’re outsmarting the system—and that’s threatening the power balance across the NFL. The Tush Push battle was the warning shot. The real war is over money and power.
The League’s Mortgage Masters
Let’s be clear, none of this is illegal. What Howie Roseman and Jeffrey Lurie are doing is entirely within the rules. But it’s uncomfortable for owners who won’t play the same game.
Exhibit A: Mekhi Becton’s 2024 deal. He signed with Philly for $5.5 million, but only $2M hit the cap that year. The rest was spread into “void years” and paid later when the cap is higher. That’s not a loophole. That’s a weaponized spreadsheet. Write that down because you hear constantly that Howie is perhaps the top general manager in football and that’s one of the reasons why.
And then there’s Jalen Hurts. Remember Big J? Super Bowl MVP ring a bell? The guy who coined “It’s just what I do.” after dropping 40 on Kansas City last February. Yeah that’s him -$255 million over 5 years, yet his early cap hits are laughably low. Why? Because the Eagles front-load cash and back-load cap hits like its real estate finance. The best part? No interest.
“The Eagles are paying everybody… They convert salary to bonuses and push it back. We just don’t do that.” said the Bengals’ quarterback Joe Burrow on Pardon My Take Recently.
Adapt or – Nah We’ll Just Complain About It
At the latest owners’ meetings, Roger Goodell didn’t mince words: they’re reviewing the salary cap system. That’s not coincidence it’s a reaction to his bosses – the owners who gladly approve his annual salary of close to $65 million per annum.
Roger Goodell recently hinted at a possible reevaluation of how the salary cap is structured. That’s code for “the bosses are pissed.” The Eagles outspent the Las Vegas Raiders by $115 million in 2024 alone and are on pace to be a top-seven cash spender again in 2025. Some franchises, like Cincinnati and Las Vegas prefer to hoard cash, avoid front-loading deals, and cry foul when others don’t follow suit.
Owners are whispering about “integrity” and “spirit of the rules.” Translation? They want to change the rules because Philly is too good at following them and the wish not to adapt either out of fear or lack of confidence in their people to make the quality decisions that Roseman has made over the better part of the last handful of years that directly transformed his Philadelphia Eagles into a perennial beast and it looks like he’s just getting started.
What Could Change?
Sources around the league believe the NFL may try to close loopholes in the next collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Changes under consideration include:
- Limiting void years or how bonuses are prorated
- Eliminating post-June 1 designations that manipulate dead money outcomes
- Restricting contract restructures after the regular season
- Cracking down on per-game bonuses or “not likely to be earned” incentives
And while these changes may sound subtle, they’re aimed directly at front offices like Philadelphia’s.
Follow the Money: Cash vs Cap
This isn’t about fairness. It’s about money. It’s always about the money. Teams like the Eagles have figured out how to maximize cap space by converting base salaries into bonuses, using cash up front. Most owners aren’t willing to spend like that even though they can. That makes the Birds a threat, not just competitively, but philosophically.
The Eagles don’t hoard cap space. They deploy it like a weapon. Their entire strategy revolves around spending now and trusting the cap to rise later, especially with the next broadcast deal expected to explode revenues by 2029.
Meanwhile, some owners want to bring the league’s financial approach “back to 2011,” when spending was more conservative and loopholes less exploited. The Eagles’ model breaks that mold and breaks the hearts of rivals who don’t want to keep up.
The irony? Philly’s model is sustainable because they bet on growth. The cap is projected to balloon with new media rights in 2029—precisely when many of their contract’s spike. That’s not reckless. That’s visionary.
What makes it work is ownership alignment. Lurie is willing to write fat checks now to win today. The Bengals? Ask Trey Hendrickson, yeah, not so much. The Raiders? Same story. And rather than pony up, they’re asking the league to level the playing field – for them.
Conclusion: Don’t Blame the Eagles, Be the Eagles
The Eagles are not cheating. They’re just outsmarting the competition. Their aggressive use of void years, restructures, and up-front bonuses has allowed them to stay in contention every year while paying stars like Hurts, A.J. Brown, and Jordan Mailata.
If other owners don’t want to spend, fine. But don’t try to rewrite the rules because Howie Roseman built a better mousetrap.
The NFL tried to take away the Tush Push and failed. Now they’re coming for the wallet. The Eagles aren’t just a very good team anymore they’re a league problem.
All They Do Is Win
The NFL tried but couldn’t outlaw the Tush Push. Now it’s trying to outlaw financial innovation.
The Eagles have gone from punching bag to blueprint and the league isn’t happy about it. But instead of adjusting, too many owners are lobbying. You can cry “integrity,” but the scoreboard never lies. The Eagles are winning and in this league that makes them public enemy number one.
Just the way Philly likes it.
