Goodbye to Rick Lovato?
The Philadelphia Eagles apparently have a new long snapper.
The Birds are signing former Cleveland Brown LS Charley Hughlett to a one-year, $1.422 million contract that includes $467,500 guaranteed, according to Aaron Wilson.
Hughlett, who turns 35 in May, was released by the Browns in late February. He had played 152 consecutive games with Cleveland before suffering a season-ending rib injury in Week 5.
The Browns made Hughlett the highest-paid long snapper in NFL history at the time in October 2022. So, maybe he’s good? It’s also worth noting that his teammates voted him as a team captain four times since 2019.
The Eagles signing Hughlett seems to indicate they’re moving on from long-time long snapper and two-time Super Bowl champion Rick Lovato. If so, there are multiple reasons why this shouldn’t be viewed as a totally shocking development:
1) The Eagles only signed Lovato to a one-year contract extension when he was a free agent last year. They could’ve/would’ve signed him to a multi-year deal if there was no doubt about keeping him around beyond 2024.
2) Eagles punter Braden Mann had to make some great holds to bail out off target snaps by Lovato last season.
3) Lovato turns 33 in September. Hughlett is obviously older than him but the Eagles might feel like Lovato is in decline.
4) Jake Elliott had one of the worst seasons of his career last year. It’s hard to say that Lovato definitely factored into the kicker’s struggles but maybe he did more than not at all?
If this is truly the end of the road for Lovato in Philly, it’s been a good ride. Including the playoffs, he’s played in 160 games since originally joining the Eagles in 2016. And he’s one of just four players with two Eagles Super Bowl wins alongside Elliott, Lane Johnson, and Brandon Graham.
Thanks, Rick … and welcome, Charley.
