The Philadelphia Eagles will meet with Shaquille Leonard on Wednesday, according to CBS Sports HQ Senior NFL Insider Josina Anderson. The team is hoping to sway the former Colts linebacker to come to Philadelphia after he left his visit with the Dallas Cowboys on Tuesday without signing a deal.
The Eagles did reach out to Leonard’s camp to gauge his interest prior to Zach Cunningham suffering a hamstring injury in Sunday’s win over the Bills. Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni was the offensive coordinator in Indianapolis when Leonard was there. Being together for three years, Sirianni mentioned Monday he has a great relationship with Leonard.
“Made a lot of plays, that’s for sure,” Sirianni said. “He had a knack for the football and how to get the football. What I remember is just how, as an offensive coordinator, how hard he was to throw around. His length was comparable to Jim Boeheim’s 2-3 zone at Syracuse. He’s going to make a play in the passing lane.
“He was a great teammate and I really enjoyed being around him. I still have a relationship with him. I think he is a great person, great teammate, and like I said, the main thing was the ball and the length that come to mind with that.”
The Eagles are already down a linebacker with Nakobe Dean (injured reserve) and could be without Cunningham for an extended period pending on his MRI results. If Cunningham is out, Christian Elliss would be next in line to start opposite of Nicholas Morrow at linebacker.
Off-ball linebacker is a priority regarding all the injuries, but Leonard is the biggest prize left in free agency.
