How Much Will the Philadelphia Eagles Miss Evan Mathis?

The Philadelphia Eagles have experienced serious offensive line troubles in two of the past three seasons, and that was with Evan Mathis on the roster. How do you think the unit will fare without him?

Apparently, there is a belief internally and around the NFL that the Eagles may not miss Mathis very much at all.

"I don't know how much either one of them has left," a league executive told Mark Eckel of NJ Advance Media about Mathis and fellow departed lineman Todd Herremans. Head coach Chip Kelly clearly didn't think his team would miss Mathis, seeing as he opted to release his starting left guard over a contract dispute that, frankly, would've resolved itself.

In general, there seems to be growing sentiment that Mathis may not be as good as his reputation suggests or that guards are simply replaceable.

Maybe there is a little truth to all of that. Regardless, at the end of the day, it's difficult to argue the Eagles are better off without an All-Pro up front.

PLAYER	AGE	EXP	GMS	STARTS
Josh Andrews	24	0	0	0
Allen Barbre	31	8	48	8
Brett Boyko	22	R	0	0
Malcolm Bunche	23	R	0	0
Mike Coccia	22	R	0	0
Andrew Gardner	29	5	24	8
Dennis Kelly	25	3	16	13
John Moffitt	28	3	19	15
Matt Tobin	25	2	14	7
Jared Wheeler	24	0	0	0

Look no further than Mathis' projected replacement.

The Eagles are high on Allen Barbre for some reason, although there's little information to indicate why exactly. Barbre is 31 years old, has been a member of four different organizations and started as many games as he has years of NFL experience (eight).

Is he honestly a superior or even comparable alternative to Mathis?

Yet some are suggesting the drop-off might not be as huge as expected. The league executive in Eckel's piece more or less bashed Mathis for asking for more money in the first place.

"(Mathis), that's the craziest thing I ever saw. He either got the worst advice from an agent ever, or he made the dumbest mistake ever," he said. "You watch him last year? He's just a guy at this point. Why do you think he hasn't been signed?''

There is definitely validity to comments about Mathis' handling of his contract situation, as he is unlikely to earn as much money now on the open market. However, the rest of the exec's statement is a tad curious.

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Plenty of people watched Mathis play last season and were impressed enough to vote him to his second consecutive Pro Bowl, despite the fact that he only appeared in nine games. Pro Football Focus awarded him the second-highest cumulative score of any offensive guard for 2014.

As for Mathis going unsigned thus far? Any number of factors could be playing a role in that beyond front offices doubting his ability:

• Mathis may remain on the market because it's July and teams have already made other plans or used up their salary-cap space.
• His age (33) may make people hesitant to give him the kind of long-term commitment he's searching for.
• Perhaps Mathis is even waiting for injuries to strike in camp, which may make a desperate general manager come forth with the best possible offer.

Perhaps Mathis' play has slipped a bit as well, but that's not necessarily the only reason he's available. Plus, it still doesn't change the fact that the Eagles are in a predicament without him.

Barbre did perform well in a relief appearance in 2013 at left tackle, albeit working against Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews while one of the pass-rusher's hands was in a cast. Barbre also started in Week 1 at right tackle last season but quickly wound up on injured reserve with an ankle injury.

If he is legitimately improved, we don't have much to go on.

POS	PLAYER	AGE	EXP	STARTS
LT	Jason Peters	33	11	129
LG	Allen Barbre	31	8	8
C	Jason Kelce	27	4	46
RG	Tobin/Gardner/Moffitt	?	?	?
RT	Lane Johnson	25	2	28

Even assuming Barbre is adequate, there could be a trickle-down effect as a result of Mathis' departure. The Eagles are also replacing right guard Herremans from their bench, likely with one of Matt Tobin, Andrew Gardner or the recently acquired John Moffitt, who was out of football until a few weeks ago.

This means several things.

First, it's a shot at Philadelphia's O-line depth, which by the way has struggled when called upon both in 2012 and just last season. The club hasn't taken an offensive lineman in the draft since Round 1 in 2013, and it showed last season when injuries struck.

Now one or two of those backups will be in the starting lineup, and that says nothing of the proverbial next man up.

Furthermore, replacing both guards will likely hurt continuity up front as well. The three holdovers will all face uncertainty next to them. Tackles Jason Peters and Lane Johnson will be playing alongside new or unfamiliar teammates. Center Jason Kelce will be in the same boat, only to both his right and left.

Continuity along the offensive line can be almost as important as talent.

Let's face facts and just admit Mathis' release was never really about what will transpire on the field. Was he worth the $5.5 million he was owed in 2015, according to Spotrac? Maybe not in theory, but to the Eagles, possibly.

Kelly shook up the interior of his line this offseason by dumping an Pro Bowl lineman and promoting a pair of backups. Like with everything else the controversial head coach does, we'll have to wait and see how it plays out to judge.

However, it's hard to conclude based on what we see on paper that the Eagles won't miss Mathis even a little.