The Philadelphia Eagles have signed their first free agent of the 2015 off-season despite the official free agency period not starting until March 10.
Inside linebacker Brad Jones, a Green Bay Packers defensive man for each of the last six seasons, decided to sign with the Eagles on Monday during his visit after visiting Tennessee this past week.
Jones will add depth to a position that the Eagles were hit hard with regarding injuries in the 2014-15 season as they saw both their top linebackers in DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks go down with injuries for extended periods of time. The season ended early in Ryans's case thanks to a torn achilles. Backup linebackers Najee Goode and Travis Long also went down with injuries early in the season.
A former seventh-round draft pick, Jones appeared in 76 games for the Packers, including 36 starts. This past season was the worst of Jones's career as he made only a combined 18 tackles in 13 games. For his career, Jones has 258 career tackles and 10 sacks to go along with two forced fumbles.
Jones will also provide another man to play on special teams as he has played there throughout his career, including the 2011-12 season when he made the Packers' roster due primarily to his special-teams ability.
The 28-year old linebacker will provide extra depth to the Eagles' linebacker core that was snake-bitten last season, and he is a good low-risk, high-reward move by the Eagles front office. While Jones is coming off the worst season of his career, a change of scenery may be a breath of fresh air for the six-year veteran.