Chase Daniel, one year removed from signing a three-year, $21 million deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, is officially moving on to his next team. The longtime backup inked a deal with the New Orleans Saints, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan.
Chase Daniel, not content with being the Eagles’ backup, signs with the Saints
Daniel asked for his release to pursue a starting role with New Orleans, but Drew Brees isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
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Daniel was expected to compete with Sam Bradford and Mark Sanchez for Philadelphia’s starting role last year, but the franchise took a sharp right turn from that quarterback platoon last April by trading for the No. 2 selection in the 2016 NFL Draft. While the move temporarily drained the team’s supply of picks, it also brought Rookie of the Year contender Carson Wentz into the fold.
But bringing in Wentz closed the door on Daniel’s chance to start. The Eagles traded away Bradford and Sanchez, leaving the veteran to serve as a backup and mentor to the first-year player. When the North Dakota State product got off to a hot start, it became clear Daniel would have few opportunities to make an impact in Philadelphia.
Those chances won’t get much better in New Orleans, unless Drew Brees falls to injury. At the owners’ meeting, Sean Payton said, “I think Drew plans on — I know he plans on playing two, three, four more years.”
That leaves the 30-year-old to join his fourth team as a pro. Daniel was an undrafted free agent after a productive and successful college career at Missouri. He spent his first three seasons backing up Brees and won a Super Bowl ring with the Saints, but left the team after attempting just nine passes in white and gold.
Free agency led him to Kansas City to back up Alex Smith. Daniel earned a pair of starts there thanks to injury, posting a 1-1 record, but underwhelmed behind center. His 78.6 passer rating with the club would have placed him 27th among qualified starters last year, sandwiched between Blake Bortles and Case Keenum. Regardless, those limited appearances were enough to convince the Eagles to take a $21 million flier on him.
His time in Philadelphia petered out after just one season, and now, it appears he’s got a one-year tryout with the Saints, the same team he began his career with in 2010.
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