Eagles not placing franchise tag on Nick Foles, allowing him to become a free agent

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The Philadelphia Eagles will not place the franchise tag on Nick Foles, allowing the quarterback to enter free agency.

Philadelphia Eagles Executive Vice President of Football Operations Howie Roseman made the announcement at the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday.

"After a lot of conversation, we think letting him become a free agent is the right thing to do," Roseman said. "He's a tremendous player, Super Bowl MVP, and someone we feel is a top 15 quarterback in this league. We were incredibly fortunate to have him and wish him the best of luck in the future."

The decision allows Foles to become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year opens on March 13th, paving the way for his exit from Philadelphia.

In early February, Nick Foles informed the Eagles he was voiding his $20 million option for 2019, after the team notified him it would be picking up the option.

As part of the void, Foles had to pay the Eagles $2 million to opt out.

The Eagles were expected to place the franchise tag on Foles in an effort to then try to trade him.

The franchise tag number for quarterbacks is expected to be around $25 million for next season.

The Eagles have publicly committed to Carson Wentz as their starting QB moving forward. By placing the franchise tag on Foles, they would have had an opportunity to receive compensation for Foles via trade while having a say on where he ends up. The price for Foles was expected to be around a third-round pick, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Foles, the MVP of Super Bowl LII, stepped in again for the injured Wentz at the end of this past season and helped the Eagles to three straight regular-season wins and a playoff victory at the Chicago Bears in the wild-card round.

Foles, 30, completed 72 percent of his passes and threw for seven touchdowns and four interceptions in five regular-season games in 2018.

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Information from ESPN was used in this post.