He keeps getting cut. And he keeps coming back.
Brett Toth has been released seven times by three different NFL teams, including four times by the Eagles.
Toth, who turns 28 in two weeks, is a survivor. He’s spent at least part of six straight seasons with the Eagles, playing in a total of 17 games with one start. The only position players who’ve been with the team longer are Brandon Graham, Lane Johnson, Dallas Goedert, Avonte Maddox, Josh Sweat and Jordan Mailata.
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Brett Toth? Seriously?
Yep.
He’s having a good camp and has a fair shot to make it through roster cuts a week from Tuesday. Toth is a rarity in that he can play either tackle, either guard or center.
“I think the mindset [is] just realizing that you can't play the politics, you can't focus on making the roster,” Toth said. “I went out with the goal of just kind of building that confidence in the guy next to me wherever I'm plugged in at. …
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“Time flies. Same experience, same goal every day. Go out there, get better, build confidence in your teammates kind of deal. Just excited to be here, have another opportunity.”
Take a look at Toth’s career:
2019: Signs with Eagles as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Army. Released Aug. 31, spends most of season on Cards’ practice squad.
2020: Released by Cards, signed by Eagles, plays in six games, mainly on special teams.
2021: Released by Eagles, re-signed by Eagles, plays in 11 games, mainly on special teams.
2022: Misses entire season with torn ACL.
2023: Signed and released twice by Eagles, signed by Panthers, plays in three games with one start, released by Panthers, re-signed by Eagles.
2024: Signed by Eagles to futures contract.
Toth has good size at 6-6, 305 pounds, and he’s fairly athletic, but his biggest attribute is his intelligence. Which you need to be able to back up five different positions.
Which can't be easy.
"It's very difficult," he said. "My favorite one is the one that [offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland] asked me to do.
"When you're playing all five, you're getting one-fifth of the reps at each position, so it's hard. But you kind of have to cross train it to where certain blocks at tackle can kind of correspond to certain blocks at center, and just trying to get reps at other positions and grouping them together.
“Lots of film, always being in tune with the practice whenever I'm not going, watching it, and again just recognizing within the scheme itself that some of the position groups aren't as different as they seem.”
Toth’s career hit a roadblock when he suffered a serious knee injury in the meaningless 2021 regular-season finale against the Cowboys at the Linc. That was the last time he was on the field for the Eagles, although he did get into three games last year with the Panthers.
But this summer is really the first time he’s been healthy and this locked in, which gives him a legit chance at a roster spot.
“When you're away from ball for two years, you're not used to the hitting, your body isn't under the same exact load, so whenever you come back, there's definitely going to be kind of a shock period," Toth said. "And I definitely felt that last year during camp.
"And when you're kind of out there, you feel like you're 70 percent, you're fighting as hard as you can, you kind of get down on yourself mentally as well. So last year was definitely difficult for me.”
One of the lasting memories of Toth in his earlier stints with the Eagles was his awful snapping. It got so bad the Eagles couldn’t even play him with the second offense at center because you just never knew where the snaps were going.
He’s addressed that with one easy fix.
“It's pretty simple,” he said. “I tried snapping the way Jason Kelce did. But you can't try to fit your game after one of the all-time greats. … Because if anyone's seen the way that Jason Kelce snaps, there's a lot of heat on it. So I tried changing it last year, showed it didn't work out, went back to the way I used to and have had no problems.”
If Toth makes the team, it will be because of his versatility. And with Mekhi Becton and Tyler Steen both sidelined, his value increases.
In addition to starters Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, Becton and Johnson, Steen, Fred Johnson and Trevor Keegan appear to be roster locks. If the Eagles keep 10, that probably means two out of Toth, Dylan McMahon, Darian Kinnard. If they keep nine, then only one of those three would make it.
Guys like Matt Hennessy, Max Scharping and Nick Gates appear to be on the outside looking in.
“Well for me, I can say Stout's one of the best offensive line coaches in the game,” Toth said. “So just learning the techniques, the X's and O's, the strategy behind our run game, our pass game, and I've also been to two other places as well where I can compare other coaching styles and stuff like that. I'm grateful for what he's taught me and for the guys here.
“But same sense, everyone knows it's a business. If they don't want me, someone else wants me, I'll do whatever. The team that picks me up, I'm doing whatever they're asking me.”
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