Zack Baun took a glance at the contract his agent and the Eagles agreed on back in March and there was one thing in there that when he saw it, all he could do was laugh.
“Honestly, when I signed here, I just kind of laughed at the fact that (a Pro Bowl) incentive was in my contract,” Baun said Thursday. “Because I didn't think that was necessarily a goal of mine.
“Obviously, it's a goal of mine, but I didn't think I could reach it at this point in my career. But to be able to be voted by fans, players around the league and coaches, it really means a lot to me and a lot to the guys on this defense.”
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Before he got here, Baun had started 14 games in four years, with a total of one interception, two sacks and six tackles for loss in 62 games, mainly as a backup edge rusher.
And there was hardly a free agency frenzy for his services. The Eagles signed Baun in March for one year at $3.5 million, which makes him the 72nd-highest-paid linebacker in the NFL, according to Spotrac.
Look at him now.
Baun on Thursday morning was one of six Eagles named to the NFC Pro Bowl team. In his first year with the Eagles, his first year as an off-ball linebacker, his first year as a full-time starter.
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A truly remarkable story.
He’s the first Eagles position player to make a Pro Bowl in his first year as a full-time player since Donovan McNabb in 2000 and the first defensive player since Bill Bradley in 1971.
And he’s only the fourth Eagles off-ball linebacker to make a Pro Bowl in the last 40 years, joining Seth Joyner in 1991 and 1993, William Thomas in 1995 and 1996 and Jeremiah Trotter in 2000, 2001, 2004 and 2005.
Baun said it wasn’t until well into the season that he even thought this was a possibility.
“I thought I was playing myself to that position and obviously you just work and work and work and hope that's going to be the outcome, but never really expected,” he said.
“Obviously, having a name in the league goes a long way, so you never know truly know. … It honestly wasn't really a thing I thought about until people were commenting on my Instagram photos I'm like, ‘OK, maybe I'm at that level,’ but you never really know.
“I just kept working and working and was hoping that I'd be recognized for the work I put in.”
Baun is the latest in a long series of players the Eagles have either signed or acquired from the Saints who have had far more success here than in New Orleans. Among the others are Malcolm Jenkins, Darren Sproless, Chauncy Gardner-Johnson, Boston Scott and Patrick Robinson.
It was defensive coordinator Vic Fangio who scouted Baun playing for the Saints and saw his potential based on a minimal number of snaps he saw him play at off-ball.
“The way they adjusted their defense in New Orleans, on occasion, he would end up as an inside linebacker,” Fangio said back in September. “Not very often. And from those few plays, I thought he could do it. Was I going to bet my life savings on it? No. But I had a good feeling he could do it.”
Baun this year has 3 ½ sacks, an interception, four pass breakups, five forced fumbles, 11 tackles for loss, five quarterback hits and 151 tackles. Among off-ball linebackers, he’s first in forced fumbles, fifth in tackles for loss and second in tackles.
He’s the best defensive player on the NFL’s top-ranked defense. He’s also unsigned beyond this year but said Thursday he hopes to be back in 2025.
“I mean, if it all works out and obviously that's something that’s out of my control and in the hands of people above me,” he said. “But I love it here. I love the guys in this locker room. I love the organization. I hope it all works out.”
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