Eagles sign Isiah King, waive Tucker Large

The Eagles made a tiny roster move this week, but it tells you a lot about how the bottom of an NFL roster actually works. Philadelphia signed linebacker Isiah King after rookie minicamp and waived defensive back Tucker Large with an injury designation on May 5. That sounds minor — and it is — but these are the exact moves where undrafted players either keep a foothold or lose one almost immediately. The gap is simple: once camp starts, teams need healthy bodies who can practice right now. ### Who is Isiah King? King is an undrafted linebacker from Idaho who got into Eagles rookie camp on a tryout and turned that into a contract. He spent five years at Idaho, played 41 games, and put up his best season in 2025 with 79 tackles, 9 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, and a forced fumble. That is not superstar production by itself, but for a tryout player, it is enough to earn a longer look if the staff likes the movement skills and special teams value. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### What happened to Tucker Large? Large was one of the Eagles’ initial undrafted free-agent signings after the 2026 draft. He is a defensive back who played at South Dakota State and Washington State, and he was on the team’s transaction log just four days before this move. Then Philadelphia waived him with an injury designation, which is the key detail here. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### Why does the injury designation matter? Because this usually is not just about talent. It is about roster utility in May. If a player cannot get on the field during rookie camp or the first stretch of offseason work, the team has to decide whether to carry that player anyway or use the spot on someone (philadelphiaeagles.com)utal. The 90-man roster has room, but every rep still matters. (nbcphiladelphia.com) ### Was King already on the Eagles’ radar? Looks like yes. Idaho had announced King as an Eagles undrafted free agent earlier, but he did not appear in the team’s original eight-player UDFA signing release. That suggests the relationship was there, but the final path onto the roster became a tryout instead of an immediate contract. Then he showed enough at minicamp to get the spot. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### Why sign a linebacker and cut a defensive back? At this stage, teams are not building the final 53. They are filling the 90 with players they want to evaluate through OTAs, minicamp, and the summer. Position-for-position symmetry is less important than getting another prospect(philadelphiaeagles.com)they liked waiting on Large’s recovery, the move makes sense. That last part is an inference, but it fits the timing and the transaction sequence. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### How fast do these decisions happen? Very fast. Large signed on May 1. King was added on May 5. That is basically one rookie minicamp weekend. For drafted players, teams usually have more patience because the investment is bigger. For undrafted rookies, the margin is thinner — one injury, one missed weekend, one better tryout, and the board changes. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### What should Eagles fans take from this? Mostly this: the roster churn has already started. King is not just a camp body now — he has a real shot to stick around into the summer and fight for a practice squad path. Large, meanwhile, becomes an early reminder that for UDFAs, the first battle is often just staying available long enough to be evaluated. (philadelphiaeagles.com) ### Bottom line This was a back-end roster swap, but those matter. The Eagles used one open evaluation slot on a healthy linebacker who impressed at minicamp, and they moved on from an injured undrafted defensive back before OTAs even got going. (philadelphiaeagles.com)