Eagles 2020-2021 Season

[gmwannabe]

just what i wanted to see. Exciting game. increased throwing by Hurts. a step up from the previous game. AND looking to get a better/higher draft pick. nice game and tough hitting by that defense (at times).
gm

[BostonRoss]

It was nice watching a very entertaining game and not being upset that the Eagles lost.

[zambonir]

It's pretty amazing to me that things have played out the way they have, though some certainly predicted it when the Eagles spent that draft capital. It's hard for me to see a path where Carson is the starting quarterback next season, and they certainly cant keep him as a back-up (nor will he make that easy).

[xogfog]

Yeah, but that being said, it is much harder to trade Wentz than it would be to trade Hurts and you can probably get more for Hurts in return, you might even get a 2nd round pick back.

[zambonir]

Just export them from the quarterback factory huh?

The team is still a mess really. Between Wentz, Hurts, Pederson and Howie someone is going to lose their job without necessarily being the person who deserves to lose their job.

[bkeich]

If I understand the cap consequences correctly I don’t think there is a way to cut (laughably not happening, almost $40M in dead money) or trade Wentz (I think it is $25-30M) this offseason. The Eagles already have a bad cap situation, I don’t think it is possible for him to be moved.

No reason to even think about moving Hurts.

All this talk about someone has to lose their job is just silly to me. We are going to miss the playoffs for the first time in 4 years. We need an infusion of talent, that is certain, but if they ACTUALLY try to bring in younger players rather than just saying it this could be better. We are going to have to move a couple guys probably, but the OL will fix itself just with the guys we have on IR and that will fix the offense.

Roseman needs help in talent evaluation, that is fairly clear. He makes impressive moves in trades, has previously managed the cap well (the Eagles were clearly hoping for an uncapped year, the labor agreement screwed up their plans). He just doesn’t seem to draft well, OK, get him some help.

Schwartz may have saved his job in the last 6-8 games, but he will be on a very short leash I suspect.

[LegoDoom]

Hurts is easily worth a 1st round pick now and possibly a decent amount more than that.

[xogfog]

Because of two games? No he is not worth a first rounder yet. And as for bkeich saying there is no reason to trade Hurts, yes there is. Wentz can't be moved, so they are stuck with him, they have to work with him to get his game back, but they can't do that if Hurts is on the team and there is a full blown QB controversy hanging over his head.

You can't have a QB making 30+ million sitting on the bench, so the Eagles only options are either trading Hurts and getting some decent compensation back, or hoping some team will take him and absorb some of the money, which is much less likely and you wouldn't get any value back other than the financial relief.

[phillychuck]

They are probably not going to trade Hurts, but he is clearly worth a mid-first-round pick or more right now. You know how you can tell? A team with a viable (currently broken) QB who was the clear MVP in 2017 prior to injury would be reluctant to trade him for one right now. Most fans would ask for a LOT more. A 2nd round QB who has already shown he can play in the league is worth a lot more than just an average 1st round pick. If Hurts were in the draft this year he'd be the next QB taken after Lawrence and Fields, and even Fields is debatable. If you have a choice between spending your pick on Lance, Wilson, or Hurts at least some teams would choose Hurts, which means he is at least worth the pick where Lance/Wilson goes.

[LegoDoom]

I think you're way off on this. Franchise QBs are the #1 asset of a franchise (as far as players are concerned). Having a franchise QB making peanuts for 2 more years appeals to good and bad teams.

EDIT: To be more clear, Hurts had similar numbers to Kyler at Oklahoma. Saying it's "just two games" overlooks his college body of work that was similar to a #1 pick.

[bkeich]

You can't have a QB making 30+ million sitting on the bench, so the Eagles only options are either trading Hurts and getting some decent compensation back, or hoping some team will take him and absorb some of the money, which is much less likely and you wouldn't get any value back other than the financial relief.

Kinda lost me here, but I think you are saying hoping someone takes Wentz and gives financial relief. The problem is that type of "relief" doesnt help the prohibitive cap issue,we already are going to have to make a bunch of moves just to get to the cap and to draft. Trading Wentz would mean we would probably have to cut a ton of guys we dont want to.

I get the idea of maximizing the value of Hurts, there is logic in it. But the simple fact is that in today's NFL it is best to have a QB and a quality backup. Look at New Orleans, they were saved by the fact that they have a guy who can win games, or at least not lose them, as a backup. We were lucky in 2018 that we had a guy that Pederson could design an offense around when we needed it.

If someone said that Hurts was traded for a 1st round pick, yea, I would be happy. Honestly, any less than that and I would rather hold on to him for when we need him, because we know we will. And maybe he apprentices for another year and we can make a move.

I still think Wentz is a top 10 QB behind even an average OL. Behind the worst one in the league he has gotten happy feat and he is seeing pressure even when it isnt there, he needed to be pulled and let him get back to where he was before all this. Hopefully.

[xogfog]

Then why was he picked late in the second round and was even labeled a reach to be taken there as he had a 3rd round grade? I'm not saying he won't be a steal there if he turns out to be Dak Prescott 2.0, but franchise QB? Way to early to make that assessment.

[allentown]

It's hard for me to see a path where Carson is the starting quarterback next season, and they certainly cant keep him as a back-up (nor will he make that easy).

The cap hit is too great and his perceived value is to low to make trading Wentz before the end of next season anything more than an utter disaster. I think he stays. Yes, he could be the costliest backup in football history, but they will pay about as much to have him on another team.

I don't see it as being at all impossible that Wentz is the Eagles' starter next year. In the season after he signed his big deal, Pat Burrell looked like a lost cause. He rebounded the next season. So can Wentz. Two things need to happen for either Wentz or Hurts to succeed (and survive physically) next season: we need to add a stud offensive lineman and a stud WR. The Eagles offensive roster this season was ridiculous.

For Wentz to succeed he needs to be willing to change his approach: accept the plays the coach calls, accept that he has to get the ball out quicker. stop playing kamikaze football, and calm down and get comfortable again. He will need both better receivers and a better OL, as well as some different play calls to be able to settle down. But even if he gets those, it will require more maturity on his part.

Hurts has been exciting, but he's done it on his youthful mobility and enthusiasm. Wentz once had that. To me, Hurts has yet to show he is an adequate passer. After multiple seasons, Wentz has also not shown that. It's possible neither of them is a long-term QB

I just don't think it wise to trade such a costly player (cap as well as actual $) at the low point in his value.

If Wentz can't stand to return and compete for the starting QB job (realizing that Hurts is going to get more game time than he did prior to Wentz's benching) that's just tough -- he signed he big extension, which he wanted, then stank this season. If he doesn't feel he has it in him to come to camp and compete for the starter's job, then he should have his agent determine if he can renounce his contract and become an unrestricted FA, with the Eagle's permission. It is unrealistic to expect the Eagles to pay him the big $ to play for another team.

[phillychuck]

The Eagles offensive roster this season was ridiculous.

To be fair, it was pretty solid before all the injuries. We were playing our 5th and 6th string OTs in yesterday's game (based on pre-season depth charts). Jackson is out; Jeffrey has been a shell of himself. Ertz has missed most of the season (and Goddert was out, too). We've had an extraordinary amount of bad injury luck, especially in the O-line.

In terms of trading Wentz, it will be easier than I think most people believe right now. There will be multiple suitors to play off against each other.

[zambonir]

I agree Wentz could easily be the starter next year, and yes if they did trade him, that still doesn't mean Hurts will be the starter by 2022.

But I also don't think they can afford to have a QB competition/controversy. Even at the cost of that cap hit. The team is going nowhere next season anyway, so you swallow the medicine and begin a longer-term plan if that's how it plays out. Just telling Wentz to suck it up isn't really going to work either. And carrying his cap hit as a back-up is scarcely better than carrying it on someone else's roster, other than the obvious insurance value.

But it also doesn't have to come to that. There's a big difference between having a competition for the job next summer and starting camp with Hurts anointed the starter. Obviously the Eagles have refused to do that.

Really they have to start playing Wentz some of the time the rest of the season if they imagine having both QBs back. The narrative should be "Carson needed a break and we're thrilled to have two good quarterbacks." Because otherwise the narrative is either A) Jalen is our starter or B) We're trading Wentz if we think Hurts is good enough.

Trading Hurts makes no sense to me at all. Best case Carson comes back next year with some changes and looks like a very good quarterback again. But then he gets hurt. This is why you drafted Hurts, not to replace Carson.

And then there's this:

The day after: Jalen Hurts is the Eagles' quarterback for now and the future

[allentown]

To be fair, it was pretty solid before all the injuries.

The WR corps was rather pitiful, prior to injuries. They needed an effective big RB to balance the plus Sanders/Scott duo. Giving significant $ to Jason Peters and then more $ to move to LT was a mistake. I thought he seemed cooked last season. Last off-season was a time that a lot more resources needed to be devoted to protecting Wentz and giving him targets. The OL and TE injuries hurt an awful lot, but this was an inadequate offensive roster from the start.

[LegoDoom]

You want to know why the runner up to the Heisman was a reach? Probably because a lot of NFL people are still clueless. Especially regarding QBs. Lamar Jackson fell to the back end of the 1st round and a lot of teams wanted him to change positions.

[LegoDoom]

A team could trade for Hurts and draft a QB 1st overall and still pay much less than what the WFT pays for Alex Smith. Hurts has a lot of value.

[zambonir]

I'm with the Athletic writer above. They're not gonna trade Hurts. And there's likely only one way that this ends - even if the Eagles get absolutely killed in the deal (i.e. they get almost nothing in return).

Hurts may still be more likely to eventually lead the Eagles into quarterback purgatory than to be their long-term answer at the position, but they have already traveled far enough along this journey not to find out whether or not he’s a mirage.

It doesn’t take an oracle to see how the next few months will play out for the Eagles, even if the organization has not yet accepted it. Sunday morning’s ESPN report that Carson Wentz will want to be traded if Hurts is the starter was the inevitable next step after Wentz was benched and Hurts played well. After the season, the Eagles will insist that they have two starting-caliber quarterbacks, no doubt “a good problem to have.” Whomever Jeffrey Lurie tasks to be the head coach will promise an offseason competition for the starting job. Behind the scenes, Wentz’s camp will agitate for a trade while the Eagles will do their best to publicly deny their interest in a trade, so as not to spoil their leverage. Wentz’s $128 million extension and the accompanying $33 million cap hit will serve as an expensive hurdle, but eventually, some team will come calling and the Eagles will send Wentz on his way, ending his bizarrely star-crossed tenure in Philadelphia. He’ll probably play well for that new team.

[LegoDoom]

I don't think the team should trade Hurts, but they would get a lot back if they did.

Eagles trade Wentz to the Colts after 6/1 and find a way to draft Penei Sewell is a dream scenario.