Howie Roseman Must Consider 3 NFL Trade Deadline Options
The Philadelphia Eagles own the best record in the league, but will Howie Roseman look to improve the team before the NFL Trade Deadline on October 31? His work is never done.
“The trade deadline looms large. In the next 24 hours, I’m interested to see if the Eagles make a move to make the team even more ready to contend for a championship.” -Andrew DiCecco
Linebacker Depth
Andrew DiCecco of Inside the Birds spoke on The John Kincade Show about the linebacker position as a possible area of need.
“You need to see if there is another viable solution to linebacker that you can kind of plug in there and get a four-man rotation. I think that might be an area that teams are going to look to exploit as they move further into the season.” -DiCecco
He pointed to the game plan that helped Sam Howell and the Washington Commanders to 397 passing yards in Week 8. Eric Bieniemy and the Washington staff exploited Zach Cunningham as a weakness in Philadelphia’s pass coverage.
Nakobe Dean also had a few hiccups in the 38-31 victory.
Cunningham and Nicholas Morrow exceeded expectations early in the season. However, a team in Super Bowl contention shouldn’t sit comfortably if they fear a position of weakness.
Roseman could target Josey Jewell of the Denver Broncos. He looks like an affordable option in the final year of his contract in 2023. Sports Illustrated estimated that a mid- or late-round pick might get the deal done.
Derek Barnett
It’s not common for a Super Bowl contending GM like Howie Roseman to sell at the NFL Trade Deadline. However, it’s a real possibility that the Eagles move Derek Barnett for a late-round draft pick.
The former first-rounder and his agency have had permission to seek a trade since training camp. The percentage of his defensive snap counts has decreased in four consecutive games.
Barnett played seven defensive snaps in Week 8. He failed to generate any sort of push on a pass rush on one snap late in the third quarter. Instead of settling as a non-factor for one play, he recklessly charged at the ball carrier and risked a 15-yard personal foul with a hit that had very little impact on the play.
Regardless of how you feel about officiating, NFL players undoubtedly know to expect harsh (and probably overboard) enforcement of the rules.
A late-round draft pick won’t help the Eagles win Super Bowl LVIII. However, trading Barnett would remove the liability for a costly mistake without any real concern about losing a contributor.
Running Back
The Eagles added D’Andre Swift in April to sure up their running back room. However, their rotation in the backfield hasn’t met high preseason expectations.
Nick Sirianni should no longer look at Kenny Gainwell as a reliable player after his costly fumble against Washington in Week 8. Swift also has an injury history that the Eagles shouldn’t ignore.
Jeff McLane spoke on 97.5 The Fanatic about running back as a potential position to target if an opportunity presents itself for a reasonable cost.
Roseman showed his willingness to add to a strong running back room in 2017 when he swindled his way into acquiring Jay Ajayi for a fourth-round pick.
The Eagles have already added Julio Jones, Bradley Roby, and Kevin Byard since the season started. However, the league knows never to sleep on the shrewd Howie Roseman at the trade deadline.
“I do have one quality I can’t deny. That is I am relentless, freaking relentless… I’m so worried that someone’s going to be available that I don’t know about, and I see a trade or a move made, and I didn’t know about it.” –Howie Roseman (New Heights)
The Eagles want to make another move and Howie Roseman is expected to be busy tomorrow, per @DMRussini. 👀 pic.twitter.com/1nWBpYDeJh
— Word On The Birds (@WordOnTheBirds) October 29, 2023