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As the Eagles try to build an advantage for a Carson Wentz switch, circumstances continue to make it more difficult for the Eagles to maximize the return of a quarterback whose contract they would love to discard.
John Clark of NBC Sports Philly-delphia recently reported that “a group of young Eagles recipients”Plan to work with quarterback Jalen Hurt in Texas sometime next month.
No similar report has emerged on Wentz. Presumably, this is because Wentz still wants to leave and because the momentum has pointed in the direction of a negotiation for a while.
The process was mired in the team’s desire to get more than everything that was or was not offered. The Eagles’ great player, Ron Jaworski, said recently that the Colts offered only two options to choose from in the second round. THE Philadelphia Inquirer he also reported that no first round choices were placed on the table.
The question is whether the Eagles will make the best deal they can before a $ 10 million bonus is due on March 19, or whether they will pay the money to Wentz and wait for a better offer to materialize later.
They played the waiting game before and won. In 2016, the Eagles were reportedly ready to launch Sam Bradford for the first week, with Wentz (then a newbie) on the bench. The Vikings lost Teddy Bridgewater not long before the season opened, and the Eagles quickly got a choice in the first round and a choice in the fourth round for Bradford.
Serious quarterback injuries, especially in practice, are extremely rare. Still, many teams are content to choose the next man instead of paying a king’s ransom for a plug-and-play replacement.
Eagles can also wait for the result of the current quarterback carousel. Perhaps a team in need of a defender attacks in a free agency or in the commercial market, making that team interested in Wentz. Perhaps a team that plans to meet your needs in the draft won’t get the guy you want.
In any case, the Eagles are playing a dangerous game of chess, checkers and chicken. They want more than anything that is being offered. To get more, they risk losing the offer (s) they already have.
Ultimately, owner Jeffrey Lurie will have to be persuaded to sign a $ 10 million check to Wentz as starting capital in an effort to attract a better bird than the one they currently have in their hands. Given the real chance that money will end up being wasted, a team like the Colts needs to just sit and wait.
Perhaps in the end the Eagles will let the bonus deadline pass and pay the $ 10 million, if only to get a better exchange package for Wentz. In fact, it appears that the Eagles are just as concerned (if not more concerned) with the appearance of the trade than with simply getting the best deal possible for Wentz.