Eagles deal QB Wentz to Colts for draft picks
The wait is over, but the questions and repercussions will echo for quite some time.
The Eagles are trading quarterback Carson Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts for a third-round draft pick this year and a conditional second-round pick in 2022, a league source confirmed reports from ESPN and the NFL Network on Thursday.
This is far less than Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman sought when he started entertaining offers, weeks after comparing being without Wentz to losing “the fingers on your hand.”
Roseman initially asked for a haul like what the Lions got from the Rams for quarterback Matt Stafford — two first-round picks, a third-rounder and QB Jared Goff. Those aspirations were widely ridiculed, given Wentz’s horrific performance in 2020 and reports that he resisted attempts to fix his flaws.
Wentz is coming off the worst season of his fiveyear career and was benched for rookie Jalen Hurts after 12 games. He finished third in NFL MVP voting in 2017 when he led the Eagles to an 11-2 record before a knee injury ended his season and Philadelphia went on to win the Super Bowl.
Philadelphia incurs a $33.8 million dead salary cap charge for 2021 but will face no further obligation, brightening the 2022 cap picture considerably.
The Eagles were left to take the Colts’ offer when Wentz would not agree to go to Chicago, which might have offered a little more, league sources said.
The deal reunites Wentz with Colts coach Frank Reich, who served as Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator his first two seasons in the league.
Elsewhere: The NFL has increased the salary cap to a minimum of $180 million for the 2021 season. The league and the NFL Players Association had previously set a minimum of $175 million because of revenue losses incurred during the coronavirus pandemic. The cap was $198 million last season.
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