Eagles trade Barkley to Cards
Philly gets draft pick, frees up No. 3 QB spot for Tebow.
Tim Tebow made Matt Barkley expendable.
The Philadelphia Eagles traded Barkley to the Arizona Cardinals on Friday, clearing a roster spot for Tebow after he won a preseason competition for the No. 3 quarterback job.
Arizona sent a conditional seventh-round draft pick to Philadelphia for Barkley. A person familiar with the deal said Barkley has to be on the roster for six games for the Eagles to receive the pick in 2016.
Barkley provides depth behind Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton. Logan Thomas and rookie Phillip Sims were competing for the No. 3 job. Sims already tweeted that he was released.
The Cardinals were 6-0 with Palmer as their starter last year and 5-6 without him, including a playoff loss to Carolina. Palmer missed three games in September and the final seven games after tearing his ACL in mid-November.
Tebow outplayed Barkley in the preseason and will play behind Sam Bradford and Mark Sanchez unless coach Chip Kelly makes a surprise move this weekend.
Bills: Though saying he’s optimistic, running back LeSean McCoy wasn’t prepared to declare that injured left hamstring will be healed in time for the season opener against Indianapolis on Sept. 13.
Meantime, starting cornerback Leodis McKelvin will miss the start of the season because of an ankle injury after being placed on the reserve/ non-football injury list. The designation means McKelvin will miss at least the first six weeks.
Buffalo also released Ikemefuna Enemkpali three weeks after acquiring the linebacker who broke the jaw of Jets quarterback Geno Smith.
Falcons: Acquired veteran guard Andy Levitre from the Titans in exchange for a sixthround pick in the 2016 draft and a future conditional pick. Levitre lost his starting job in Tennessee but will be expected to provide immediate help on the Falcons’ line, which has been a major concern in the preseason.
Levitre, 29, is an expensive acquisition. He signed a six-year, $46.8 million contract in March 2013 and was due to earn $6.5 million in base salary this season. It was not known if Levitre’s contract will be reworked.
Meantime, quarterbacks Rex Grossman and T.J. Yates were released, leaving Sean Renfree as the backup to Matt Ryan.
49ers: Released veteran defensive lineman Darnell Dockett and five other players, including linebacker Philip Wheeler and safety Craig Dahl.
Dockett was one of the more prominent free agents added by San Francisco this offseason, but he was unable to do enough to make the team. Dockett missed all of last season in Arizona with a knee injury and currently is hampered by a rib injury.
Texans: Third-string quarterback Tom Savage will miss four to six weeks with a badly sprained shoulder suffered vs. the Cowboys on Thursday. Coach Bill O’Brien said Savage will not require surgery but will “miss some significant time.”
Meantime, defensive tackle Louis Nix, a thirdround pick in 2014 out of Notre Dame, was among the players released.
Giants: Released punter Steve Weatherford after acquiring Brad Wing in a trade with the Steelers. Weatherford was to earn $3.075 million, while Wing will get $510,000.
Dolphins: Released quarterback Josh Freeman, leaving Matt Moore as the backup to Ryan Tannehill.