Eagles Trade Andrews and White, Shrink Roster to 52
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The Eagles used every minute and then some leading up to the 6 p.m. deadline to trim their roster below the 53 man limit. Philadelphia got the paperwork in on the trade of Stacy Andrews to the Seattle Seahawks at 6:03. The Eagles received a seventh round pick in next year’s draft for Andrews in what was the fourth trade of the weekend by general manager Howie Roseman.
First, Philadelphia acquired offensive lineman Reggie Wells from Arizona for a sixth round pick in next year’s draft. Then Philadelphia picked up defensive end/linebacker Antwan Barnes from Baltimore for an undisclosed pick in 2011.
The addition of Wells, who has played primarily left guard throughout his career, made Stacy Andrews expendable. “I think Stacy feels more comfortable at the tackle position, he’s voiced that, and we feel with the addition of Reggie Wells and the health of our offensive line, we feel comfortable at the guard position,” said Eagles general manager Howie Roseman.
The Eagles began listening to offers, and found a dancing partner in the Seahawks. While Roseman said the deal was finished by the 6 p.m. deadline, the paperwork could not be completed in time. In order to get down to 53 players on time, the Eagles had to release Max Jean-Gilles, who they hope to re-sign tomorrow.
Also heading out of Philadelphia today via trade was linebacker Tracy White, who went to New England for an undisclosed pick in 2012. White was signed as a free agent during training camp for his special teams skills, but missed making the team despite the Birds keeping seven linebackers.
Philadelphia kept nine offensive lineman (but plans to re-sign a tenth in Jean-Gilles),10 defensive lineman and seven linebackers. “We went back to what we felt were the priorities in our football team in the offseason, in terms of depth and numbers of position,” said Roseman. “Obviously, we’re heavy on the o-line, we’re heavy on the d-line and we kept six corners.”
Jorrick Calvin was the sixth corner, who the Eagles recently acquired from Arizona for rookie running back Charles Scott. Calvin made the team despite only playing in one preseason game with the Birds. “He did a heck of a job in the preseason game and he had really intrigued us off tape,” said Roseman. “He’s got return ability, not only kickoff returns but punt returns. He did a good job on special teams, and sometimes it’s hard to find corners in this league with cover ability and who can play well on [special] teams.”
In addition to the trades, the Eagles also released 12 players today, most notably safeties Quintin Demps and Macho Harris, leaving the team with only three safeties. Roseman said the Eagles plan to add a safety to the practice squad.
Also gone are Cornelius Ingram, Kelley Washington, Chad Hall, Jordan Norwood, A.Q. Shipley, Dallas Reynolds, Fenuki Tupou, Eric Moncur and Jeff Owens. Offensive guard Max Jean-Gilles is the 12th release, but the Eagles told him they want to bring him back.
“He’s got the ability to go through offers and see if there’s a better opportunity out there, and that’s why we said we’re hopeful that when this process is over he’ll continue to be a Philadelphia Eagle,” said Roseman. “I think he appreciates the honesty and I think he likes being a Philadelphia Eagle and we’ll just see what happens.”
In the meantime, the Eagles have 52 players on their roster and will begin filling their practice squad over the next day or so.