Philadelphia Eagles: 5 Brilliant trades during Doug Pederson’s tenure

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 13: Timmy Jernigan #93 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates his second quarter sack against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Divisional Playoff Game at Mercedes Benz Superdome on January 13, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 13: Timmy Jernigan #93 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates his second quarter sack against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Divisional Playoff Game at Mercedes Benz Superdome on January 13, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 20: Quarterback Sam Bradford #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles throws a pass before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at Lincoln Financial Field on December 20, 2015, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – DECEMBER 20: Quarterback Sam Bradford #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles throws a pass before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at Lincoln Financial Field on December 20, 2015, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

2. The Eagles trade Sam Bradford to Minnesota.

On September 4th of 2016, the Eagles sent shockwaves through the entire NFL. During the entire Spring and Summer that led up to that calendar year’s NFL regular season, Eagles fans and the media had been fed the same narrative.

Carson Wentz was going to sit his first season, wear the headset, and carry the clipboard. The plan, originally, was to start Sam Bradford and let the chips fall where they may. It seemed pretty straight forward. Then, with eight days to go before the season actually started, Philly made a move.

They traded Sam Bradford to the Minnesota Vikings for their 2017 first-round pick and their 2018 conditional fourth-round pick. That first-round pick would wind up being Derek Barnett. Maybe it’s a crazy theory, but Derek Barnett has the potential to be a much better pro than Bradford ever was.

Oh, and by the way, the Eagles would get Nick Foles back as well. Former Eagles head coach Chip Kelly had traded him to what was then the Saint Louis Rams for Bradford and draft compensation just one year earlier in 2015.

With one move, the Eagles said it all. The future was starting immediately. Wentz was their guy, but none of that would have happened had it not been for this next move, one that’s arguably the best of the Pederson coaching era,