Eagles would be crazy to agree to accept this zany trade proposal
You won't believe what the Eagles are giving up in this recent trade proposal (and what they're being offered as compensation).
Now that the height of free agency has passed and most of the league's focus has shifted to the upcoming draft, outrageous trade proposals are making their way into the conversation.
Because most, if any, will involve a swap of draft picks, hypothetical scenarios dominate the draft discussion, with the Eagles involved in the latest outrageous and unrealistic of all.
Given the deep talent they have offensively, in particular, coupled with the noticeable tension stemming from some comments and behavior by receiver A.J. Brown, he has become the subject of a draft-day trade that would send him to the Patriots for virtually nothing in return.
It was a discussion had by Jake Ellenbogen of Bleacher Report during a live stream last week, where they drew up possible trade scenarios that shipped Brown to another team for draft picks in return. Although there hasn't been any indication of the Eagles having even a slight interest in trading the receiver they only acquired two years ago, the bit of drama he's been involved in since arriving seems to be the basis of the proposals.
Envisioning a potential trade of a top receiver in the league is nothing new, but the return for the caliber of player they are should be worthy, and this ain't that.
The Eagles would be crazy to entertain this trade proposal.
When thinking about trading Brown to any team, the assumption would be he would go for nothing less than a first-rounder or even multiple firsts. He's continued to be one of the best receivers in the league, and if a team like the Patriots would even offer this haul, they should maybe not bother to respond.
Ellenbogen suggests New England would send their second, third, and fourth-round picks in the 2024 draft, mainly due to having such a high first-rounder that it wouldn't make sense for them to ship that off.
“They only have one first-round pick. They’re not trading away the third overall [pick]. So, a second, a third and a fourth [round picks for Brown]. It’s a lot, but hey, what better way to ring in a new era of Patriots football than to bring in a franchise quarterback at pick three [to pair with Brown].”
This doesn't seem like a good idea for either side. Sure, DeVonta Smith is a great player, and the initial plan was to keep him as the WR1 in Philadelphia. But the pairing of him and Brown has proven to be exactly what Jalen Hurts needs, so why break that up now?
They could certainly benefit from adding three more selections to their draft and could couple many of them for better picks or a massive trade. Yet at the same time, it doesn't feel worth what they'd be giving up.
For New England, giving up three picks to acquire a receiver doesn't help fill the countless roster holes they need to address. It would solve one issue that has been their biggest weakness for a handful of years, but with just eight picks and a lackluster free agency, they'll need all the draft picks they can get.
Fortunately, this is just a fun idea for analysts to entertain themselves between the start of free agency and the draft. So let's, hope it stays that way.
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