It’s now possible the Philadelphia Eagles trade Carson Wentz

By Vincent Frank

·Updated: December 8, 2020

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For better or worse, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is tied to the hip with quarterback Carson Wentz. The two have struggled big time with Philadelphia sitting at 3-8-1 heading into Week 14. In particular, these struggles came out in droves during Sunday’s 30-16 loss to the Green Bay Packers in which Wentz was benched for Jalen Hurts.

We have already touched on whether Pederson will be back with the Eagles next season. Things are not looking great in that regard. However, rumors are starting to pop up that Carson Wentz could be forced to move on from Philadelphia less than two years after signing a four-year, $128 million extension with the team.

There’s certainly a lot to look at when it comes to Wentz’s future with the Eagles and whether his tenure will come to a conclusion following the 2020 season.

Does it make sense for the Philadelphia Eagles to trade Carson Wentz?

Financially, it would be a hard sell for the Eagles’ ownership group. Wentz still boasts a dead cap hit of $59.2 million following the 2020 season.

A lot of that would have to be taken into account if the Philadelphia Eagles did opt to move Carson Wentz. It’s the way embattled general manager Howie Roseman structured the contract and might very well be one of the reasons he, too, could be on his way out of town. Just look at the finances moving forward.

Carson Wentz contract: Salary cap hits

2021: $34.67 million
2022: $31.27 million
2023: $36.27 million
2024: $32 million

Carson Wentz contract: Dead cap hits

This is if the Eagles were to, for some reason, elect to release Wentz at any point. The numbers are eye-opening.

2021: $59.2 million
2022: $24.55 million
2023: $15.27 million
2024: $6 million

As noted above, it’s all about how Roseman structured Wentz’s contract. It obviously doesn’t paint him in the best of lights. Should Doug Pederson get fired, Roseman’s future will likely be tied to this contract.

However, Philadelphia does have a more financially-friendly out should the team opt to trade him. According to Over the Cap, the team would take on a $33.82 million dead cap hit if Carson Wentz were traded before the third day of the new league year in March. That’s north of $25 million less than his dead cap hit.

Technically, the finances could work if Philadelphia opted to trade Wentz. The team would not face a dead cap hit beyond the 2021 season, freeing up money for upgrades elsewhere on the roster. That’s where this next point comes into play.

Philadelphia Eagles should start Jalen Hurts over Carson Wentz

We’ve heard the moans and groans from Eagles fans as well as the not-so-friendly Philadelphia sports media scene. Why not give Hurts a chance?

This came to a culmination in the first half of the Eagles’ Week 12 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Hurts got in for one pass play early in the second quarter after the Eagles tallied a total of four yards in the first 15 minutes. He was immediately pulled with Wentz being sacked on the following play. Pederson drew a ton of criticism.

Philadelphia selected Hurts in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft for a reason. The team saw Carson Wentz miss the end of the past three seasons to injury. It figured an insurance policy behind the injury-plagued quarterback made sense.

Now, with Wentz acting as one of the bottom-five quarterbacks in the NFL, the time is now for these Philadelphia Eagles to see what they have in Hurts, who was 5-of-12 passing for 109 yards, with one touchdown and an interception in Week 13 against Green Bay.

Related: NFL coaches on the hot seat

Carson Wentz stats: Just abysmal this season

It was back back in 2017 that Wentz turned things on big time as a sophomore. He led Philadelphia to an 11-2 regular-season record and put up some awe-inspiring numbers. While his numbers in 2018 and 2019 were pretty good, they have taken a nosedive thus far this year.

2016: 62.4% completion, 3,782 yards, 16 touchdowns, 14 interceptions (79.3 rating)
2017: 60.2% completion, 3,296 yards, 33 touchdowns, seven interceptions (101.9 rating)
2018: 69.6% completion, 3,074 yards, 21 touchdowns, seven interceptions (102.2 rating)
2019: 63.9% completion, 4,039 yards, 27 touchdowns, seven interceptions (93.1 rating)
2020: 57.4% completion, 2,620 yards, 16 touchdowns, 15 interceptions (72.8 rating)

Some might want to give Carson Wentz a mulligan for the 2020 season. It’s been an odd year around the NFL, defined by COVID-19. As for the Philadelphia Eagles, injuries along the offensive line and a lack of receiver help have both impacted the former No. 2 overall pick.

But those are excuses. Everyone has one. What we do know is that Wentz’s numbers are down across the board. His tape is absolutely horrific. These are both going to be factors in the Philadelphia Eagles’ decision-making process.

How might a Carson Wentz trade look like?

At this point, the Philadelphia Eagles have absolutely no idea whether Jalen Hurts is the heir-apparent to Wentz. That’s why they must give the former Alabama and Oklahoma standout a ton of time during the final quarter of the regular season. Simply put, they can’t go blindly into the offseason when it comes to the young signal-caller.

There’s a chance that a trade of Carson Wentz would potentially bring back another quarterback to start until Hurts is deemed ready. Perhaps, the Las Vegas Raiders with Derek Carr or Detroit Lions with Matthew Stafford could make some sense.

Either way, it’s becoming increasingly evident that Carson Wentz is no longer the franchise quarterback for his Philadelphia Eagles. We’ll find out early in the offseason if the team’s brass agrees with this sentiment.