The Eagles Would be Smart to Keep Foles Around
The Philadelphia Eagles have a problem that any NFL team would love to have. Fresh off a historic Super Bowl victory, Philadelphia heads into the offseason with not one, but two starting-caliber quarterbacks. Carson Wentz, who perhaps was the MVP front-runner before tearing his ACL, is the obvious starter for Philadelphia, but Nick Foles, who turned in a dominant postseason performance, has shown he is one of the 32 best quarterbacks in the league and deserves a chance to start next season. Foles’ value has never been higher, but what will Philadelphia do with their breakout playoff star?
Timing is everything
As we’ve discussed, Carson Wentz is out with a torn ACL. Though that injury isn’t the career death sentence it once was, it still requires months of grueling rehab. What happens if the Eagles think Wentz won’t be ready to go at the start of next season? With Foles in tow, the team has an excellent backup plan, but at the same time, what if Foles is unable to capture the same magic from this postseason? At that point, Foles’ trade value will fall drastically and the Eagles will have missed a golden opportunity to offload him for a peak return.
On the other hand, what if Foles is traded to a quarterback-needy team and continues to play well, while Wentz struggles to regain his MVP form or isn’t fully healthy? At that point, the Eagles may regret trading away a guy that just went toe-to-toe with Tom Brady in the Super Bowl. Both scenarios are possible, leaving Philadelphia with a hugely consequential decision to make, and one that the franchise could come to rue for years.
All Eyes on Wentz’s Health
The best thing Philadelphia can do is hold on to Foles until they are absolutely sure Wentz is completely healthy. Unless an overwhelming trade offer is made for Foles, the Eagles should keep him around as insurance through the offseason. Once training camps begin and preseason games get underway, if Philadelphia is confident in Wentz’s progress, then, and only then, should they look to offload Foles. Every year there is at least one starting quarterback that gets hurt in training camp. At that point, Philadelphia will have a much better idea of where Wentz’s health is. Not to mention, trading Foles then would likely fetch a better return than anything they will get for him now with free agency and the NFL draft still ahead.
Patience is the key for Philadelphia and Foles over the next few months. As tempting as it may be to ship Foles away coming off a Super Bowl victory, it makes much more sense to keep him around until the team is sure they won’t need him. If training camp comes around and Wentz is healthy and back to playing well, then trade Foles, but until that happens, Philadelphia should keep the Super Bowl MVP.
Chris Ross is the owner of Babble Sports. For more from Chris, follow him here.
