Skip to content
Eagles
Link copied to clipboard

On Tannehill, trading up

Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill told reporters yesterday that he's got a private workout scheduled with the Eagles in College Station, Texas.

Which leads to the obvious question: What are the chances the Birds seriously consider drafting him next month?

Earlier this offseason, reports connected the Birds to Peyton Manning and Robert Griffin III. And if we look back at previous years, we see that Andy Reid and company pretty much always do their due diligence on quarterback options.

Last offseason, I put together a list of reported Eagles draft workouts and visits. Here are the QBs the Eagles were connected to in some capacity: Colin Kaepernick, Andy Dalton, Pat Devlin, Jake Locker, Tyrod Taylor, and T.J. Yates.

Of course, they didn't end up taking any of those players. But hosting prospects, attending pro days and working guys out are just part of the draft process.

As for Tannehill specifically, it seems at this point there's little or no chance he lasts to the 15th pick.

"I think Cleveland has to take him at No. 4," said NFL Network's Mike Mayock, per the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "He's not ready to play Day One, but to me, he's a franchise quarterback, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him go at No. 4 and maybe even 3 [in a trade]."

Based on the draft value chart (which needs updating because of the change in rookie salaries), the Eagles would potentially have to give up the 15th pick and both second rounders (46 and 51) to move into the top five. In other words, that's highly unlikely.

But if the Eagles swapped first-round picks and gave up one of their two second rounders, they could potentially get to about the eighth overall selection. While the Eagles stayed put in the first round last year, they moved up in 2009 and 2010, drafting Jeremy Maclin and Brandon Graham, respectively. They currently have one pick in the third, fourth and fifth rounds, respectively, but remember, that could change if they get a pick back for Asante Samuel.

Given that the Birds don't have a bunch of glaring holes, it makes sense to move up if they covet a player (not talking about Tannehill specifically) expected to go before the 15th pick.

Jonathan Tamari, meanwhile, argues that the Eagles should not draft a quarterback this season.

ASANTE FOLLOW-UP

Yesterday, I posted on Asante Samuel's effectiveness in 2011. Some of you asked why the Eagles are trading Samuel instead of either Nnamdi Asomugha or Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.

For starters, it seems pretty clear that the three cornerbacks cannot be effective playing together at the same time. They tried that last year, and it didn't work.

Trading Rodgers-Cromartie doesn't make sense. He will only be 26 when next season starts, has a Pro Bowl ceiling and is due only a reported $1.1M next season. Granted, he fell short of expectations last season, struggled playing the slot and is not a good tackler, but it's up to the coaches to help him maximize his potential. Given his age, Rodgers-Cromartie is a valuable asset.

The Eagles just signed Asomugha last summer, and he carries a cap value of $11.3M and $15.3M the next two seasons, according to EaglesCap.com. How many teams can take on that salary? And as I explained yesterday, opposing quarterbacks stayed away from Asomugha quite a bit last season, although they had success when they did target him.

That's why Samuel is left as the most likely candidate to get dealt.

AND FINALLY...

Dolphins safety Yeremiah Bell has drawn interest from the Eagles, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Bell, 34, was released earlier this month, although according to the report, he could still return to the Dolphins.

UPDATE: Jason Peters has suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon and will have surgery, the Eagles announced. I'll have a post later today on what that means, but it's obviously a devastating injury to the team's best offensive lineman.

You can follow me on Twitter or become a fan of Moving the Chains on Facebook.