Two NFL personnel sources tell Les Bowen and Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer on Friday that they had heard the Eagles were close to trading QB Carson Wentz.
According to Inquirer, the Colts appear to be a “likely landing place” should Wentz be moved at some point, considering that Frank Reich worked with Wentz while they were together in Philadelphia.
Beyond that, the Colts are expected to hire former Eagles QBs coach Press Taylor, who has ties to Wentz.
Colts GM Chris Ballard said in a radio interview on Friday that they are “exploring lots of options” right now, but no trade was close as of today.
“There’s no trade going down right now. Not today, not the Colts,” Ballard said.
The Inquirer reporters list the Colts, Bears, Broncos and Panthers as teams who could be in the trade market for a quarterback among others.
Sources close to the situation have told the Inquirer that even after the Eagles fired HC Doug Pederson, Wentz still has concerns about the organization and prefers to move on, even though he hasn’t requested a trade yet.
The Eagles reportedly have a high asking price for Wentz, which the Inquirer says could amount to multiple draft picks.
Howard Eskin of 94 WIP reports that not many teams have shown serious interest in Wentz up to this point. According to Eskin, the Bears and Colts are the two franchises with the most interest at this time.
Eskin notes that Eagles GM Howie Roseman is close to Bearse GM Ryan Pace. However, a trade involving Wentz will likely require a team to restructure his contract and probably cost a new team a first-round pick.
Should Wentz be traded, Eskins expects a deal to get done at some point next week.
A league source told Tim McManus of ESPN earlier in the day that the Eagles have already received “aggressive offers” for Wentz. Philadelphia is reportedly looking for “significant” compensation in return for Wentz to justify absorbing his $30 million-plus cap hit in 2021.
On Thursday, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported the Eagles have fielded calls from teams that are interested in discussing a trade for Wentz.
Wentz, 28, is a former first-round pick of the Eagles back in 2016. He was entering the final year of his four-year, $26.7 million rookie contract that included a $16.7 million signing bonus when the Eagles picked up his fifth-year option that would have cost them $22.78 million for the 2020 season.
The Eagles then signed Wentz to a four-year, $128 million extension going into the 2019 season that included $107 million in guarantees.
In 2020, Wentz has appeared in 12 games for the Eagles and completed 57.4 percent of his passes for 2,620 yards, 16 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. He also rushed for 276 yards and five touchdowns.
We’ll have more on the Eagles and Wentz as the news is available.
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