Eagles Trade CB Eric Rowe To Patriots

WEDNESDAY, 1:34pm: The fourth-round pick sent from the Patriots to the Eagles will become a third-round choice if Rowe plays in 50% of the team’s snaps in either 2016 or 2017, a source tells Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (on Twitter).

9:09am: The Eagles have confirmed the deal via press release.

TUESDAY, 6:06pm: As noted here, Kline will not be part of the return for Rowe, but it’s not due to a physical issue, tweets Tom Curran of CSNNE.com. The rest of the trade remains intact, so the Eagles will still receive a conditional fourth-round pick.

10:46am: The Eagles are trading cornerback Eric Rowe to the Patriots for offensive lineman Josh Kline and a draft pick, league sources tell Mike Reiss and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The pick going from the Pats to the Eagles is a conditional 2018 fourth-round pick that can become a third-round choice based on Rowe’s play time in 2016 or 2017, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Eric Rowe (vertical)

During his rookie campaign, Rowe appeared in all 16 games (starting five), and played on about 40% of the Philadelphia’s defense snaps. In that time, Rowe posted one interception, five passes defensed, and 24 tackles. He didn’t appear ticketed for a starting job this year under new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, however, with Nolan Carroll, Leodis McKelvin, and Ron Brooks on the depth chart as the Eagles’ top three defensive backs.

The Patriots paid a hefty price for Rowe, a player who found himself on the bubble in Philadelphia this summer. By giving up a valuable future draft choice for him, the Pats are signaling that they have big plans for Rowe or – at the very least – they are badly in need of reinforcements in the secondary. Rowe’s deal carries cap numbers of $1.1MM in 2016, $1.3MM in 2017, $1.5MM in 2018.

For weeks, the Eagles have been shopping Rowe and they found a deal today that will bring them some much-needed help on the offensive line. Kline, 26, joined the Patriots in 2013 as an undrafted free agent out of Kent State. After getting four starts in his first two seasons, Kline became a full-time starter last year. In November, the Pats extended the guard through the 2017 season.

De facto GM Howie Roseman hasn’t been afraid to deal away players acquired by former head coach Chip Kelly, as he’s already shipped out Byron Maxwell, Kiko Alonso, and DeMarco Murray. Now, we can add Rowe to the list of Kelly guys jettisoned by the Eagles’ top exec.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

View Comments (2)