After signing free agent wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith to one-year deals, the Eagles are now open to trading one of their recently-drafted pass-catchers, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. While La Canfora doesn’t name the specific wideouts Philadelphia is willing to move, Jordan Matthews and Nelson Agholor are the only receivers on the club’s roster who were originally drafted by the Eagles.
Matthews, selected in the second round of the 2014 draft, has offered steady production from the slot during his three-year tenure with the Eagles, but he doesn’t offer the type of No. 1 receiver production that his size (6’3″, 212 pounds) would seem to indicate. In 2016, Matthews posted 73 receptions for 804 yards and three touchdowns. While his scoring was down, Matthews more or less matched his career averages last year.
Now entering his age-25 season, Matthews has one year on his rookie contract, which comes with a base salary slightly north of $1MM. Earlier this month, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports reported the Eagles may be wiling to deal Matthews if the right offer came about. Matthews was selected while Philadelphia still employed former head coach Chip Kelly, so de facto general manager Howie Roseman might not feel attached to the fourth-year pro.
Agholor, meanwhile, was drafted after Kelly had assumed control of the Eagles’ personnel office, meaning Roseman has even less reason to keep Agholor around. Agholor, 23, has posted extremely disappointed results during his first two years in the NFL, as he’s averaged just 30 catches, 374 yards, and two touchdowns from 2015-16. The 20th overall pick in the 2015 draft, Agholor is due fully guaranteed base salaries totaling ~$2.4MM over the next two seasons.
The Eagles are also reportedly open to dealing center Jason Kelce, guard Allen Barbre, and linebacker Mychal Kendricks.
Stay humble, Howie. Torrey Smith is a starting WR, you’re still not Ina position to trade Matthews. However, I could see a team trading for Agholor because it looks like he needs a change of scenery to reach his potential.
Agholor sucks trade him
C’mon, tell us how you really feel.
We won’t get a kicking tee and 3 deflated balls for him.
My Ravens could use a slot, possession receiver like Matthews. He would replace Steve Smith’s production in a big way.
I always anticipated the emergence of Jordan Matthews, (based admittedly in part on his pedigree…he’s Jerry Rice’s cousin), as a marquis wide receiver for the Eagles. However, I’m thinking that Matthews, a prototypical wide receiver in stature alone, may not get that opportunity; at least not on his current team. A big part of JM’s derailed development has been the volatile situation at the Eagle’s quarterback position. In fact, he was displaying all of the attributes of an up-and-coming #1 receiver during his rookie campaign until QB Nick Foles, one season removed from his explosive, team record-setting Pro Bowl season, was sidelined with a season-ending collarbone injury after leading the Eagles to a 6-2 record and 1st place in the NFC East (I still to this day don’t completely understand Foles’ sudden astronomical fall from grace the following year) and saw his numbers and subsequently his involvement in the team’s passing game gradually decline under Foles’ replacement, the perennially mediocre Mark Sanchez and he’s since continued to post uninspiring numbers as the team’s slot receiver.
Assuming that the receiver on the Eagles’ trading block is indeed Jordan Matthews, I remain convinced that with a change of scenery (and certainly a more consistent quarterback situation), he’ll soon develop into the marquis wide out that he seemed destined to become when he entered the league with such enormous promise as the Eagles’ 42nd overall selection in 2014.
He’d be the perfect #2 for the Colts.
Philly speaking of trades usually means everyone knows how desperate they are to cut salary so they get no offers and then just release players.
Nelson is by far the worst receiver I have ever seen in green
Fredex?
It’s Agholor. It’s a well know secret.
Not one of the guys mentioned have any trade value except Matthews
I was waiting for this. We will be here next year with no WRs if we get rid of Matthews. Just keep him. His value is up there now, I get it. But just let’s see how the season goes.
Agreed, now that Jeffery and Smith are there he will not gave as much pressure on him from opposing defences.
Eagles and colts have a great relationship, but even that wouldn’t be enough to get a deal done lol. He should be demoted to special teams only and put in work to get back up the depth chart. He’s been given his spot by Chip and hasn’t lost it because there was nobody there to take it. If he needs to earn it, that might be enough to bump him up or at least give him so value to then make a trade at the deadline.
It’s obvious that Alshon is just raising his stock. He’s taking the right deal and saying the right things. He’s going to be traded by deadline if the Eagles aren’t in it and he knows it. Which is fine. Great business man.
Give us 3 tackling dummies for him