March 08, 2022
Russell Wilson is off the market.
The Denver Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks agreed to terms on a blockbuster deal that will send the franchise QB to Mile High, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday.
Blockbuster: After weeks of negotiations, in one of the largest trades in NFL history, the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos have agreed to terms for a deal involving Super-Bowl winning QB Russell Wilson, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 8, 2022
Trade is pending a physical and Wilson’s approval. pic.twitter.com/oRFDV8Ehyx
The Broncos will be getting a massive upgrade under center in exchange for QB Drew Lock, tight end Noah Fant, defensive lineman Shelby Harris, two first-round draft picks, two second-round picks, and a fifth-round pick.
Under most circumstances, this might've been too steep of a price for even the most impulsive of the league's GMs. In the Eagles and Howie Roseman's case, this wasn't one of them. They had the capital to match Denver and could have went for the quarterback, upgrade over Jalen Hurts.
First and foremost, let's be clear, as Jimmy Kempski has already mentioned: There was never a concrete connection between Russell Wilson and the Eagles. But his growing dissatisfaction with the Seahawks over the past couple years combined with the Eagles having the resources, a strong offensive line, a promising young receiver, but a question mark at quarterback made it seem like a good fit. Plus, the NFC East isn't nearly as intense at QB like the AFC West just got, which already had Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, and Derek Carr going at it.
There is the catch that Seattle didn't want to trade Wilson within the NFC (Washington reportedly offered picks across three years for Wilson, but Seattle declined), but let's play armchair GM with some immediate revisionist history for the sake of it. Why not?
Let's address the draft capital first. The Broncos are reportedly sending two first and two seconds, and a fifth. That's a lot. But the Eagles, with three first-rounders and eight picks total this year, are pretty stocked up. Roseman could've easily packaged two of this year's firsts and maybe a couple future picks in a potential deal if he felt it was worth it.
It's mortgaging the future, sure. But bringing in a quarterback of Wilson's caliber to an offense that made the playoffs by relying heavily on the run could've made the Eagles a much bigger and more immediate concern to the rest of the NFC.
Now the players.
Drew Lock, is a fun but highly inconsistent QB. Noah Fant is a reliable tight end, probably one of the better ones in the NFL right now. And Shelby Harris is a defensive lineman coming off a pretty solid year, but is going to be 31 next season.
If we were to think up an equivalent package, we're probably looking at Hurts, Dallas Goedert, and maybe Fletcher Cox because of his age (31). That would definitely hurt a bit more.
Still, if this season taught us anything, between seeing the Rams, Chiefs, Bills, and Bengals all battle it out: If you can get an upgrade at QB, go get the upgrade.
The Eagles will have to think differently now though, provided they aren't already set on sticking with Hurts for the time being.
Aaron Rodgers is staying put in Green Bay, Wilson is off to Denver, and I wouldn't go anywhere near Deshaun Watson.
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