My favorite trades are the ones that make me raise my eyebrow comedically, like I was some wise-cracking sidekick on a case with a hard-nosed, old school detective.
This Eagles-Saints swap made me do just that:
TRADE: Eagles sending picks No. 16, No. 19 and No. 194 in the sixth round to the Saints in exchange for pick No. 18, No. 101 in the third round, No. 237 in the 7th round AND a 2023 first-round pick and 2024 second-round pick, per sources.
Saints now at 16, 19; Eagles at 15, 18.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 4, 2022
Not only is this unexpected, it is a rather curious move. For both teams.
Let’s start with the Saints, who are packaging their 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-rounder in order to trade into the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Essentially, the Saints are using future top-100 picks along with third- and seventh-rounders in this year’s draft as a vehicle to move off up from the 18th pick, where they had originally been picking. Who saw that coming? Trade-ups like this one tend to suggest teams have eyes for a particular quarterback. And using a future first hints at New Orleans being willing to punt on next year’s class in order to secure someone in this year’s crop of prospects. But is that quarterback going to even be available at pick 16? Or is this a precursor to another move to leap-frog another quarterback-needy franchise between now and when the draft begins on April 28? Only time will tell.
As for the Eagles, watching them loading up on picks has me feeling a bit envious. Philly still has five top-100 selections, but nearly adds another one by getting the Saints’ 101st overall pick. But the big winner here is Philadelphia landing a second first-round pick. Maybe the Eagles have eyes on a quarterback in next year’s class? Or perhaps they’ll position themselves to use their 2023 first-rounders to make a splash in next year’s quarterback carousel. Whatever their ulterior motives are, I feel like the Eagles did well here.
In the end, I’m hoping there is a way for the Bears to benefit from this movement. Whether it is inspiration to rack up draft picks by any means necessary moving forward. Or if it aids the Bears in this year’s draft if we can successfully add the Saints as a team looking to draft a quarterback. Remember, the more QBs who go off the board before the Bears go on the clock with pick 39, the more likely it is they’ll land a non-QB prospect with a first-round grade because of a run on quarterbacks. Let’s keep an eye on the Saints and Eagles as we move along here in the run-up to the draft.