Tony Cutillo
We came into this off-season knowing it was going to be interesting. Now that it’s here, the angst and trepidation of every Eagles fan can be felt straight from the social media and radio lines. The Eagles began this off-season with a lot of money questions to answer in regards to the salary cap. However, Captain Howie already threw his life preserver on and used his paddles to gain us around $25 million in cap space. Through re-structured contracts and noteworthy trades, the magic has once again sprinkled itself around the Eagles’ locker room.
Coming into this off-season, we made the assumption that Golden Tate would not be approached for a new contract, leaving a hole at the wide receiver position. I, for one, thought they would add a lower-tier player or speedster like a DeSean Jackson or John Brown and never approach the trade market for the #1 guy available: Antonio Brown.
Then this happened:
Things fairly quiet on the AB front. The two teams I continue to hear most closely linked to him are the Raiders and Eagles. Several teams who have been in the mix believe a trade with Raiders would already be done if not for contractual hold-ups between the WR and the team
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) March 9, 2019
Could it be? Could Roseman be changing in the telephone booth as we speak waiting to pounce on the Steelers and get one of the best receivers in the game? He has pulled off some remarkable surprises over the years, but this one would be high on the charts. The question is, why would he want Antonio Brown?
Brown has made it no secret that he wants to be wearing a different uniform this season. He has also killed a lot of his trade value by making himself out to be a lot to handle. Have you watched the ESPN video where he states that any team that trades for him will have to play by his rules? If not, here’s the interview in its entirety so you can see why his trade value is plummeting with every word that flows from his mouth.
All this being said, his numbers speak for themselves. Over the last six years, he has averaged 114 receptions, 1,524 yards, and 11 touchdowns. Pairing him up with Alshon Jeffery would give Carson Wentz a heck of a wide receiver duo that could be tops in the NFL.
But, the baggage. Do we really want the baggage?
We asked ourselves this question back in 2004 when we were the winners of a three-way trade that granted us the services of Terrell Owens. The Eagles signed Owens to a reported seven-year, $42 million contract that included a signing bonus of more than $10 million. He did give us some amazing highlights and almost single-handedly won us a Super Bowl. However, after that magical season, the honeymoon was over.
Could this same situation play out if we were acquire Brown? Would you trade in his baggage for another Super Bowl? Before I wrote this article, I was adamantly against it. However, after researching his stats and recapping his past performances, I say, why not?
Let’s bring another trophy home to Philadelphia!
Jigsaw
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