The Eagles Could Receive an Unexpected Gift From the Jets Thanks to Their Foolish Decision to Start Joe Flacco
Last month, the New York Jets made the puzzling decision to call up the Philadelphia Eagles and trade for Joe Flacco. The move didn’t make much sense considering the Jets aren’t in playoff contention, and they have two young quarterbacks on the roster they should be trying to develop.
In an even more foolish move, New York is going to start Flacco this Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, which opens the door for the Eagles to receive an unexpected gift.
The Jets are foolishly starting Joe Flacco against the Dolphins
When the Jets traded for Flacco a few weeks ago, not many fans thought they would even see him on the field this season. New York wants to give rookie first-round pick Zach Wilson as many reps as possible this year, and the team would like to see if Mike White can be a viable backup option moving forward.
Ahead of Sunday’s game against the Dolphins, the Jets had some uncertainty surrounding the quarterback position with Wilson still nursing a knee injury and White coming off an abysmal start against the Buffalo Bills. So, in a puzzling move, New York announced earlier this week that Flacco will get the start against Miami.
Now, the Jets believe Flacco gives them the best chance to win on Sunday, but that shouldn’t even factor into their decision. At 3-7 through 10 games, this team is not making the playoffs this year. White should be on the field this week so the Jets can get a better feel about whether or not they want to keep him around as Wilson’s backup.
And considering the details surrounding New York’s trade with Philadelphia, the decision to start Flacco makes even less sense.
The Eagles could receive a much-needed gift from the Jets thanks to Flacco
Before Flacco’s first start of the season, let’s rewind to the day he was dealt to New York.
The Eagles shipped Flacco to the Jets in October for a conditional sixth-round draft pick in 2022. The condition? If Flacco plays more than 50% of the team’s snaps in at least four games this season, that sixth-rounder shifts to a fifth-rounder in next summer’s draft.
Philadelphia likely figured getting a fifth-round pick in this deal was nothing more than a pipe dream, but it’s now become a reality thanks to New York’s perpetual incompetence.
A crucial 2022 draft for the Eagles
Seeing Flacco on the field this Sunday will be a welcome sight for Eagles fans, but the veteran QB will still have to play in three more games for that fifth-round pick to become a reality. Even if Flacco sits the rest of the season and Philadelphia only comes out of the trade with a sixth-rounder, the Eagles are still in a great position in regards to the 2022 draft.
As it currently stands, Philly has two first-round draft picks and likely a third thanks to the Carson Wentz trade. In addition, the Eagles have a pick in the second, third, and fourth round, as well as three picks in the fifth unrelated to the Flacco pick.
If all goes right for Howie Roseman, he’ll have three first-round picks and 10 total selections in the first five rounds of the 2022 draft. Now that’s how you rebuild.
But Roseman getting most of those picks right is a completely different story.
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