The Philadelphia Eagles lost a tight divisional round game to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, ending their season. Now, they have to focus on their upcoming offseason decisions, which they have quite a few of. The biggest of these decisions regards their two top quarterbacks, Carson Wentz and Nick Foles. There are arguments for and against each Eagles quarterback, including talent, success, age and health.
Wentz throws a 51 yard completion to Nelson Agholor while falling down (Image from NBC Sports)
It is almost unanimous that Carson Wentz is a better quarterback and has more pure talent than Nick Foles. He is stronger, faster, has a bigger arm and is more athletic than Foles. Wentz has the higher ceiling and has already proven the ability to make plays out of thin air. When healthy, Wentz is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the NFL; he is able to evade pass rushers and make incredible passes and run. However, there is a thought that Foles fits the Eagles better and/or is better at elevating those around him.
Foles filled in after Wentz’s injury last year, leading the then 11-2 team to a Super Bowl championship as the number 1 seed. This year, the Eagles were 6-7 and on the fringe of playoff elimination. Foles led the Eagles to wins over multiple playoff teams to lead the team to the postseason. Then, he led a comeback game-winning drive over the Bears in the first round. He almost did it again against the Saints before a drop by Alshon Jeffery turned into a game-losing interception.
Not only is Wentz more talented than Foles, but he was also the favorite to win MVP in 2017, only his second year in the NFL. He most likely would have won the award if he had not torn his ACL in Week 13. This year, the Eagles didn’t have as much success as a team and were only 6-7 at the time of Wentz’s back injury. However, he was by no means having a bad season. The Eagles quarterback had 21 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, a 69% completion percentage and a passer rating of 102.2. That passer rating was actually. . . wait for it…better than Wentz’s passer rating the year before, the year when he was the league’s MVP through 13 weeks.
Image from Philly Fan Life
Nick Foles is a clutch quarterback who plays within the system because he knows his strengths and weaknesses. Foles has heart and an ability to raise the spirits of his teammates. However, he does not have the ceiling that Carson Wentz does. Leadership qualities and heart are necessary qualities in a top starting quarterback, but Foles is not the Eagles quarterback to have those qualities. Wentz is competitive, he brings the locker room together, and he will do anything it takes to win.
While Foles will forever be a legend in Philadelphia, he is not the Eagles quarterback of the future. The Eagles quarterback of the future, as the entire Eagles organization has been saying, is Carson Wentz. Even Foles himself has admitted time and time again that Carson Wentz is the face of the Eagles franchise for the next 10 years.
The Eagles have two options: keep Foles for one more year or trade him. Even though Foles is set to be a free agent, Philadelphia has a 20 million dollar option to keep Foles next season. Foles could buy back his free agency, but then the Eagles may franchise tag him. While the $20 million option or $25 million dollar franchise tag are high prices to pay for a backup quarterback, Philly can afford it.
Wentz will only make about $8 million next year, so they have room to keep Foles for one more season. In addition, Wentz has suffered injuries the past two seasons, so it isn’t a bad idea to keep Foles around. Then, the Eagles will still have an insurance policy in case Wentz truly is injury prone.
Foles playing in Super Bowl 52 (Picture from USA Today)
The other option is that Philadelphia can trade Nick Foles. There are two reasons they might want to do this. First of all, teams are currently very interested in trading for Foles. Because of this year’s magic, they may believe last year’s Super Bowl run was not a fluke. Last year’s best offer for the Eagles quarterback was a second round pick. This year, teams such as the Jacksonville Jaguars or Miami Dolphins may theoretically offer a first rounder. The Eagles might even squeeze out an extra middle-to-late round pick on top of that.
There is also an emotional side to this. Nick Foles is the first Eagles quarterback ever to help deliver a Super Bowl championship. While the Eagles are definitely rolling with Wentz, they should be willing to fulfill their first Super Bowl MVP’s wishes. Foles said for the first time in his postgame press conference that he does want the opportunity to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. If he asks for a trade to a team where he can start, Philadelphia should definitely do it.
The Eagles have third-string quarterback Nate Sudfeld waiting in the wings to be Wentz’s backup, at least for another year or two. He has looked fairly solid when he has played, so they will have a reliable backup in place in case of another Wentz injury.
Featured image by ESPN
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