The Colts are the clear favorite if Carson Wentz gets traded

The Colts stand out as a clear favorite to add Carson Wentz if he is available for a trade this offseason.

The news finally became official Tuesday. Jalen Hurts is now the starting quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles and Carson Wentz is headed to the bench.

This move makes sense from a strictly performance-based standpoint. Wentz has looked lost all season and has 16 touchdowns along with 15 interceptions. The Eagles are 3-8-1 and something needed a change for the team to be watchable over the final four games of the season.

Now comes the talk of trading Wentz. Financially, this is a disaster for the Eagles. He just signed a four-year, $128 million extension in 2019 and has a dead cap value of over $59 million in 2021. But that number does go down to $33 million if he is traded and the Indianapolis Colts are one team who may be calling the Eagles right away this offseason.

A perfect match for Wentz in Indy

Wentz’s extension is just getting underway next season. A trade sticks the Eagles with $33 million of dead money on a player starting for another team, but it may be the only move if he is no longer the future at quarterback.

The Colts are in a perfect position to trade for Wentz. Philip Rivers and Jacoby Brissett combine for over $46 million on this year’s payroll. Both are free agents next season and rookie Jacob Eason is in place as a developmental piece.

Having the money to pay Wentz the extension he signed with the Eagles is the first step. But the perfect match comes into play because Frank Reich is the head coach of the Colts.

There are plenty of reasons why the Eagles began to fall apart after the Super Bowl run in 2017. Losing offensive coordinator Reich was a huge deal as he went to lead the Colts. Perhaps he believes he can return Wentz to his old ways if Doug Pederson has lost the ability to do so. Or maybe Pederson was never able to in the first place.

The Colts front office will have to take a deep dive on Wentz this offseason and see if he is beyond repair. If not, he can come in under contract through 2024. His dead cap value also drops down to just over $24.5 million in 2022 if things really aren’t working out.

Trading Wentz is not a done deal for the Eagles. Hurts still has plenty to prove and the Eagles may decide to give Wentz one final shot in 2021 because of the financial situation. But expect the Colts to be calling a lot about getting this deal done and ending the drama in Philly.