4 realistic trades Eagles could make ahead of the NFL Trade Deadline

Things are moving quickly: Two very high-profile trades happened on Tuesday between the Raiders and Jets for Devante Adams, and the Browns and the Bills for Amari Cooper. Some teams aren’t waiting right up until the trade deadline to make things happen.

The Philadelphia Eagles need help with their inconsistent defensive line and they’re running out of time to get that help. The trade deadline is on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, which is less than three weeks away.

Whether they’re buyers or sellers, the Eagles could make some moves at the trade deadline. 

If the Eagles are going to be buyers at the trade deadline, it would be really cool if they decided to buy big, but that’s probably not going to happen because Howie doesn’t play that game. If they do trade for a pass rusher, it’ll likely be a name that makes you say, ‘Oh, I remember him, he used to be good,’ and then you’ll tweet ‘HOWIE SZN’ because it’s that’s how it works.

If the Eagles are sellers, it won’t be anyone of huge consequence. In the past five years, Howie has traded away Kentavius Street, Terrell Edmunds, and Joe Flacco in the two weeks leading up to the trade deadline. The one outlier was Zach Ertz in 2021, but that seemed like a mutual parting of ways. The point is, we’re not going to see Nolan Smith, Bryce Huff, or Darius Slay get traded.

The Eagles currently have seven picks in the 2025 NFL draft: One first-round, second-round, third-round, and fourth-round pick, and three fifth-round picks. Howie might go out and try to get some more.

Trade away Isaiah Rodgers:

The Eagles have depth at cornerback, which feels weird to say since they haven’t had that in a while. If they’re looking to be sellers and boost their number of picks in the 2025 draft, trading away a decent cornerback could be the move.

The Eagles signed Rodgers on August 28, 2023, on a deal through the end of the 2024 season. He never played in 2023 because he was suspended for some kind of gambling violation. He has only played 30 snaps in 2024: nine in Week 4 and 21 in Week 6 (all after Darius Slay left those games due to injuries). He’s clearly valued as a CB2, but the Eagles also have Kelee Ringo and Eli Ricks waiting for more playing time.

If the Eagles are fine with an oft-injured Darius Slay as a starter and the relatively untested depth behind him, they could maybe trade Rodgers for a later-round pick.

Trade away Milton Williams:

The Eagles drafted defensive tackle Milton Williams in the third round of the 2021 draft. That means this is his fourth year in the NFL and he will be a free agent after this season.

If the Eagles traded him, they’d be able to get a decent haul. He’s currently having his most productive season. That’s not necessarily saying a lot because he’s been between a DT1 and DT2 this year, rather than a DT3 or DT4 like he’s been for the past three years.

He’s had pretty good success on first and second downs, but he’s also able to get after the quarterback on third downs as well.

We’ve been seeing that the trade market is very much a buyer's market, given that since the beginning of the offseason players have been traded for much less than it seems like they are worth. Comparing him to Brian Burns is tough because it’s a different position and defensive ends are worth more than defensive tackles, but Burns was only traded for a second-round and a fifth-round pick. 

If Milton Williams were to be traded, it should be for a comparable player (preferably an edge rusher), or a third-round pick and a later pick or two. In reality, it will be for less than that and we’ll all be unhappy. Whatever the result, it would make the Eagles a worse team for this season because Milton is valuable and Vic Fangio likes him.

Trade for Travon Walker (Edge, Jacksonville):

Travon Walker was the first overall pick by the Jaguars in the 2022 draft. They had the decision to pick either him or Aiden Hutchinson, and it looks like they chose wrong.

The Jags’ season has predictably turned into a huge turd, and they should be sellers at the trade deadline. Walker hasn’t had as spectacular of a career as you would hope a first-overall pick would have, so trading him away would be smart and it could give Jacksonville a little bit of a haul. 

ESPN said that he would be worth a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick, but that seems a little low. It’s probably more reasonable to think a 2025 fourth-round and fifth-round pick is enough.

This trade could work for a couple of reasons: One (and probably/weirdly most importantly) is that Walker was on the 2021 University of Georgia defense with Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, and Nakobe Dean. Howie Roseman clearly loved that defense and if he can get his hands on another one of those playmakers, he will.

Another reason is that the trade deadline comes the Tuesday after Week 9 when the Jaguars come to Philly. Walker will already be in the city and since the game is on Sunday night, the Jags general manager Trent Baalke might be in the building as well. All Howie would have to do is walk down the hall to Baalke’s suit and strong-arm him into making the move.

Trade for Jadeveon Clowney (OLB, Carolina):

This one would feel bad given Clowney’s sordid past with the Eagles. He was the one who put a dagger in the heart of Carson Wentz’s career when he took a cheap shot to Carson’s head in the Wild Card round of the 2019 playoffs.

If it feels like Clowney has played for a billion teams, that’s because he has. He played for the Texans from 2014 to 2018, the Seahawks in 2019, the Titans in 2020, the Browns from 2021 to 2022, the Ravens in 2023, and now he’s with the Panthers.

His age hasn’t really seemed to catch up with him. He played in all 17 games with the Ravens last season and tied a career-high with 9.5 sacks.

This wouldn’t be a sexy trade by any means, but the 31-year-old journeyman could be useful depth if Bryce Huff doesn’t show any progress over the next three weeks.

He’d be worth a sixth-round pick if the Eagles decided to give the Panthers a call. Since the Eagles don’t have a sixth-round pick in 2024, they would either have to trade a player to get one or look toward trading a 2026 pick.