Deshaun Watson returned as the Cleveland Browns starter on Sunday in Week 1 and the biggest shame was that they were on the road so that the home fans couldn't boo him. To be clear, it was his performance entirely that deserved to be booed. In a 34-10 blowout loss, he went 16-of-22 for 205 yards, but his only touchdown came in garbage time while he also threw one interception, fumbled and took five sacks on the game. He was an integral part of why the Browns got embarrassed on the field.
Cleveland making the decision to start Watson over Shedeur Sanders in the first place was a mistake. Sticking with that mistake is an even bigger error. But it seems that Todd Monken or whoever is pulling the strings for the Browns has no intent on playing the second-year Sanders. Even if that's true, though, Cleveland can't seriously roll Watson out as a starter much longer. They need to make a trade for another quarterback — and the Eagles should be ready to pick up the phone.
A Browns-Eagles trade proposal for Tanner McKee to replace Deshaun Watson
The Eagles have veteran Andy Dalton in the building this season to serve as the primary backup to Jalen Hurts. That has, in turn, pushed Tanner McKee, a fan-favorite who has largely performed well in limited opportunities, into the QB3 role on the depth chart. Another way to say that would be that it has made McKee somewhat expendable for the Eagles.
Drafted in 2023, McKee has seen the field in each of the past two seasons, including making two starts over that span. Overall, he's gone 54-of-88 (61.4 percent) for 597 yards with five touchdowns and one interception in six career games. There's been enough there for the Stanford product to be widely mentioned over the past year or so as a potential trade candidate.
But with Dalton now in the phone, that door might actually be open. It won't be a crazy expensive price tag in any trade, but it could cost multiple mid-round picks to get the deal done.
Why the Browns would make this trade
For starters, the Browns are working from a position of luxury when it comes to draft capital. Cleveland has 11 picks in the 2027 NFL Draft in their possession right now, including an extra first-round pick from the Myles Garrett trade, their own picks in every round but the sixth, two additional fourth-round picks and an extra fifth-rounder as well. If there's a trade that they want to make, they have the ammo to do it.
More importantly, though, this trade wouldn't be about trying to win games now. Whether or not they'll ever admit anything close to this publicly, the Browns aren't trying to win football games this year. They're trying to survive Watson's contract and cap hit, tank for a draft pick and then start bulding for the future.
Having said that, McKee doesn't stand completely in the way of that. He might actually help that future far more than Watson, too. Not only does his small sample size of success at least intrigue you about what he could potentially be in a starting role, but he's far more functional than Watson at this point in his career. That will allow the Browns to better and more reasonably develop young pass-catchers like KC Concepcion, Harold Fannin Jr. and Denzel Boston.
And perhaps over all of that, fans won't want to gouge their eyes out watching McKee play. Even if it stinks, at least it's taking a chance on something new.
Why the Eagles would make this trade
Bringing in Dalton and having him installed as the QB2 on the depth chart really says everything you need to know for the Eagles and their quarterback room.
As Philadelphia started installing a different offense this offseason, they put pressure on Jalen Hurts to progress and become more dynamic as a passer at the helm of the offense. Seemingly as a result, the Eagles coaching staff wanted a more seasoned veteran behind him as the backup. That pushed McKee by the wayside.
Amid that quarterback pressure and changes, though, it seems as if Howie Roseman and Philly are at least peeking at the future. They could potentially draft another quarterback to be added to the mix for the Eagles in 2027 and then further turn up the heat on Hurts.
The truth of that path forward is that A. it doesn't include Tanner McKee, and B. more draft capital helps them have more flexibility to move for a quarterback. So if the Browns come calling, trading the young signal-caller might ultimately be the best move to take the Eagles QB room forward.
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