Has the Fire Sale Begun? That and Examining the Return for Zach Ertz
PHILADELPHIA – Two questions remain from the trade of Zach Ertz.
First, what does the return look like?
Second, is this the start of a fire sale with the Eagles sitting at 2-4?
In return for Ertz, the Eagles received rookie cornerback Tay Gowan and the Arizona Cardinals’ fifth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The pick gives the Eagles 10 selections in spring’s draft.
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Here’s the breakdown:
- Two in the first round, their own and the Miami Dolphins acquired in a pre-draft deal to move down from pick 7 to pick 12.
- Two in the second round, their own plus the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for Carson Wentz. The pick can become a first if Wentz meets certain playtime requirements.
- Their own in the third and fourth rounds.
- Three in the fifth round, including their own, the Cardinals’ pick, and Washington’s pick acquired in a position swap on Day 3 of this past draft.
- Two in the sixth round, their own plus the Colts they got in exchange for OL Matt Pryor.
Here are the previous Eagles fifth-round dating back to 2016:
2021: Kenny Gainwell
2020: John Hightower
2019: Clayton Thorson
2018: None
2017: Shelton Gibson and Nate Gerry
2016: Wendell Smallwood and Halapoulivaati Vaitai
As for Gowan, he is a player that GM Howie Roseman said the organization had some talks with in the pre-draft process. The Cardinals took the 6-2, 185-pound cornerback from Central Florida in the sixth-round last spring.
“He was somebody that we would have considered with our sixth-round pick,” said Roseman. “He was in a group of names. He went right before we picked and he's a long corner. He's got tremendous speed.
“He was an opt-out guy last year. We spent a lot of time with him personally before the draft. And again, it gives us a chance to add a young corner to that room.”
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Then there’s the fire sale.
Is this Ertz trade simply the kindling for a great bonfire still to come before the Nov. 2 trade deadline?
Both Roseman and head coach Nick Sirianni said no.
“I don't view us as being sellers,” said the GM. “I view us as still having an opportunity in the next 11 games to show what kind of team we are. And I think this was more about the opportunity to really put the pieces of the puzzle together for this team at that position and kind of moving forward. It's not to give up on the season in any way, shape, or form. I'm certainly not thinking about anything going south.”
Added Sirianni: “I just know what we think in this building, that we're trying to win every single game. All our goals are still out there in front of us, and that we're trying to win as many games as possible.
“Our mentality is exactly the same; we're going to see – again, I can't think 10 games from now. All I can think of is how we fix this game and what we're going to do to win the Las Vegas game so we can be 1-0 this week.”
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Eagle Maven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglemaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.
