It’s amazing how unpredictable life can be, especially in the world of sports. This has definitely been the case for the Philadelphia Eagles lately.
In 2007, during the NFL Draft, nobody expected the Eagles to trade out of the first round (especially with the Dallas Cowboys). Nobody expected them to make Kevin Kolb their first pick in the second round.
Let’s fast forward a few years. Nobody expected the Eagles to sign Michael Vick three weeks after he was released from federal prison.
Signing Vick gave the Eagles three starting caliber quarterbacks (Vick, Kolb and Donovan McNabb). Nobody expected McNabb to be the first to go at the time, especially to the Washington Redskins.
With McNabb gone and Vick not quite in football shape, Philly was finally going to see what Kolb was truly made of. Before halftime of the first regular season game, he was taken out with a concussion.
Now, Vick was an electrifying player as an Atlanta Falcon, but no one can tell me they expected him to be that good in 2010. After a near MVP performance, the Eagles can ill-afford to let Vick go. Unfortunately, for Kolb that means he’s going to continue to hold a clipboard as an Eagle.
I’m sure the former University of Houston star wishes he could predict when the NFL and NFLPA agree on a new CBA. Until that happens, the Eagles can’t trade him. If a deal isn’t reached before the draft, it’s going to be even harder to move him.
Let’s assume the NFL and the Players Union actually sit down and negotiate a deal before mid-April. What can the Eagles get in return for Kevin Kolb?
It’s been said the Eagles front office won’t let Kolb go for less than two 1st round picks. Fans and the media think they’re insane, but we know they’re negotiating strategy is to start high and work their way down (they did it with McNabb last year).
About two months ago I predicted Kolb would be traded to the Tennessee Titans for their 1st and 3rd round picks. Of course the responses included many LOLs. When I stated that, I predicted the Titans would finish stronger than they did and get the 17th overall pick instead of the 8th.
But why can’t the Eagles get a first round pick for Kolb? Because his arm isn’t as strong as McNabb’s or Vicks? Because he’s thrown his share of interceptions? Or is it because his offensive line hasn’t given him enough time to show what he can do from the pocket?
These are all valid points and a 1st round pick is a lot for a team to invest in a trade for Kolb. But, it’s not unrealistic to think a team won’t overspend for him.
The main reason is because there are quite a few head coaches who will enter the 2011 season (if there is one) on the hot seat.
The main reason is because there are quite a few head coaches who will enter the 2011 season (if there is one) on the hot seat.
In Tennessee, Jeff Fisher convinced owner Bud Adams to exclude Vince Young from any future plans. Adams has made it clear though that Fisher needs to produce a contender very quickly.
The Arizona Cardinals have shown how quickly a team can drop with the departure of a quality signal caller. Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is in talks for a new contract, but Ken Whisenhunt can’t afford to trust John Skelton to be the throwing to him.
Down in South Florida, the Miami Dolphins pursue Jim Harbaugh even though they never dismissed Tony Sparano. Think he feels comfortable with Chad Henne starting for him?
These coaches aren’t going to rely on free agents like Marc Bulger, Matt Leinart or Tavaris Jackson save their jobs
Thanks to Andrew Luck, there’s nobody in the draft expected to be an NFL starter in September.
The San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings both need quarterbacks but their new coaches, Jim Harbaugh and Leslie Frazier, won’t be as desperate as the previous three teams mentioned. They’ll be interested in Kolb as long as a first round pick isn’t involved.
At the age of 27 with his salary dropping to $1.4 million, Kevin Kolb may be the most sought after QB this off season.
How much are teams willing to give up for him?? What are the Eagles really willing to accept? Hopefully, we’ll find out sooner than expected……
agree that someone will overpay for Kolb this offseason… might include the Eagles 1st round pick to move into the top 10 and get an impact defensive player
Good article Haran
I think the Titans and 49ers are the best landing spots for McNabb for a couple of reasons.
– Both teams have solid Running games are decent Defenses where the QB needs to manage the game and not win it by himself
– Both these teams have enough talent on their rosters that if they get decent QB play, would be back into Playoff Contention next season since both their Divisions don’t really have any dominating type of teams in it (The NFC West and even the Colts in the AFC South are starting to trend downward)
The 49ers have the #7 Pick in the 1st Rd and #39 pick in the 2nd Round
The Titans have the #8th Pick in the 1st Rd and the #40 pick in the 2nd Round
I think these teams would be interested in Kolb but not at a 1st Round Selection price to pay.
I also think that a team in need of a QB may take a chance on a Cam Newton instead, who I think will be another V Young who is exciting to watch, but I am not sure about him being a NFL QB.
But many of these teams who need a QB (Cardinals,Vikings,Dolphins,Titans,49ers) will probably need to do somethintg a little more exciting from a PR standpoint than trade a 1st Round for Kolb..
Many of these teams have upset fans and doubting local media,impatient owners and some of these Franchises have been having issues with declining Ticket Sales and not selling out their home games.. Adding a Heisman winner in your Draft will definitely bring excitement and ticket sales to these teams that are struggling.. (though I don’t neccessarily think it will mean many wins by adding a C Newton or a J Locker)
Also remember that their will be other QB’s most likely on the Market who have a lot more body of Work and game experience than Kolb.. Here’s a list of some of them
#1) McNabb
#2) V Young
#3) K Orton
#4) Shaun Hill
#5) Alex Smith
#6) Seneca Wallace
#7) Derek Anderson
#8) M Lineart
#9) Chad Henne
Now I am not saying any of these of about QB’s are better or worse than Kolb,
What I am saying, is that if a Playoff Contending team feels it’s just a QB away from being a legitimate contendor and are willing to part with a 1st or 2nd Round Draft Pick,
wouldn’t you go for a QB with more Career starts and experience than Kolb..
If I am the Cardinals,Vikings,49ers,Titans, Raiders and think I can make a playoff run with the weapons I currently have in place..Why not trade and go after McNabb,V Young,K Orton, S Hill which probably can all be had with a 2nd Round Pick and less in return and have much more experience than Kolb has. Teams that are rebuilding like the Dolphins,Panthers,Bills,Browns are not legitimate playoff contendors next season anyways, so they would be better off to keep as many as their high draft picks as possible and begin grooming a young QB for the Future thru the Draft ..
Look the question about Kevin Kolb is his heart….. (Period) Is he able to take hits and get back up from them….. ???? Does he have thick skin????? With the likes of Qb’s such as Ben Rothlisberger and Aaron Rodgers you can never question the hearts of these guys as well as Vick…… IDK about Kolb???? He seems to lack confidence with his timing with the speed of the game…… He looks sometimes as if he wants to feed guys in windows that seem close to minute……. Someone may offer a 3rd round pick and a player perhaps nothing more…… Someone like Arizona or the Vikings or maybe even Buffalo…… To say that Kolb needs to throw the ball 30-35 times a game????? i dont think he’s ready……. But to develope young Qb’s such as Flacco and Sam Bradford….. You have to operate a BALANCE scheme…… SOMETHING THAT THE EAGLES DONT OPERATE!!!!!!!!!! Other than that he’ll do well with a true westcoast offense…….. Not in this offense!!!!! GO EAGLES….
@Paulman…. I think K. Orton is a hot QB….. He can go to the Vikings and become a star there with the weapons they have there……. Mcnabb with Jeff Fisher will be a great fit….. With Tall receivers and decent Tight Ends he’ll do well with them…… Vince young i see him with the Miami Dolphins…… They run a wild cat scheme there and with him and warm weather go hand and hand….. But is that a place in MIAMI he can be focused a big ?????????? Or maybe he’ll go to Buffalo???? Kolb can land in Miami as well but with Parcels he doesn’t take no B.S. and not from V. Young……. SO Kolb will be better at Miami!!!
For some reason the Eagles always work out deals with the Seahawks and NE during draft time…… Could there be moves made with Kolb going to the Seahawks give or take with the aging Hasselback…….. that could be a move that the Eagles can pursue???? I just hope the CBA can reach a deal sometime soon……..
STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSES’ MOUTH
This is a portion of Mike McCarthy’s Press Conference on January 10:
Question:
(Aaron spread the ball around to nine different receivers. Would you agree this is an unselfish offense with a lot of different options?)
Answer:
Clearly. It’s an unselfish offense that’s built around making the quarterback successful. You have to have a starting point, you have to have a focal point. Our offense is based on making the quarterback position as successful as possible. That’s why you start, with the game plan you start building the run game, because running the football is what needs to be done up front so the offensive line, the run-blocking unit can establish the line of scrimmage. From that, it gives you the variations in pass protections that’s definitely needed in today’s game with the amount of pressure and scheme diversity that these defenses in today’s NFL give you, and then off of that comes the passing game. It’s clearly about throwing the football to the right person. It’s about decision-making, accuracy, getting in rhythm, timing, and it’s all driven by making that quarterback successful.
I honestly don’t see any team giving what the Eagles thinks that he is worth. He was frankly not that impressive this year. I know that the last game he started he had 2nd string players, but he was horribly inaccurate and he runs like frankenstein. The O-line certainly didn’t help, but even when he had time he missed a lot of throws. I would take Orton, Shaun Hill, McNabb and Alex Smith over him.
Meant to say that Titans,49ers would be best landing spot for Kolb and not McNabb..
Paulmans Landing spots for Availalbe QB’s
Cardinals – McNabb
Redskins – K Orton
Dolphins – V Young (by the way JROC- BIll Parcells is no longer President of the Dolphins and not invovled in any dday to day functions,his relinquished those Duties last September..)
Titans – Kevin Kolb
Vikings – Alex Smith/Chad Henne
49ers – Shaun Hill/Matt Lienart
kyle orton gets better every year. he is very underrated.
he can play in the cold, manage the game, and throw for 300. tough QB with some mobility.
he is perfect for tennessee. he would also fit well in minnesota & sf
mia, was, ari have a lot of work to do
they are some of the worst teams in the league, with a lot of veterans and unstable coaching
orton would just be in the same position as he is in denver
mcnabb – would be perfect for baltimore actually, flacco will never be a good starting QB imo
since that likely wont happen, he’ll land somewhere with a lot of veterans & a coach on the hot seat
kinda like the redskins situation…
so i can see why everyone wants to point to AZ (besides going there every offseason)
Something to consider –
Mcnabb is 8 years older than Kolb so teams looking for a QB to run the franchise for years to come would be more inclined to take Kolb
Ortons salary is over 7m more than Kolb this coming year so teams looking for a one year stop gap with the intention of resigning him would get Kolb much cheaper than Orton.
The eagles hold the cards due to a trade not being a neccessity for them since they actually want to hold him for another year so I think if Kolb goes anywhere teams are going to have to give up a 1st rounder. Tennesee and Minnesota make the most sense. I doubt they would give up the #8 or #12 pick in 2011 but they are a solid all around team who are only missing one key piece. They could easily pick up Kolb for a 2012 first round pick with the mindset Kolb would turn them into an instant contender and the 2012 pick would be low anyway,
Orton is under contract to the Broncos, I believe, for 2 more seasons, so a trade would have to take place by the Broncos and new HC J Fox has been reluctant to go with inexperienced QB’s in his past.
But if they determine that Tebow is the #1 QB in Denver, then they look to trade Orton to a NFC Team
so he would not come back to haunt them, hence the Redskins or Vikings being the best suitor…
Good Points Mimi,
I think McNabb would only be attarctve to a few teams that are experienced and need that QB now to win (Cardinals,Vikings,49ers)
I don’t think 49ers Coach Harbaugh is interested in a old-time Veteran and wants to put his stamp on the Franchise and get a younger player like Kolb
Vikings just went thru a fiasco with Farve and don’t believe they would be interested in a old Vet like McNabb either, they will target a player who could be with them for a while which again coulf be a Orton or a Kolb
Titans agains went thru a fiasco with V Young and would want to have a QB how is mature and ateam players and who will be around and committed for a few years like a Kolb
Cardinals on the other hand need to win now or their Coach could be a goner, so they would be the type of team to chance on McNabb for 1-2 Deal/Commitment
Trade alert- kevin kolb traded to the 49ers for theor 3rd rd pick and a lb with “high motor” and coming off his 3rd torn acl.
McD fired. Thank you Jesus!!!
Lurie a business man 1st. Roseman too.
#1 rule. Buy low, sell high.
They bought Kolb for a 2, and there;s no way they will ever give him up for less than that…..now another question…..
Which QB did the Birds buy low? Which QB is, without a doubt, at the absolute pinacle of what he would be worth on the open market?
Do you honestyly see ARIZONA paying a 35 year old QB (McNabb) $40,000,000 PLUS ?
Do you see the TITANS drafting another Vince?
Why would Denver trade ORTON? Do you thinK Fox wants to gamble his future on a 2nd year unproven QB?
Besides LUCK, do you think any other QB in this years draft is a safe bet? Remember, if you miss on a QB drafted early in the draft,you set your franchise 5 years. Kolb is looking better now – right.
No way Dixie, no one is going to pay McNabb that kind of $$ including the Redskins.
Redskins will end up releasing McNabb so his contract will mean nothing to his new team..
I can see Arizona offering him a 2 year deal for about $5 Million per season with incentives
Kolb is worth a 2 and a 3, but i am sure 3 teams in the league with bad QB would give up a 1 round. it would be a team that needs a qb picking 19-32 and then they might even want a 2 or 3 rounder in exchange
not every qb gets 2 Off players of week after starting just 5 games in career. Basically half the games Kolb started he got Off player of the week. When he was bad he was bad but then when he was good he was very good. Kolb is not as exciting as Vick but maybe he can see the blitz better and in playoffs maybe Kolb does not throw that int but a td pass we will never know. but whoever is qb we need a bunch of hogs to run the ball, a coach who will run the ball, and demons on D that will stop the run
Kolb is not worth much and there’s better QB’s with experience, and stronger arms available next year…..and please don’t give us his age as an advantage. There’s younger players with strong arms coming out of the draft..and while some will tout Kolb’s game experience…please look at this guy the last few games he’s played!!!!
He’s slow and can not read a defence with a weak arm.we can package him with someone and get a 3rd rounder if lucky.
But, I wouldn’t be surprised if he back up next year for the 1.5 million…This organization knows that would be value
Matt Schaub went for two #2’s…..I’d say Kolb is on the same level as Schaub back then so that’s pretty much what he’s worth
Paulman – Even if you are right and McNabb signs for $10,000,000 (which is doubtful) that leaves SF, cleveland, Tenn, Minn, and even Washington needing a QB. Since all the QBs in this year’s draft have BUST written all over them (except LUCK – if he had come out) what GM worth his salt wouldn’t rather give a #1 pick for a proven young QB ready to win now. (he may not be Aaron Rogers or Matty Ice, but he was “Player of the Week” 2 or 3 times in a handful of games. Kolb is the SAFE choice and certainly worth a high #1 pick.
PS Won’t matter if there isn’t a new CBA before the 3rd week in April.
If the Eagles can get 2 #2s for Kolb that would be heavenly.