Quarterbacks will go 1-2 in the NFL Draft next week for the second year in a row and third time since 2012 after the Eagles acquired the No. 2 overall pick from the Browns on Wednesday.
In the second blockbuster deal in two weeks at the top of this draft, Philadelphia sent the No. 8 pick this year, its 2017 first- and second-round pick and third- and fourth-round choices this year to Cleveland for the second overall pick this year and a fourth-rounder next year.
The Eagles’ surprising move came barely a week after the Rams also mortgaged their future in a lopsided trade with the Titans to move up to No. 1 overall from the 15th pick.
Both Los Angeles and Philly are expected to take quarterbacks from a crop headed by Cal’s Jared Goff, Carson Wentz of North Dakota State and Memphis’ Paxton Lynch.
The move was a head-scratcher for the Eagles, because they already have committed $34 million in guaranteed money this spring to quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Chase Daniel.
Philly general manager Howie Roseman, back in power after the firing of Chip Kelly, then added to the confusion by telling reporters at a Wednesday news conference that Bradford is the Eagles’ clear starter for now, but the team will be using the No. 2 pick on a quarterback.
“It’s hard to be great if you don’t take risks,” Roseman said when asked if the deal was a gamble.
Roseman then appeared to puncture the Rams’ claim that they are still undecided between Goff and Wentz by saying the Eagles are “very sure we’re going to get the player we want.”
Many league executives think Los Angeles is going to take Goff, with Philly then going for Wentz despite the small-school product throwing fewer than 700 passes in his career at North Dakota State.
The move appears to be a steal for the rebuilding Browns, and the stockpiling of picks fits in perfectly with the analytics-based approach of new chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, the former Mets scouting chief hired this offseason in a bold gamble by Cleveland owner Jimmy Haslam.
By trading down to No. 8, the Browns can amass picks and still get a young quarterback to groom if — as some scouts believe — Memphis’ Lynch is still available at that spot.
The trade also appears to clear the way for Robert Griffin III to open the season as Cleveland’s starter after the Browns signed the former Redskins star as a reclamation project this spring.