Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz is having a pretty tough year. The former No. 2 overall pick in 2016 was recently demoted to back up in favor of Jalen Hurts. While teammates Jason Kelce and Fletcher Cox oppose the decision, it’s the right decision. Wentz leads the league with 15 interceptions as opposed to just 16 touchdown passes. The Eagles are 3-8-1 on the season and are now two games back of the dreadful NFC East.
Wentz has four years left on his contract, so he is not getting cut anytime soon. However, will those four years be with the Eagles or another team? If the Eagles are looking for a trade partner, these teams could be on the hunt for a quarterback.
Chicago Bears
The Bears have every reason to go out and acquire Wentz. This season, the combination of Nick Foles and Mitchell Trubisky has been a dumpster fire on NFL streams Reddit. The Bears started the season 5-1 and have lost six games in a row. The offense is an atrocity and it has everything to do with the quarterback position.
The Bears did not pick up the fifth-year option on Trubisky, so he is likely to set to be a free agent at the end of this season. The jury is out on GM Ryan Pace and/or head coach Matt Nagy. If the current administration stays, finding a quarterback is going to the priority. Foles won a Super Bowl with Doug Pederson in Philly. If the Eagles keep Pederson for one more year, Foles could compete with Jalen Hurts for the starting job. Even if Foles loses, he could resume his backup duties and slide right into the starting role. The Bears would get a project with Wentz, but he would be an upgrade over both Trubisky and Foles. The Bears would have to sweeten the pot with a draft pick or two.
Detroit Lions
Matthew Stafford needs a change of scenery. The Lions have made the postseason just three times since 1999, and have not qualified once since 2016. After starting the season off 5-7, the Lions are likely going to miss another postseason. Stafford is an underrated quarterback, owning a career touchdown to interception ratio of 277 to 143 and over 44,000 passing yards. The Eagles could look at the Lions and give Wentz to the team as a placeholder as the team goes through a full rebuild.
The Lions are under new ownership. The city is aware that the Lions could be on the verge of rebuilding the team from scratch. That should include trading Stafford for draft capital and Wentz. When the Lions are ready to compete, the contract for Wentz will be up. At least for the time being, Wentz would keep the Lions relevant, while the team is building their defense. Maybe Wentz plays well and slides in with Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones. This would be a low-risk, high-reward scenario that allows Stafford to compete with a better team.
Indianapolis Colts
ESPN’s Mike Greenberg once said on his morning show Get Up that if the Colts traded for Matthew Stafford the team would be a contender for the Super Bowl. While Phillip Rivers has done an okay job, the Colts will need a quarterback again in 2021 since the deal was just for one season. Rivers has played well but has just 18 touchdown passes through 13 weeks of the NFL season. While Stafford has just 21 touchdown passes, Stafford has had to rush onto the field more times than Indy. The Colts have a top-5 defense in the league, while the Lions are near the bottom.
The Colts are 8-4 as of Week 13 and are on pace to make the playoffs. However, Rivers is 39 years old, while Stafford is 32. Stafford would keep the Colts relevant for years to come.