It’s that time of year when NFL Draft chatter picks up, including the potential for trades.
Every team has a different draft board, and so there are sometimes deals that feel like they help both sides. For the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, that might be the case in the middle of the first round.
The Lions enter the draft with the No. 17 overall pick.
The Eagles currently would be on the board with the 23rd selection.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell writes in a new article on Monday that a trade could make sense. He suggests the Lions send 17 to the Eagles for picks 23 and 98.
For the Lions, it’s a way to add an extra asset.
“Having traded a pair of third-round picks away in last year’s move for (Isaac) TeSlaa and facing a cap crunch given all of the young talent coming due for extensions, Brad Holmes should probably be looking at adding more draft capital,” Barnwell writes. “The former Rams executive might share his former team’s disdain for picks at the bottom of the first round, but moving down to No. 23 shouldn’t take anything off the table for Detroit. Getting back a third-round pick, albeit in the compensatory section of the third round, would be helpful for Holmes as he reimagines his roster. If the Lions are thinking right tackle, they shouldn’t have too much trouble still landing their preferred option.”
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The Eagles would be targeting defensive help, according to Barnwell.
“Howie Roseman and the Eagles would be thinking safety here,” Barnwell writes. “While I’m not sure Roseman would have taken a safety in the first round in years past, the longtime Eagles general manager surprised many onlookers (myself included) by using his first-round pick on Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell last year, a position Philly hasn’t traditionally valued in that way.”
This is the kind of deal that wouldn’t happen until the draft is actually ongoing. The teams would want to see how the board actually is shaking out and whether they can get the guys they are hoping to acquire.
But if things shape up the way they hope, maybe a trade like this ends up being a useful one for both Detroit and Philadelphia.