Before the 2016 NFL draft kicked off we saw two massive trades happen in order for teams at the top of the draft to acquire quarterbacks.
The Rams traded up to No. 1 and selected Jared Goff, while the Eagles traded up to No. 2 and took Carson Wentz. The most important aspects of these draft-day trades will be the development of the quarterbacks. If they're "franchise quarterback" the deal was great.
For now we're left to compare the haul from the two trades. First up is the Browns and Eagles.
Let's start with the Eagles, who have an easily quantifiable haul. It's basically Wentz and, well, Wentz.
| Eagles Draft Haul | ||||
| Player/Pick | Round | Overall Pick | Position | College |
| Carson Wentz | 1 | 2 | QB | North Dakota State |
| 2017 Draft Pick | 4 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Again: very simple. As part of this trade the Eagles got the chance to draft Wentz. If he's the future at the position, they feel good about the move. But they have to be concerned about giving up so much for a guy who won't play in 2016 (or who they hope won't play in 2016). The possibility of a down year in 2016 sets them up poorly without a first-round pick in 2017.
Let's look at the Browns haul based on what they received from the Eagles. They began with No. 8, No. 77, No. 100 and two future picks. They would trade out a bunch, including the No. 8 pick to the Titans, because that's the hallmark of that regime.
First let's look at who was drafted in the specific picks the Eagles gave up (as in, if the Eagles didn't move up for Wentz, what could they have gotten?):
| Taken With Philly's Picks | ||||
| Player/Pick | Round | Overall Pick | Position | College |
| Jack Conklin | 1 | 8 | OL | Michigan State |
| Daryl Worley | 3 | 77 | CB | West Virginia |
| Connor Cook | 4 | 100 | QB | Michigan State |
| 2017 NFL Draft Pick | 1 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2018 NFL Draft Pick | 3 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Well that is just not very impressive. If you offered up a Conklin/Worley/Cook trade for Wentz right now it's getting laughed at. The future picks are critical, of course. Also worth noting are the players available when those selections were made.
Following Conklin were: OLB Leonard Floyd to the Bears, CB Eli Apple to the Giants, CB Vernon Hargreaves to the Buccaneers, DT Sheldon Rankins to the Saints and OL Laremy Tunsil to the Dolphins. (Tunsil went No. 13 overall, the original pick the Eagles held before making the Byron Maxwell/Kiko Alonso trade this offseason.)
Following Worley were: OL Joe Thuney, OL Isaac Seumalo (the Eagles pick!), DT Adolphus Washington and TE Austin Hooper.
Following Cook were: DE Charles Tapper, OLB Joshua Perry, DT Sheldon Day, CB Tavon Young and OG Parker Ehinger.
Not saying any player should have been selected over another, just putting options out there. Pick the combination you want from those players and you might find a better haul. Hargreaves/Thuney/Day would be pretty sick.
Now let's look at what the Browns actually got utilizing the Eagles picks. It involved the following trades:
- Trading from No. 8 to No. 15 and acquiring No. 76 overall from Tennessee
- Trading from No. 77 to No. 93 while giving up No. 141 and acquiring No. 129 and No. 168
- Trading from No. 100 to No. 114 and acquiring No. 154 overall
So here's what Cleveland came away with:
| Browns Draft Haul from Eagles Trade | ||||
| Player/Pick | Round | Overall Pick | Position | College |
| Corey Coleman | 1 | 15 | WR | Baylor |
| Shon Coleman | 3 | 76 | OT | Auburn |
| Cody Kessler | 3 | 93 | QB | USC |
| Ricardo Louis | 4 | 114 | WR | Auburn |
| Derrick Kindred | 3 | 129 | SS | TCU |
| Spencer Drango | 4 | 168 | OL | Baylor |
| 2017 NFL Draft Pick | 1 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2017 NFL Draft Pick (from TEN) | 2 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2018 NFL Draft Pick | 3 | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Also worth noting: the Browns gave up a fourth-round pick in 2017 and, again, Parker from UCLA isn't on the list because we wash him
So essentially the Browns turned the No. 2 overall pick into eight different players (for now, barring more trades in the 2017 draft). The process is smart here because of the dearth of talent on the roster. The actual selections? Eeeeeeehhhh. Corey Coleman could end up being the best wideout in the draft and is a much-needed addition for Robert Griffin III. Same for adding Louis in terms of improving the weapons.
The Kessler pick has to give anyone some serious pause, even if Hue Jackson is telling you to trust him on it. He might fit the mold for what Jackson's worked well with previously, but anyone expecting him to make it as an NFL starter is banking on a pretty big leap of faith. There was still some quality talent out there available when they took him.
You still can't talk me into loving the idea of giving up a bunch of picks to move up and take a quarterback, but based on what the Eagles would have gotten instead/what the Browns actually got, the trade looks much more appetizing than it did just a week ago.
The 2017 first-round pick looms large depending on how next year goes for Philadelphia, but a strong season from the Eagles would mitigate a lot of the damage.
It all hinges on Wentz, but the knee-jerk reaction here is Howie Roseman's gamble looks more calculated than originally expected.
