2021 NFL trades: The Philadelphia Eagles have traded Carson Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts

We are only in our second week without any NFL football and have already seen plenty of fireworks this season, with more likely on the way. A few weeks ago the Los Angeles Rams got the party started by trading for quarterback Matthew Stafford and sending Jared Goff to the Detroit Lions in the process. Goff was the first overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, the same year that Dak Prescott was taken by the Dallas Cowboys, but has had a lot of questions about his game see no answers.

It became pretty obvious that Goff would not be the only first-round quarterback from that draft to be moved this offseason. The Philadelphia Eagles sent a loud and clear message that the Carson Wentz era was over in the City of Brotherly Love when he was benched in December, and that it was simply a matter of time until it was a formal process.

Carson Wentz has been traded to the Indianapolis Colts

More obvious than the idea that Wentz would be dealt was that he would wind up on a particular midwest NFL team. The Indianapolis Colts are led by Frank Reich, one of the people most responsible for Wentz’s 2017 campaign that could have seen him win MVP had he stayed healthy.

On Thursday it finally happened. It was reported by ESPN that Carson Wentz is heading to Indianapolis in exchange for a a 2021 third-round pick and conditional 2022 second-rounder that could turn into a first-round pick if Wentz’s playtime is 75% or higher.

The Dallas Cowboys will see the Indianapolis Colts next in 2022 (a game that will be played at AT&T Stadium), so barring a Super Bowl matchup against them this season, that is the earliest that they could see Wentz again. Of course, given the contingency on the conditional second-rounder if Wentz isn’t living up to the hype early on with the Colts then they will potentially move on from him themselves.

It was just five years ago that the Eagles traded up with the Cleveland Browns in order to land the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. A reminder as to what they gave up:

This is all a massive loss for the Eagles, but they were able to salvage something out of Wentz which is notable. What’s more is that they could even land a first-rounder when it’s all said and done, but that would likely mean that Carson is having success with the Colts which would highlight the overall ineptitude with the Eagles organization. For Dallas Cowboys, fans the situation is a win-win.

Dak Prescott is clearly the best quarterback from the 2016 NFL Draft class. What’s more is that not only is Dak the best among his peers but, as the mothership’s David Helman noted, Dak is the only quarterback from that class left on the team that took him.

The Eagles will absorb a $33.8M cap hit for trading Wentz which, hilariously, is the largest in NFL history.

Collectively Carson Wentz played six games against the Dallas Cowboys that held significance and where Dak Prescott played. He was 2-4 in those contests. We can sit here and laud Dak Prescott all we want, but the fact remains that he is still unsigned. And while Wentz has now been moved by Philly, he represents an important philosophy - you can get out of any deal you want if you are creative enough.

Pay Dak.