Fans tired of watching Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby get burned might not be alone based on a report that the Eagles are trying to swing a trade for Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson.
According to Jason La Canfora for CBS Sports, the Eagles are among the NFL teams working on ways to land Peterson and have been discussing a swap with the Cardinals "for weeks." It's unclear how many suitors reached out, though La Canfora also mentions the Saints.
Retired cornerback Bryant McFadden, now with CBS Sports, tweeted the Patriots are in on Peterson as well, adding the seven-time Pro Bowl selection would prefer the Saints.
One thing is for sure: Peterson's top priority is getting out of Arizona.
Whether the Cardinals will oblige is another story, but the Eagles' heavy interest is at least mildly surprising given the coaching staff's staunch defense of Mills and Darby in recent weeks.
Mills' and Darby's performances have been inconsistent in 2018 — though, the Eagles did win the Super Bowl with the starting duo. Then again, a move to to acquire Peterson might be as much about the future as it is this year.
Darby will be a free agent at season's end. Mills is signed through only 2019, and the Eagles certainly aren't feeling any urgency to reach an extension. Second-year corner Sidney Jones should move into a starting role eventually, but the depth chart gets murky after that.
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Adding a shutdown corner like Peterson would improve the secondary immediately while also providing some semblance of stability. The 28-year-old is under contract through 2020.
As always, it would come with a cost, and not just the draft picks packaged in a trade. Peterson is due $11 million in 2019, $12 million in 2020, and realistically, both sides will probably want an extension — Peterson for the guarantees, the Eagles for the years. And one can only imagine what the Eagles would have to send to the Cardinals to facilitate this deal, especially with multiple teams in talks.
Price matters, of course, although Peterson is a unicorn of sorts. He's the rare combination of a special talent who's both under contract and in his prime.
Any Eagles trade discussion needs to begin with the reality the team is currently 3-4, but opportunities like this don't come along often. Assuming there's truth to the report — Cardinals general manager Steve Keim declares most trade rumors "false" — you can understand why the Eagles are so involved in the conversation.
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