Say It Ain't So!

A 2nd rounder (#33 overall) and - depending on what you read Oshiomogha Atoge thrown in - for Donovan McNabb?

This deal makes no sense for nearly everybody.

The Rams have the #1 pick in the draft and are widely believed to covet Sam Bradford. If they acquired McNabb they could then pick Ndamukong Suh with the #1 pick. They get a franchise QB and a franchise D-lineman in the deal. They also give up one of their few playmakers on defense (Atoge) to get a defensive playmaker (Suh).

The much better trade for the rebuilding 1-15 Rams is Kevin Kolb. But it's been reported the Eagles are asking for more for Kolb than McNabb. The #1 overall for Kolb is too steep a price. And it is hard to believe the Rams could provide even more value than #33 and Atoge for Kolb.

The Rams also have AJ Feeley. Are they trying to corner the market on Eagles' QBs? Rams O coordinator Pat Shurmur worked with all the QBs in the trade conversations and the Rams GM is very familiar with Vick from his days in Atlanta.

This deal makes no sense for McNabb. His willingness to negotiate a contract extension is key to any acquiring team. Why in the world would he agree to an extension with the worst team in the league? The last thing he wants to do is spend the last fews years of his career on team in perpetual rebuilding mode. McNabb has already made it clear he won't go to Oakland or Buffalo, why is St. Louis an acceptable option?

BTW, it's becoming ever more apparent that the 2-year contract extension McNabb signed before last season was an incredibly shrewd move on his part. The year left on his contract entering the 2010 season gives him a tremendous (and tremendously overlooked) amount of bargaining power both with the Eagles and potential suitors. He can essentially nix any trade by refusing to extend his contract.

The only party this trade even remotely works for is the Eagles and that's assuming Atoge is part of the deal. If not, you are trading away a franchise QB - admittedly an aging franchise QB, but one with at least 3-4 good years left - for a 2nd rounder or, if you want to look at it slightly differently a very, very late 1st rounder (#33).

I doubt this trade gets consummated cause it just makes so little sense on so many different levels. But if the talk has done one thing - and this may be the Machiavellian Eagles' front office plan all along - is to call into question Andy Reid's statements that McNabb is the starter going into the season and legitimately begun preparing the fan base for an actual trade of the best quarterback in Eagles' team history.