Jaguars owner Shad Khan recently called his team’s quarterback situation an “embarrassment of riches.” Which may have been code for “don’t be embarrassed to call us and make a rich offer for one of them.”
ESPN recently suggested that Nick Foles is a candidate to be traded. (Pulitzer.) A source with knowledge of the situation tells PFT that there is indeed interest in Foles, but that no substantive trade talks have happened, yet.
Foles, the Super Bowl LII MVP, has a fully-guaranteed salary of $15.125 million in 2020, along with $500,000 in per-game roster bonuses and a $250,000 workout bonus. Trading him would trigger a cap charge of $18.75 million, the remaining 3/4ths of his $25 million signing bonus from 2019.
Faced with paying Foles nearly $16 million to back up Gardner Minshew II versus paying Foles nothing and eating $18.75 could be a justifiable swap, if the Jaguars have decided to ride with the sixth-rounder who took Jacksonville by storm as a rookie. And the below-market cash payout for 2020 could make the Foles contract attractive.
For a team like the Colts, that could make a lot of sense. With $14.875 million committed to Jacoby Brissett for 2020 (an $8.875 million roster bonus if fully guaranteed), the Colts could keep Foles and Brissett, let them compete, and go with the better guy — confident that whoever loses the competition would be a good soldier. Given that Colts coach Frank Reich got his job in large part due to Foles’ performance in the 2017 playoffs, Foles could have a leg up in the competition.
Last week at the Scouting Combine, Reich raved about Foles in a visit with PFT Live. And the reality is that Foles could be more effective than other options if reunited with Reich. Foles definitely would be cheaper than the likes of Philip Rivers, too.