Updated: 5:32 p.m.
In the last couple weeks, the idea of trading for Jalen Ramsey has become less of a luxury and more of a necessity for the Eagles.
After a huge win on Thursday night, the Eagles are 2-2 and still expect to compete to make a deep playoff run, but four of their top five corners are hurt. And it just so happens the best overall player on the trade block is a 24-year-old All-Pro cornerback, who wants out of Jacksonville.
The connection here is obvious. The Eagles are in desperate need of a shutdown corner. Ramsey is a shutdown corner, who has requested a trade. So I understand why the majority of Eagles fans have been clamoring for him for weeks.
And Howie Roseman is never shy about pulling off a deal.
In fact, Roseman has made a significant trade mid-season in each of the last two years. In 2017, Roseman traded for Jay Ajayi. In 2018, he traded for Golden Tate.
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On Friday afternoon, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson was asked if he thinks his locker room culture is strong enough to withstand a move for a prominent player.
"I do. It's been proven," he said. "We've done that before here. I feel like our locker room is strong enough. We've got great leadership on the team with the players. And where our culture is right now, we can embrace just about anything in that locker room."
Even a big personality?
"We've done it," Pederson said. "Yeah, we've done it."
While it's important to note that Pederson was answering general questions - not ones specifically about Ramsey - you could certainly apply it to this situation. Ramsey definitely has a loud personality, but he backs it up with his play. And if the Eagles would feel confident about his fitting in, that would eliminate one possible hurdle.
See, Pederson expects his veteran players to make sure any new players acclimate quickly. For the most part, this tactic has worked, at least to varying degrees.
In the past few years, they've brought in Ajayi, LeGarrette Blount, Michael Bennett, all players who came to Philadelphia with certain questions about how they might fit. So at least we know the Eagles won't let that get in the way.
This would also be a perfect time to pull off a deal. The Eagles need Ramsey yesterday and now they have a few extra days before their game against the Jets. Meanwhile, Ramsey hasn't moved off his position of asking for a trade. In recent days, he's called out sick and then went on paternity leave. Ten bucks says his car won't start next week.
The Eagles really would be a great landing spot. It would give them their first great cornerback in a really long time.
Of course, there's the matter of compensation. That's a Roseman matter, but the Jaguars are obviously going to want a lot for one of the best cornerbacks in the league. And the Eagles haven't exactly gained leverage as the rest of the league has watched their secondary get decimated by injuries for the second straight season.
Even if the Eagles don't get Ramsey, they have just two healthy cornerbacks right now. They're probably going to need to make a move.
"Those are conversations Howie and I will have later today," Pederson said. "We'll see where we're at with the roster and go from there. It's obviously not out of the question if we have to make that decision."
A few hours after Pederson said that, the Eagles brought back Orlando Scandrick, which will help for now. But one of the best corners in the league is available … and they could really use him.
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