The Eagles plan to exercise their $20 million option for Nick Foles with the intention of trading him, according to a report by NFL Network.
While this isn't really surprising, it's definitely interesting.
By exercising the option, the Eagles gain a measure of control over where Foles is headed because assuming he exercises his $2 million option buy-out the Eagles could then franchise him and then trade him.
If they don't franchise him, Foles would become an unrestricted free agent in March, free to negotiate a new deal with any team, with the Eagles receiving compensation in the form of a third-round pick in the 2020 draft
This limits Foles' options because even if the Eagles take Foles' wishes into consideration, which Howie Roseman has indicated he'll do, it's hard to imagine them shipping him within the NFC East to QB-starved teams like the Redskins and Giants.
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When the Eagles do formally exercise the option, Foles, the 2017 Super Bowl MVP, will have five days to either accept the contract - extremely unlikely - or exercise his buy-back option and pay the Eagles $2 million.
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