Report: Josh Gordon Almost Traded for Nick Foles in 2013
The Cleveland Browns will be without Josh Gordon all of next year, after being without Josh Gordon for 10 games of last season and being without Josh Gordon for two games the season prior. All of this could have been avoided had Jimmy Haslam allowed Joe Banner to trade Gordon to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2nd round pick and more. That much we knew.
Today a new trade that almost happened was brought to public: Josh Gordon for Nick Foles in 2013 according to ESPN:
"The Philadelphia Eagles turned down a trade that would have brought them Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon at the start of the 2013 NFL season.The price for Gordon, according to a source familiar with the discussions: quarterback Nick Foles.A little context helps here. Gordon was facing a two-game suspension for violating the NFL substance abuse policy. Foles had just been named the Eagles’ No. 2 quarterback after losing a competition with Michael Vick during the preseason."
What a trade that would have been and how it would have shook up both teams, sadly the Eagles reportedly said no. Foles, who was drafted by the Eagles when Banner was still with the team, was coveted by Banner in Cleveland. Brandon Weeden and Jason Campbell were the Browns starting QB candidates, later Brian Hoyer, so you can see why Foles entered the picture.
Gordon was coming off his rookie campaign where he had 50 catches for over 800 yards and 5 TDs. He hadn’t yet had his breakout season, the one that came in 2013 where he led the league in receiving yards. He was however serving his two game suspension and concerns from his time in college were haunting.
Foles had only played in 7 games in 2012, his rookies year with the Eagles, throwing for almost 1,700 yards with 6 TDs and 5 INTs to go along with a 61% completion percentage. He broke out, much like Gordon, in the 2013 season, playing in 13 games throwing for almost 3,000 yards with 27 TDs and 2 INTs and a 64% completion percentage.
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Who knows how both of these players worlds would be different if this trade had went down. Today Foles is likely to start for the Eagles but no one is sure if Chip Kelly sees him as a long term prospect. Gordon is suspended. Best case scenario for both is that, if the trade went through, Foles was entrenched as the Browns long term starter and Gordon kept his nose clean in Kelly’s system. Worst case is that Foles got eaten alive like every other Browns QB and Gordon, well Gordon’s worst case on the field has pretty much happened in Cleveland.
Have to wonder who and why people leak these types of situations almost a full 2 years later. Maybe it is Banner, proving he was smarter than everyone else. Who knows, but it is interesting to think “What if?”
Do you think things would be different for Josh Gordon had he been traded?