Eagles News: Update On The Draft Pick From The Sam Bradford Trade

In one week from today, the first 20 picks of the 2017 NFL Draft order will officially be determined. The Philadelphia Eagles obviously don’t have possession of their own 2017 first-round selection due to the Carson Wentz trade, but the Birds do have the Vikings’ pick from the Sam Bradford deal.

If the season were to end today, the Eagles would pick No. 14 overall. Minnesota is 7-8 with one game to go. The Vikings were officially eliminated from the playoffs this weekend. Depending on what happens in Week 17, the pick the Eagles can get from the Vikings could be high as No. 9 and low as No. 18. Eagles fans will be rooting for the Vikings to lose next Sunday, along with having some other breaks go in favor of Philadelphia.

It’s possible the pick the Eagles acquired from the Vikings will be more favorable than the one the Birds gave up for Wentz. Funny how that worked out.

One can only imagine if the Vikings regret the Bradford trade. Giving up as high as the No. 9 overall pick for a quarterback who has been average at best over his career just isn’t a great move. Bradford might not be the only reason Minnesota has struggled this season, but he’s not part of the solution, either.

Sam Bradford starting QB record

2010: 7-9
2011: 1-9
2012: 7-8-1
2013: 3-4
2015: 7-7
2016: 6-8

Total: 31-45-1

— Brandon Lee Gowton (@BrandonGowton) December 24, 2016

The Vikings’ pick should take some of the sting out of the price the Eagles had to pay to move up to acquire Wentz. The Eagles can use the Minnesota pick to acquire a piece to help build around their young franchise quarterback.

And now for a look at some other Eagles news and notes …

A Look At How The NFL Playoff Picture Is Shaping Up

With one week to go, here’s what the playoff picture looks like.

NFC Playoff Picture

1 – Dallas Cowboys 12-2 – (Clinched NFC East and home field advantage)
2 – Atlanta Falcons 10-5 – (Clinched NFC South)
3 – Detroit Lions 9-5
4 – Seattle Seahawks 9-5-1 – (Clinched NFC West)
5 – New York Giants 10-5 – (Clinched Wild Card)
6 – Green Bay Packers 9-6

The Eagles will see at least two of their NFC East opponents advance to the post-season. Dallas has everything locked up as the top seed and the Giants are locked into a Wild Card spot.

There’s still time for some changes in the NFC playoff picture. The Lions play the Cowboys on Monday Night Football. Detroit can clinch a playoff spot by winning, but they need to beat the Packers next week in order to win their division.

Another potential change is that Washington (8-6-1) can still make the playoffs. Eagles fans should be rooting for the Giants in Week 17 so that the Redskins don’t make the post-season. A Week 17 Packers win over Detroit also hurts Washington’s chances.

AFC Playoff Picture

1 – New England Patriots 13-2 – (Clinched AFC East and bye)
2 – Oakland Raiders 12-3 – (Clinched playoff berth)
3 – Pittsburgh Steelers 10-5 – (Clinched AFC North)
4 – Houston Texans 9-6 – (Clinched AFC South)
5 – Kansas City Chiefs 11-4 – (Clinched playoff berth)
6 – Miami Dolphins 10-5 – (Clinched Wild Card)

The AFC playoff picture is set in terms of which teams have made the post-season. Week 17 will still determine the final order of the seeding. The AFC West is still up for grab between the Raiders and the Chiefs. Oakland suffered a major loss by having starting quarterback Derek Carr go down with a season-ending injury on Christmas Eve.

The Texans are headed to the playoffs despite having the 26th worst point differential in the NFL (-42). Houston also ranks 30th in DVOA. By comparison, the Eagles rank 12th in point differential (+22) and fifth in DVOA.

Miami is headed to the playoffs with first-year head coach Adam Gase. The Eagles showed a significant amount of interest in Gase during their head coaching search before he ultimately ended up taking the Dolphins job.

PETER KING HONORS MALCOLM JENKINS

Peter King of The MMQB named the Eagles’ safety one of his Defensive Players of the Week.

Malcolm Jenkins, safety, Philadelphia. Turned in an all-pro performance Thursday night in keeping the Giants from clinching a playoff spot. Jenkins picked off Eli Manning and ran it in (his sixth career TD on an interception return) in the first quarter, giving the Eagles a 14-0 lead. Then Jenkins made it two with the Giants driving for the go-ahead score in the fourth quarter. He added six tackles and another pass defensed. At 29, Jenkins looks primed for another two or three good years.

NO TONY ROMO IN WEEK 17

The Cowboys have nothing to play for in Week 17, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them rest their starters against the Eagles. Even if Dallas starts the game out with their starters playing, they could always pull them at some point.

If the Cowboys pull rookie quarterback Dak Prescott, don’t expect to see former Dallas starter Tony Romo out on the field.

Asked #Cowboys source the chance of QB Tony Romo playing tonight or in the season finale: "Very unlikely." It has, however, been discussed.

— Jason Cole (@JasonCole62) December 26, 2016

Playing Romo doesn’t make sense for Dallas. The 36-year-old passer is injury-prone and could get hurt in a meaningless game. In that situation, Mark Sanchez would be Prescott’s backup in the playoffs. A Romo injury could also make it harder for the Cowboys to trade him in the offseason.

So if the Cowboys pull their starters, expect to see Sanchez on Sunday.