The Philadelphia Eagles shook up their QB depth at the end of the preseason in August. The Eagles parted ways with Dorian Thompson-Robinson and rookie Kyle McCord only to acquire Sam Howell in a trade from the Minnesota Vikings.
Eagles fans were surprised to see the team make a trade for a QB3, no less for Howell, who was likely on the verge of not making Minnesota’s 53-man roster.
Despite what we’ve seen on film from Howell over the past few years, he surprisingly still has value across the league. And apparently, Howell’s name popped up as a potential trade option for a QB-needy team.
Bengals Reportedly Put in a Trade Inquiry for Eagles QB3 Sam Howell
According to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, the Cincinnati Bengals spent Sunday and Monday calling around the league to teams that have more than two QBs on their roster. Graziano adds that there was some chatter about Howell and Drew Lock (Seattle Seahawks), but said “teams aren’t eager to trade from their QB depth.”
The fact that the Bengals were calling around to several teams, including the Eagles, to inquire about Howell is a direct indictment of Jake Browning as a signal-caller, as well as the state of quarterback play and development in the NFL.
The last time Howell played in a regular-season game was in Week 15 of the 2024 campaign as a member of the Seattle Seahawks, where he completed 5-of-14 passes for 24 yards and an interception. For his career, he’s a 62.6% passer with slightly fewer TDs (22) than interceptions (23), which is nothing to be ecstatic about.
That being said, when the Eagles acquired Howell, it was for two purposes. He’s a better QB3 and developmental option than Thompson-Robinson and McCord. The other reason was to provide Philadelphia with a reliable backup quarterback behind Jalen Hurts for the first few weeks of the season, as Tanner McKee missed time with a thumb injury.
Thankfully, the Eagles didn’t need to call on Howell to take any meaningful snaps during McKee's absence. Now, Philadelphia's No. 2 QB is back and fully healthy, making Howell inactive for the time being.
Nevertheless, if there’s another QB injury that happens between now and the trade deadline, it will be interesting to see if a team calls the Eagles again about Howell. The fact that it didn’t go anywhere could be a sign that they possibly have a plan for him, despite being a free agent in the upcoming offseason.