Howie Roseman loves his quarterbacks, and he’ll never shy away from adding to his Quarterback Factory. According to multiple reports, Howie and the Eagles traded a conditional 2022 sixth-round to the Jacksonville Jaguars for quarterback Gardner Minshew.
As Adam Schefter notes, the conditional pick can turn into a fifth-round pick if Minshew plays more than 50 percent of the snaps this season. The Eagles also released Nick Mullens following the trade, leaving the QB3 spot to Minshew.
Minshew is good enough to be the clear backup for any team in the NFL, if not a starter. His career numbers are much better than you may expect. In 20 starts, Minshew has accounted for 38 total touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and 5,530 passing yards, along with posting a completion percentage of 63.35 percent and a passer rating of 93.6.
He’s much better than Joe Flacco at this point in their respective careers, but Flacco is set to make potentially $7.5 million this year if all of his contract incentives hit.
It’ll be interesting to see how this quarterback room unfolds over the course of the year. It’ll take Minshew several weeks to understand the offense — he won’t be ready to take meaningful snaps with the team Week 1. But after he gets a full grasp of the offense, he’s a better backup option to Hurts than Flacco is.
I’d feel more confident having Minshew start 2-3 games if Hurts gets injured than I would in Flacco. Even though I believe Flacco is a fine backup, Minshew is a borderline starter and is entering the prime of his career.
Despite some familiar faces leaving this offseason, the QB Factory in Philly is still alive and well with the addition of Minshew.