There are many people who believe the Philadelphia Eagles should have tried to make things work with Carson Wentz rather than replacing him with Jalen Hurts, but few feel more strongly about it than ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr.
Kiper has been very outspoken in criticizing the Eagles for trading Wentz. He reiterated his thoughts on Tuesday’s edition of “Get Up!” and ripped Philly for making the deal. Kiper also unloaded on the Chicago Bears for not making a real effort to acquire Wentz.
.@MelKiperESPN has made it abundantly clear that he is not a fan of Philly trading Carson Wentz
"Blame the QB and then send him packing for virtually nothing? … This was one of the most ridiculously stupid moves in the history of the NFL!" pic.twitter.com/8kIatWuRB3
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) March 23, 2021
“A ridiculously stupid move is the way to sum it up,” Kiper said. “Even dumber than that was the Bears not giving up the 20th overall pick and (a third-rounder) and trying to get Carson Wentz. … Carson Wentz is a young man, who is a proven MVP guy, who did things in three years that very few NFL quarterbacks have done.”
Kiper attributed Wentz’s struggles last season to all the injuries the Eagles had on offense.
“The injuries were catastrophic,” he added. “(Not all teams) have catastrophic injuries to offensive linemen before the season even begins — receivers, tight ends, running back — and we’re gonna blame the quarterback and send him packing for virtually nothing? This was, again, one of the most ridiculously stupid moves probably in the history of the NFL.”
The Colts traded a third-round pick and a conditional second-rounder that could turn into a first for Wentz. Kiper felt that was an “early Christmas present” for Indianapolis head coach Frank Reich.
Kiper was high on Wentz when Wentz was coming out of North Dakota State in 2016, and apparently his opinion has not changed much. There have been some reports that called Wentz’s work ethic with the Eagles into question, but Kiper clearly is not buying them. Time will tell if his enthusiasm about the trade is warranted.
