Looks like the Eagles trade speculations for Torrey Smith will never rest. First Jason LaCanfora suggested the Philadelphia Eagles may go after Smith in a trade (again), and now we have a new proposition to get the 49ers wide receiver into Philadelphia: send linebacker Mychal Kendricks to San Francisco in exchange. At least that’s what former agent and salary cap specialist Joel Corry thinks, according to a recent ESPN article discussing Philadelphia’s salary cap management for 2017. The idea was to get Kendricks out of Philadelphia due to his cap hit and bring in Smith, who could be relatively cheaper than spending on free agency.
Torrey Smith was off the grid for most of 2016, but the same can be said for Kendricks, who only played for 29.2 percent of the snaps. Obviously, that amount of playing time could anger the 2012 second round draft pick and the Eagles could possibly offer the exchange. Correy had this to say about bringing Smith to Philadelphia (from the ESPN article):
“That’s a move that you’ve got to do quickly because the third day of the league year, $4.35 million of his base salary is fully guaranteed."
“Knowing they (the Eagles) need a receiver that can stretch the field, I would try to pry Torrey Smith away and ship him to San Francisco, if possible, because Smith ($8 million average per year) will probably be cheaper than any speed receiver you’re going to try and get.
Even if Torrey Smith is getting paid, it seems a bit of a stretch to send Smith for Kendricks, a wide receiver who has proven to play well when in the right situation, as opposed to Kendricks who is still a bit of a wildcard—despite salary cap reasons. It seems a bit one-sided for Philadelphia, but who knows?
With new coach Kyle Shanahan coming in, Smith may want to stick around and see what the new 49ers offense has in store for him. Then again, maybe he wants out of San Francisco and to go to a contender. If that’s the case, would this be a good deal? Who would you trade Smith for?