Eagles Trade for Devin White? Here's How Howie Roseman Could Pull it Off

The Philadelphia Eagles general manager had a surprise on draft night last year, acquiring A.J. Brown, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker would certainly be another

Howie Roseman’s ears may have perked up on Tuesday when ESPN reported that Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Devin White is seeking a trade.

The general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles swooped in last year on draft night and acquired receiver A.J. Brown in a move that sent shock waves through the league. It certainly did in Philadelphia.

Not only did Roseman put the deal together as the draft got underway, but he also negotiated a four-year contract extension that could have a value of up to $100 million.

Landing one of the league’s top linebackers would have the same effect and would probably require a financial investment that wouldn’t be the same size as Brown’s but a significant one, nonetheless.

Roseman is all about maximizing his draft picks.

He had three last year and used one to bring in Brown, who had a career-high 1,496 yards on a career-high 88 catches and 11 touchdowns. He was a key piece to the Eagles’ march to a 14-win regular season and a Super Bowl appearance.

White could have the same impact.

This year, Roseman has two first-round picks – Nos. 10 and 30.

The Bucs have the 19th overall pick.

The Eagles GM could ship pick No. 10 to Tampa Bay for White and figure out whatever other draft compensation that it would take. Remember, the Eagles are flush with picks in the 2024 draft, including a pair of second-round selections – their own and the New Orleans Saints.

Perhaps the Eagles send their 10th pick in this year’s draft plus a second next year for White and one of the two picks Tampa has in this year’s fifth round.

White is worth it.

He is just 25 and a former fifth overall pick in the 2019 draft. He has 20.5 career sacks and 483 tackles.

Imagine him and second-year player Nakobe Dean lining up together.

Dean would have a mentor in White and Nicholas Morrow, signed during the offseason as a free agent after putting up 116 tackles with the Chicago Bears last season, would provide solid depth.

Morrow would also provide insurance in case Dean doesn’t live up to what the expectations of him were when he dropped out of the first round in last year’s draft and lasted until the third round when the Eagles happily grabbed him.

Philadelphia has to replace last year’s starting linebackers T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White. The duo combined for 269 tackles.

White has a salary cap charge of $11.7 million in the final year of his rookie contract, and he has looked into his crystal ball and sees the very real possibility that Tampa will use their franchise tag on him.

He wants to prevent that from happening, so he is looking to be traded now.

The Eagles are in decent shape with the salary cap after redoing the contract of right tackle Lane Johnson and extending Darius Slay’s contract. The team currently is $19.9M under the cap, though the thought is some of that will go away with the eventual extension to quarterback Jalen Hurts.

Hurts’ new deal, though, wouldn’t kick in until 2024, which is when White’s new deal would as well.

It may be too much money to absorb, but, with Roseman, when he has the will to do something, he finds a way to make it happen. 

By dealing for White, the Eagles would be set at linebacker for the foreseeable future, provided Dean turns out to be the player the organization thinks.

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Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.

Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter on @kracze.

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