Should the Eagles Trade for Todd Pinkston?

No, that's not a typo.  I'll explain in a minute.

When it comes to wide receivers, Eagles fans are a fickle bunch, casting a covetous eye toward any pass-catcher who may or may not be on the open market.  In our desperation, however, we are prone to certain, shall we say, lapses in judgment, convincing ourselves that a very serviceable Rachel McAdams is actually a budding Angelina Jolie -- if only she were wearing midnight green.

Case in point (#37): disgruntled Broncos receiver Ashley Lelie. 

Now Lelie isn't a bad receiver.  In fact, the Eagles could use a guy with his deep speed to keep defenses honest and open up more room underneath for the running game and short passing attack. With that said, let's look at just what kind of receiver he is.  Here are his career receiving statistics:

LELIE	G	REC	YDS	AVG	TD
2002	16	35	525	15	2
2003	16	37	628	17	2
2004	16	54	1084	20.1	7
2005	16	42	770	18.3	1
Career	64	168	3007	17.9	12

Not bad, particularly because he's played with some other good receivers and hasn't gotten to be the go-to guy (which is the gist of his discontent).  But where does this place him among other starting NFL wide receivers?  Here's another guy with similar numbers:

????	G	REC	YDS	AVG	TD
2000	16	10	181	18.1	0
2001	15	42	586	14	4
2002	15	60	798	13.3	7
2003	16	36	575	16	2
2004	16	36	676	18.8	1
Career	78	184	2816	15.3	14

If you toss out his first year as a rookie when he didn't play much, there's not a great deal of difference.  Here's the side-by-side on Lelie's career numbers and the mystery man's cumulative stats over his last four seasons:

	G	REC	YDS	AVG	TD
Lelie	64	168	3007	17.9	12
????	62	174	2635	15.1	14

Pretty close.  So who is Mr. X?  None other than our own Todd Pinkston.  Ladies and gentlemen, let's give him a big hand and tell him what he's won.

In exchange for the right to acquire a new Todd Pinkston with a healthy Achilles tendon and an un-healthy attitude, the Broncos are looking for a first or second-round pick, or a starter of "equivalent value." 

(Keep your equal value suggestions to yourselves, Eagles fans, this is a family-friendly blog.)

I'll say it now -- there's no way on God's green Earth that the Eagles trade even a second-round pick for Lelie.  They were only grudgingly willing to give up this year's second-round pick for Javon Walker, a much better all-around receiver than Lelie. 

And they shouldn't fork over that pick.  In recent years, the second round has netted the team Winston Justice, Reggie Brown, Matt McCoy, L.J. Smith, Sheldon Brown and Michael Lewis.  Those are the guys you use to build a great team (we'll see about McCoy and Justice).

So if the asking price doesn't change, the Eagles shouldn't trade for To-- er, Ashley.  (And can you really imagine playing in Philadelphia with a name like Ashley?  God help you if you short-arm a pass over the middle.)

But of course, if the rumors are to be believed, then the Eagles actually are trying to figure out a way to swing a deal with the Broncos for Lelie.  So what might that deal look like?

Here's my guess -- it won't involve a high draft pick.  Unlike recent years, the Eagles have not stockpiled future draft choices heading into the 2007 draft.  Part of the reason we have so many young guys fighting for positions is that the team finally cashed in those extra picks.  What the Eagles do have is too many guys for too few roster spots.  If they're going to have to cut some guys with promise anyway, they might as well try to get something out of it.

So the Eagles are probably offering something more in the range of the TO special, like a sixth-round pick and a player.  Depending on the player involved, the Eagles might have to bump that up to a fifth-rounder. 

The Eagles have surplus guys at a few positions, including both the offensive and defensive lines, as well as the secondary.  I doubt O-line is a match, given the vast difference in philosophy between the way the two teams choose and develop players there.  Denver could use help at DT, and we have more than a few guys they could pick from.  In the secondary, I can't see us giving up either Rod Hood or Sean Considine, but I could see one of the CBs like Wynn, Ware or Strickland.  If J.R. Reed is truly all the way back, Quintin Mikell might even be a potential piece, despite his obvious special teams value. 

So should the Eagles trade for Lelie?  As usual with this franchise, it all comes down to value.  If the price is right, then by all means do the deal.  But don't mortgage the future for a guy who may not look quite ... as ... attractive ... the following morning.