9 most likely team destinations for Nick Foles in 2019

It’s high unlikely that Nick Foles will be back with the Eagles in 2019.

Doug Pederson declared Carson Wentz is Philadelphia’s starting quarterback moving forward. Foles, meanwhile, said he wants to be a starter again.

Foles will be a free agent in March if the Eagles decline to pick up his $20 million option for 2019. Even if the Eagles DO pick it up, Foles can opt out by paying back $2 million to the team. From there, the Eagles can potentially place the franchise tag on Foles in order to try to trade him, but that could be complicated.

In any event, Foles is likely gone. The question is: where will he end up?

Here are the nine most likely destinations, according to BetDSI:

Miami Dolphins +200
Washington Redskins +250
Jacksonville Jaguars +350
Denver Broncos +400
Philadelphia Eagles +600
New York Giants +1000
Oakland Raiders +1500
Carolina Panthers +2000
Tampa Bay Buccaneers +2000

Dolphins

The Dolphins are reportedly expected to move on from Ryan Tannehill as their starting quarterback. The team can save over $13 million by cutting or trading him.

Miami is bringing in a new coaching staff this offseason with current Patriots defensive coordinator Brian Flores expected to be the new Dolphins head coach. Flores saw what Foles did to the Pats’ defense in last year’s Super Bowl so maybe he was impressed by that.

The Dolphins are set to pick at No. 13 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft so there’s no guarantee the quarterback they want will fall to them. This year’s QB crop isn’t expected to be great, anyway.

I could see Foles wanting to play in a warm weather market like Miami.

Washington

Washington gave a big contract extension to Alex Smith after trading for him last year but Smith’s future is uncertain following the gruesome leg injury he suffered in 2018. There is thought that the 34-year-old’s career might be over and at the very least it seems unlikely he’ll be ready for the start of the 2019 season.

Washington owns the No. 15 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. As with Miami, there’s no guarantee they can draft their desired quarterback prospect.

I can’t see Foles wanting to go to Washington given how they’re a dysfunctional mess. But I can see Washington getting desperate and trying to throw a big offer at him.

Jaguars

Foles makes sense for the Jags. They’re in desperate need of a new quarterback since Blake Bortles, who got benched for Cody Kessler in 2018, clearly isn’t the answer.

Jacksonville owns the No. 7 pick in the NFL Draft so they could potentially draft a passer. But it wouldn’t necessarily be the worst idea to draft a prospect AND sign a proven player like Foles.

Broncos

After losing to Foles in the playoffs, former Bears defensive coordinator and current Broncos head coach Vic Fangio might want Foles on his side moving forward.

Denver can cut Case Keenum to save $11 million or trade him to save $18 million this offseason.

The Broncos could appeal to Foles since they have a good running game and a strong defense. There’s a support system there.

A negative is that Foles would have to get used to playing in the cold more often.

Eagles

Can’t see this happening unless Foles’ free agent market somehow dries up and there are no starting jobs available for him. In that case, the Eagles could bring him back to be Wentz’s backup for at least one more year.

Giants

It seems like the Giants might just stick with Eli Manning for another year, which is laughable.

If the Giants finally realize it’s time to move on Manning, they could look to signing Foles. He obviously has experience playing for Pat Shurmur.

The G-Men could be enticing to Foles since he wouldn’t have to move far away from the Philly area. The Giants also have a bunch of talented skill players in Odell Beckham Jr., Saquon Barkley, Evan Engram, etc.

The downside to going to the Giants is they could be drafting a quarterback with the No. 6 overall pick. Also, their offensive line is trash. Foles isn’t a quarterback who’s regularly succeeded in spite of poor o-line play.

Raiders

The Raiders can cut or trade Derek Carr to save $15 million in cap space with only $7.5 million in dead money. If Jon Gruden is done with Carr, Foles could feasibly end up going to the Raiders.

The Raiders own three first-round picks in the 2019 NFL Draft in addition to two first-round picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. They have plenty of ammo to trade for Foles, should the Eagles tag him.

Raiders general manager (and former Eagles preseason color analyst) Mike Mayock is a Philly native who knows Foles well. I’m sure Foles has familiarity with Mayock as well. And Foles obviously interacted with Gruden during Gruden’s QB Camp series on ESPN back in 2012.

Panthers

Huh? Newton struggled in 2018 due to a shoulder issue but the Panthers aren’t moving on from him.

Buccaneers

Not only did the Bucs not fire Jason Licht — who drafted Jameis Winston — but they let him pick Tampa’s new head coach, Bruce Arians. It doesn’t seem like the Bucs are ready to give up on Winston just yet.