There’s been a lot of talk lately surrounding 24-year-old Tashaun Gipson. The current Cleveland Brown is holding out for a new contract to spend another season in Cleveland. After becoming a restricted free agent this offseason due to his undrafting in 2012, the Browns placed a second-round tender on the defenseman which is worth over $2 million in 2015. Seems like a pretty small price to pay for someone who recorded 11 interceptions in 27 games in his last two years.
Whether the Eagles and Chip Kelly would have interest in someone who’s currently holding out is the big question but there is absolutely no reason why Gipson should not be on their radar. He’s still young but now has a wealth of experience which is key. If he’s young, there’s a lot of room for development. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks..but can teach a new dog the Philly playbook..or something like that..It also fills a big gap in the depth chart.
As of right now, The Eagles don’t have a a designated starting safety next to Malcolm Jenkins for next season. Tashaun may well be the perfect fit for the boot, he has a perfect build for the position and at 5”11 isn’t too short either..expecially considering he’s 208 pounds. Philly tend to look for backs who have experience playing corner and that once again is something Gipson would bring with him. He may not be the best in the game but with the trade stakes appearing to be relatively low, surely it’s an absolute steal. But what exactly are the stakes?
One writer has suggested that the Eagles propose trading Mychal Kendricks due to what is now a position that has more depth than a wishing well. Plus the Eagle’s contract runs out after this season meaning he will become a free agent a and potentially leave the team anyway. For me though, this isn’t enough. I can’t see the Browns willing to pay off Kendricks and not Gipson..so add some fuel to the fire..
If it were down to me I would suggest trading away Kendricks and Matt Barkley in return for Gipson and…..Johnny Manziel. Yep. Don’t shoot me just yet.
Manziel, having been through rehab and coming back into the OTA’s with the browns simply has to break out this season. If he falls behind Hoyer again or simply underperforms when he’s on the field then it’s a hyped up career that has fallen beyond short of what was expected of him. If Manziel comes to the Eagles think of the possibility. Right now we have Bradford who is already missing time at minicamp due to recovering from injury, an injury prone and somewhat unreliable Sanchez, Matt Barkley..who needs no description and Tim Tebow..
Manziel in his college years was something extraordinary. I genuinely feel like he would be a perfect fit for the system. He likes to run the ball, he’s elusive and if his rehab has worked and changed his persona then he could well have one more season to develop into the player the world wanted him to be. If there truly is an open competition in Philly, add one more name into the mix. Let him work with the threes and see what he does. It’s not a big price to pay and it’s going to make the already determined QB’s to perform even harder to secure a position at starter.
So for me the perfect scenario is this:
OUT: Kendricks, Barkley
IN: Gipson, Manziel
Ultimately, I can’t see a trade happening as there is still plenty of time for Gipson and his current team to come to an agreement, but the trade would make a lot of sense. Agree? Disagree? Let us know on Twitter! @PhiladelphiaSN
