According to Marc Bertrand of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Cardinals WR Andy Isabella has been given permission to seek a trade this offseason. Should the Eagles be interested?
Who is Andy Isabella?
The forgotten man in Arizona’s high-octane offense, Andy Isabella was originally a second-round pick in 2019 and someone I pounded the table heavy for in Philadelphia. He’s only amassed 224 yards worth of receiving in three years on the Cards’, as well as a pair of touchdowns.
What doesn’t help is the fact that DeAndre Hopkins, Chrisitan Kirk, and A.J Green all took priority over the smaller slot wideout, pushing him down the depth chart to a point where he was pretty much a healthy scratch for the majority of 2021.
How does he fit the Eagles?
At only 5’9 and around 190 lbs, Isabella is going to be limited to the slot. The good news is that the Eagles could well be in the market for a slot receiver depending on how they view Quez Watkins (a potential move to Z), and Jalen Reagor. Whether they want to focus on a big body to partner with DeVonta Smith, or instead find some help inside is irrelevant. Isabella is going to cost a late-round pick at most, is on a one-year deal, and will have an offseason to earn his spot.
There’s every reason to believe he could. He ticks every box Nick Sirianni wants in a wide receiver. He’s lightning fast off the line of scrimmage, has some extremely crisp routes in his arsenal, and has some real deep speed to his game as well. The only downside comes in the way of his lack of size and catch-radius, but as a gadget player or someone who can find the soft zones in a defense, he could be a snug fit to at least hold the fort while another option develops, or to rotate in during certain packages.
The good news here is that he’d only bring a cap hit of around $1m and is going into his contract year. It wouldn’t cost much to acquire a wideout who’s likely going to be released next year anyway. The Eagles essentially get a low-risk, high-reward player who fits the bill for an Eagles wideout, who costs next to nothing and could provide the offense with some extra production over the middle, taking some much-needed attention away from Dallas Goedert.
Is Andy Isabella going to be a Christian Kirk 2.0? Probably not. But if he can find a floor somewhere between a Greg Ward and a Quez Watkins, then that’s absolutely worth taking a punt on.
Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire
