Philadelphia Eagles

Report: Eagles almost traded Evan Mathis during the draft

Published Jun. 12, 2015 12:09 p.m. ET

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The Philadelphia Eagles will not tolerate players who aren't willing to fully get on board with Chip Kelly's way of doing things. If they can' find a trade partner, they will simply release a player even though it means they are receiving nothing in return. In the past they were able to find a trade partner for LeSean McCoy before they were forced to release him, but the same cannot be said about DeSean Jackson. On Thursday, the Eagles decided they had no option but to release all-pro left guard Evan Mathis. However, the Eagles nearly found a trade partner for Mathis back in May.

A source with knowledge of the situation tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that the Eagles were very close to trading Mathis during the 2015 NFL Draft. According to the same source, no serious efforts were made to trade Mathis before releasing him this week. 

Instead of holding out for a late-round draft pick, Kelly opted to rid the team of a player he considered to be a cancer to the team-first mindset he is trying to instill on his roster. Mathis has finished as Pro Football Focus' best or second-best guard overall in three of the last four seasons. In his place, the Eagles will kick Allen Barbre over to left guard and start Andrew Gardner at right guard. Interior pressure could cause the Eagles a lot of trouble when they face the likes of Ndamukong Suh, Sheldon Richardson, Marcell Dareus, Jonathan Hankins, Jason Hatcher and many more like them in 2015.

(h/t Pro Football Talk)

Photo Credit: Jeffrey G. Pittenger/USA TODAY Sports

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