Cam Jurgens Trade Fallout: Eagles, Ravens, Kendall

The two sides also swapped Day 3 picks to balance out the deal, which took many in the NFL by surprise. Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta is typically loathe to move premium draft capital, while competitive teams almost never trade away starting offensive linemen.

Indeed, the Eagles originally had no intention of dealing Jurgens, but Baltimore’s desperate need for center help upgraded their offer to one Philadelphia could not refuse.

“We weren’t looking to move Cam,” Eagles GM Howie Roseman explained (via The Athletic’s Zach Berman). “Obviously, the Ravens have been looking for a center… Kind of told them wasn’t anything we were looking to do. Over the last 24 hours, it got to the point where we felt like it could be a win-win for them.”

Roseman also referenced the team’s comfort with second-year center Drew Kendall, who has started the last three games, and other contract situations on the defensive side of the ball as other factors in the decision. Once a second-round pick was involved – a first for an interior offensive lineman – the Eagles moved ahead with the deal.

Roseman cautioned that the move does not indicate that the Eagles are selling this season and drew a distinction between the Jurgens trade and the sudden retirement of right tackle Lane Johnson.

“What happened with Lane is in a separate bucket here,” Roseman said (via E.J. Smith of PHLY Sports). “Then you have to make a decision, all right, what’s the value of this, how can this help us going forward? As for the team this year, high expectations for the team this year. It’s very early in the season.” Roseman also indicated that the Eagles are optimistic about Kendall’s pairing with left guard Landon Dickerson, once he is back in the starting lineup.

Jurgens, meanwhile, will wait until Week 6 to make his Ravens debut. He cleared his physical on Wednesday – not an insignificant note for Baltimore considering the Maxx Crosby debacle – but remains in concussion protocol, preventing him from getting integrated into Declan Doyle’s offense. That will likely keep rookie Vega Ioane at center and 2024 third-round pick Emery Jones at right guard on Sunday night against the Falcons. Jurgens’ insertion into the unit will move Ioane back to his natural position. The new group may take time to gel, but the importance of stabilizing Baltimore’s center play has never been more apparent with Lamar Jackson sidelined by an ankle injury. Jurgens is also contract through 2029, so for the first time in several, the Ravens could return their entire starting offensive line in 2027.