Feb 27, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; NFC East helmets of the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine Experience at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Cowboys Legend Thinks Eagles Stole John Metchie III

Originally posted on Philadelphia Eagles on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Aug 18, 2025 11:30 AM ET

The Philadelphia Eagles have a new receiver in the mix after pulling off a surprise deal with the Houston Texans to bring former second-round pick John Metchie III to town.

Metchie was selected with the No. 44 overall pick in the second round of the 2022 National Football League Draft. He missed his first season after being diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia.

He was able to return to the football field in 2023 and had 16 catches for 158 yards in 16 games. Last year, he had 24 catches for 254 yards and one touchdown in 13 games.

The Texans' receiver room has been full for a while, so it's not too shocking that they looked to trim it down a bit. This is certainly good for the Eagles who could've used another pass-catcher. AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Jahan Dotson are the team's top three receivers, but Brown has been dealing with an injury throughout camp so far.

Metchie was a superstar in college while playing alongside Smith. He had 96 catches for 1,142 yards, and eight touchdowns in 13 games in his final college season before being drafted by Houston.

Eagles-Texans stunner caught Cowboys legend by surprise

Now, he's coming to the Eagles and former Cowboys star receiver Dez Bryant thinks Philadelphia got a steal.

"You clearly don’t know football," Bryant said. "Metchie been in unfortunate situations that had nothing to do with his play.. health issues and emerging WRs in Houston..Eagles clearly got a steal…he’s familiar with Hurts and Smith…Eagles really out here playing MUT in real life…"

The Eagles-Texans deal seemingly came out of nowhere. There weren't rumors about a possible deal ahead of the reports surfacing. In fact, there hasn't been any chatter recently about the Eagles' plans to add -- or subtract from this roster ahead of the 2025 season.

We are just a few weeks away from the regular season kicking off and Howie Roseman and Co. clearly are looking around. This resulted in the Metchie deal. But, what could be next? The Eagles have plenty of cap space at their disposal and there are guys out there on the open market for the taking, like safety Justin Simmons who made it clear early in the offseason that he was interested in joining Philadelphia.

With the way Philadelphia has moved this offseason, it wouldn't be shocking to see some sort of deal coming still.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Eagles on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: