Trade Pitch Lands Eagles Former No. 5 Overall Pick From NFC East Rival

When NFL teams evaluate possible trade partners, there are a few moves that essentially become off limits from the jump. Contenders don’t usually trade with each other. Division rivals don’t usually trade with each other.

There are some exceptions. One comes when a division rival is so bad and so far behind your franchise they’ve become a zero sum threat to you.

Such is the gap between the New York Giants and the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles headed into 2025, which could lead to some trade fireworks in the 2025 NFL draft.

In this case, that means getting the Giants a franchise quarterback — or someone they believe could be a franchise quarterback — and addressing the most pressing need for the Eagles at edge rusher. This comes after SNY’s Connor Hughes reported Giants head coach Brian Daboll has become enamored with Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart.

In order to get Dart, the Giants can swap edge rusher and former No. 5 overall pick Kayvon Thibodeaux and their third round pick (No. 99 overall) in exchange for Philadelphia’s first round pick at No. 32 overall in order to take Dart, if he’s still available.

The Giants also have the No. 3 overall pick, but would likely take Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter at that spot.

“Jaxson Dart is a name to watch for the #Giants as a trade-up option on Thursday,” Hughes wrote on his official X account on April 21. “Sources I touched base with said he’s someone Brian Daboll is high on — most out of QBs other than Cam Ward. Among qualities Daboll values in QBs is toughness. Dart has that. Giants won’t be alone in QB pursuit, though. Matter of how aggressive they want to be.”

What Thibodeaux Could Bring to Eagles

The Eagles are in desperate need of an elite edge rusher after last season’s sacks leader, Josh Sweat, left in free agency for a 4-year, $76.4 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals. While Sweat was great in 2024, it may have been more of a sympton of playing on a great defense and never facing double teams — those were reserved for defensive tackle and NFL All-Pro Jalen Carter.

Thibodeaux could fill the void left by Sweat and do it at a much smaller salary cap number — he’s due approximately $4.9 million in 2025 in the final season of the 4-year, $31.3 million rookie contract he signed after the Giants selected him with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft.

For Thibodeaux, it could mean playing his way into a deal like Sweat’s — or bigger — as a free agent in March 2026. So far, he’s been a good-to-great player on some bad teams. Thibodeaux has a 17-game average of 8.3 sacks and 18 QB hits through his first 3 seasons, including a career high 11.5 sacks in 2023.

Eagles No Stranger To Trading First Round Picks

While time might change how we view the 2022 NFL draft, at this point we can say the best move in the first round belongs to the Eagles, who traded their first round pick (No. 18 overall) and third round pick (No. 101 overall) to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for wide receiver A.J. Brown.

In 3 seasons with the Eagles, Brown has been a 3-time NFL All-Pro, 2-time Pro Bowler and played in 2 Super Bowls, scoring a touchdown in both.