It's no secret the Eagles had significant interest in Dion Jordan prior to last year's NFL draft, but that interest reportedly has not cooled.
Dion Jordan was linked to the Philadelphia Eagles prior to last spring's NFL draft, but the Miami Dolphins sniped the standout Oregon Ducks pass-rushing outside linebacker one pick before Lane Johnson went off the board for the birds, and Tom Gamble is reportedly still enamored with last year's top defensive prospect.
Gamble reportedly believes that Jordan could flourish in Bill Davis' 3-4 scheme and there is now speculation that the Eagles could swap their first-round draft choice, 22nd overall, with the Dolphins in exchange for him.
Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald speculated on Twitter Thursday that because of Jordan's ties to Oregon, having played for Chip Kelly, and Gamble's belief in his ability to fill the void of edge rusher currently in the Eagles defense that a trade could ultimately be in the works.
Salguero said he doesn't know if Miami would be interested, but postulated that had Gamble accepted the Dolphins general manager job – which he was linked to earlier this week- he would have gone so far as to suggest Miami overhaul their defense and install a 3-4 scheme to cater to Jordan's strengths.
Jordan certainly would fill the gaping need of outside pass rusher in a defense that struggled to generate sacks, and filling that hole would have a strong trickle down effect through the rest of the defense. The Eagles had significant interest in Jordan prior to last year's draft and if that interest in fact hasn't cooled, then this is an intriguing situation to monitor.
While the first-round draft choice would be a hefty price, it would free up a significant chunk of their $17 million in cap space this offseason to address other needs such as safety and retaining the likes of Jeremy Maclin and Riley Cooper on offense, rather than allocating high draft choices at those positions in the draft.
At 6-6, 260 lbs, Jordan is physically gifted enough to allow the Eagles to walk away from Trent Cole and at age 23, enough upside to justify the first-round price tag.
Jordan finished his rookie season in 2013 with 26 tackles and two sacks, but could be miscast in the Dolphins 4-3 scheme.
This situation certainly is worth monitoring as the offseason rolls on.
Matt Lombardo is the Editor-In-Chief of Eagledelphia and also an on-air personality on 97.5 FM The Fanatic in Philadelphia. Join the conversation and follow Matt on Twitter.
