PHLY Philadelphia Eagles Podcast - BREAKING: Eagles Trade For QB Andy Dalton

Episode Date: March 18, 2026

Howie Roseman! In what could be a pretext to a Tanner McKee trade, the Eagles acquired Andy Dalton from the Carolina Panthers to back up Jalen Hurts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

And welcome to an emergency pod presented by Xfinity. Live here on the Xfinity studio. We don't always get an emergency pod in studio. But you know, it's exciting because it's Bowulf and E.J. Smith and the Eagles have traded for a quarterback, E.J. Yes, the Eagles are trading for 38-year-old veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, exchanging a seventh round pick with the Panthers to get Andy Dalton in the building. Must mean Tanner McKee's about to be traded, right? I think it's a natural place for your mind to go right away.

I wouldn't go that far quite yet. I do think it allows them to make a move with Tanner McKee if they need to because Andy Dalton has tons of experience. He started 169 games over a, let's see here, 15 year career. Wow. So this is an experience backup. It's a position. We know the Eagles value significantly. But I don't think that I would go so far as saying that a Tanner McKee trade is imminent.

this definitely means they're trading Tanner McKee. I think he would be a resource for Jalen Hertz. He has a few years of experience playing in a system that would resemble one that Sean Mannion is going to install. So I think you can read this more as the Joe Flacco, Josh McCown type of backup quarterback that the Eagles have valued more than just a, this gives them an exit ramp for Tanner McKee in a trade to come later this offseason.

I think there are sort of three ways to read why the Eagles are doing this. One is they want to trade Terry McKee or they want to, as you say, allow for the possibility of somebody to blow them over for Tanner McKee and then they have a real backup. The other is they want to have a third backup and they don't like this class of day three quarterbacks. Yeah. Okay, I can buy that too.

The other one is they want a scheme Sherpa for Jalen Hertz. This edition is more about bringing somebody in who can help Jalen transition to this. offense. Now, that's a little bit interesting because Annie Dalton doesn't have, it's not like he's played in the McVeigh system, Shannon's system, his whole career. There are some touch points. You want to give him to you? Sure. So he spent 2019 with Zach Taylor. I believe that was Zach Taylor's first year in Cincinnati. They went two and 14 that season. It was one year, yeah. He started 13 games, though. From there, he spent the last two years with Dave Canales and Carolina. And he started six

games over that time. So, I mean, that's... And Canales is himself a few, a few branches removed. He at least has some connectivity to that tree. But you're right. It's not like he was playing for Sean McVean, Kyle Shanahan, like our boy Johnny Munn. You know, he's not that type of player where he spent his whole career in the system. But I do think he has enough experience in the system. He's a very like Sean Mannionie third quarterback to have, you know, a guy who has been around the league a lot. So I think the first reaction I had, was about Tanner McKee, but the second reaction I had is like, what does this mean for the room around Jalen Hertz? You know, the resources that Jalen Hertz has as he learns this new system

from Sean Mannion. Well, it's interesting now because if you think that it is about Jalen Hertz, in order to prepare Jalen Hertz for this transition to a new offense, you have offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, who is a is a quarterback by trade, you have Josh Grisard, you have Parks Frazier as the quarterbacks coach, you have. You have. Gerard Johnson brought in for special projects or whatever, but also another quarterback guy. And now, in theory, you have Andy Dalton. That's like, you get five guys to handhold Jalen through. I don't think that's an unfair way to say it.

Yeah, but there are, there are resources here. And maybe it's the kind of thing where like, hey, Jalen, here are, here are five guys. One of it, you're going to connect with one of them. Yeah, but say one of them is going to be able to be your guy. Yeah, it's like taking dart throws. It's like you're going in the next season saying we have to get more out of the quarterback position. We have to elevate Jalen Hertz back to the level that we've seen him play during portions of his career. And yeah, you're sort of raising the floor on what it might look like.

You know, last year, Jalen Hertz talked a lot about lacking a home base, lacking something that he felt like he could really major in. And I think adding this many different offensive minds from who all have connectivity to the system that's going to be implemented by the offensive coordinator. I know Andy Dalton's is kind of shaky. It's not as extensive. but I think you are kind of trying to ensure that somebody can get through to him and somebody can help him figure out his best self in this new system.

I also think, you know, Jalen is, Jalen wants to win, right? Of course, he's going to do whatever it takes to get the best out of himself. I think he's going to be open to all these different voices. I also think if you're thinking of bringing in a veteran caddy in the quarterback room, yeah. Andy Dalton is the perfect level of seen it all, 170 starts in the NFL and all. also completely unfreatening. Yeah.

To Jalen. Sure. He really is the Josh McCown. Like, you know, he's the new, the 2026 version of Josh McCown. And I remember hearing from Josh McCown. It was mostly on Zoom because it was, you know, the 2020 season. But, you know, he had a really good way of like talking to a young quarterback and helping a quarterback. And, you know, talking to people about Sean Mannion.

You've heard a lot of the same thing. So I think this is probably a win for Jalen Hertz to have Andy Dalton instead of some of the, quarterback threes that they've had in years past. You know, Sam Howl, how much of a resource was Sam Howe going to be to Jalen Hertz rather than trying to, you know, jumpstart his own career? I think bringing somebody in like Andy Dalton does make sense for that reason. There is one other read on why the egos are doing this move. Okay.

Oh, you don't do it. I know what you're about to do. Oh, okay. Hey, Jeffrey. You know, never had in Philly, Andy Dalton, man. Wouldn't that be so funny, dude? I almost had him.

I hope that like all the emergency pods that goes, have been enjoying this running theme through all of the emergency podcasts. I don't even know where it started, but it's been fun. It's been a good addition to the emergency pods. It's fun. All right. Do you think now, how many turkeys are you putting on a Tandermakeet trade? Hmm, it's a good question.

I don't know where I would have been before. this, which gives me, it doesn't give me like a base to work off of. I think this changes my, my turkeys on that. Probably boost it. Oh, significant. I was going to say, probably boosted like 10 turkeys for me. I mean, it is significant that this probably, this probably means, like you said, you're not drafting a quarterback unless you're trading Tanner McKee, but then you can feel good

about Sam, or sorry, I don't know why I keep not saying Andy Dalton when I'm trying to say Andy Dalton. Andy Dalton, you feel good about Andy Dalton being your second quarterback next year if you do draft somebody. Maybe I was at 35 turkeys before, and I'm at like 45 now. Okay. Where are you at? I think I would have been at 25 before this, and now I'm at like, I don't know, 49, 51.

Oh, okay. Somewhere around there. All right. I think that, yeah, so we're in the same ballpark. The problem is that most of the quarterback spots have been filled by now. I think if a Tanderman McKee trade was going to happen, it probably was going to happen at the beginning of the league year. I don't know if I agree with that.

Somebody was going to make him their quarterback. I would have expected it to be honestly around now when a team is missed out on the quarterback that they wanted in free agency. It's also they are now, the Eagles can now hold. And if there's an injury over the summer or during the season, Tarynxie becomes maybe the turnkey guy. That kind of feels like the next window for it, right?

Yeah. Is in training camp, somebody gets hurt, the Sam Bradford situation. Yeah. Well, you know, those teams lineups may change if they get Tanner McKee and your starting lineup may change, but the price of your internet will not, thanks to our friends at Xfinity and their five-year price guarantee. Guaranteed, baby. It's a fun surprise on a Wednesday afternoon.

Yeah. Dalton is an Eagle? Yeah, I mean, we've been... I remember meeting Andy Dalton at the Senior Bowl. Oh, what a flex. In 2011, yeah. Man, I was... You know what I was doing in 2000?

It was 2009 or 2011? You know what I was doing in 2011? Trying to get into college. I was a junior in high school. Nice. Getting my license. And all that swag. I did have some swag back then.

So did he. I thought you swagged up in college. No, my swag up came in like seventh grade, actually. Sixth grade. Yeah, I wanted to be a cool kid and I achieved it. But I achieved it. Yes, of course. It wasn't always cracked up to be.

kid is the one who says, I became a cool kid. Yeah, I started hanging out with the cool kids, and I realized that that's not what it's all cracked up to be. So if you're listening out there, kids, be yourself. I thought, but what, didn't you tell the story about your glow-up? I did have a glow-up in college, yeah. Oh, this is, we're not a, not a swag up, but a glow-up. Yeah, exactly.

Okay. I feel like Andy Dalton had a glow-up, too. Oh, yeah. Andy Dalton looks much better as an old, as an older man. Than he did as a young guy. We can aspire. How many pro-bowls you have it right in front of you, never mind. When he goes, the chat, the chat, you just told the chat too.

Oh, man. Now, Andy Dalton had only ever worn number 14. Yeah, he sure has. Who's number 14 in the Eagles right now? That's what I'm wondering. What was Kenny Gaines? Is 14 retired? No, didn't gain when we were 14?

Oh, yeah, you're right. Okay. I was worried I got that on there. Andy Dalton's got it. If somebody on the practice squad with 14. Deontes in the chat, the great Deonté Lee of the ringer, and he says, feels like Arizona, Green Bay, the Rams or Indy could call for Tanner McKee.

So Green Bay and Los Angeles and Indianapolis are all word of mouth teams for Tanner McKee. Yeah. Like coaching coaches talk and Tanner's been, you know, killing it. He's been nails in the meeting room, as Fran would say. Mm-hmm. So I could see that. I think Arizona, I mean, that's the,

that's the clearest path to like, we're going to bring him in. Yeah, but then a long way. They have no interest in actually trying to win. Yeah. I mean, maybe, yeah, I guess you're not trading a premium asset to get Tanner McKee. Yeah, all right. There you have it.

The Eagles, Howie Roseman, adding to the quarterback room, joining Jalen Hertz to teach him about the scheme and potentially paving the way for the Eagles to move on from Tanner McKee at some point. It's Andy Dalton, the three-time pro bowler at 38 years old. How he does it again. That's all we got. for EJ Smith and Lindsay making it happen. We thank you for watching and listening. We'll be back tomorrow at 2 o'clock.

The ramifications from this trade will be felt across the NFL and especially on the PHA by Eagle Show. We look forward to joining you then. And as always, we love you.