The incredible on-field product for the Philadelphia Eagles in recent years has been buoyed by off-field moves that are almost as impressive — the most impressive of which might be general manager Howie Roseman’s war chest of draft picks.
In 2026 alone, the Eagles have a projected 13 picks. For the defending Super Bowl champions, that could mean waiting until right before next year’s draft to start wheeling and dealing or they could address a more pressing need by trading for an edge rusher right now.
There might be a really good one on the market worth swapping a pick for in Buffalo Bills edge rusher A.J. Epenesa, who Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport singled out as the AFC contender’s “Top Trade Candidate” this summer.
“If the Bills are going to send a player packing in a trade, Epenesa still makes the most sense,” Davenport wrote on June 2. “It’s simply a numbers game. The Bills just gave (Joey) Bosa over $12 million to come to Buffalo in 2025. Gregory Rousseau received a four-year, $80 million extension that included $54 million in guarantees this spring. The team used a third-round pick in this year’s draft on LSU’s Landon Jackson.”
Epenesa in ‘Prove It’ Year for NFL Future
Epenesa, 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, is only 26 years old and headed into his sixth NFL season. He’s also in the final season of the 2-year, $12 million contract he signed in March 2024 and will be playing for his NFL future in the next free agent cycle, if not for a massive payday if he perform above expectations.
To get him, the Eagles could try and swap the 2026 fifth round pick they obtained from the San Francisco 49ers in the Bryce Huff trade last week – which could very well turn into a fourth round pick if Huff hits certain performance markers.
From Eagles Wire: “With the (Huff) trade now official, the Eagles are projected to have 13 picks in the 2026 draft. That’ll include their own 10 picks and three compensatory picks from their free agent losses in March.”
While Epenesa isn’t a huge name, he might offer the kind of consistency the Eagles need up front. He’s had at least 6 sacks each of the last 3 seasons. In 2024, he became a full time starter for the first time and responded with 39 tackles, 6.0 sacks, 11 QB hits, 8 TFL, 2 pass deflections, 2 forced fumbles and one safety.
Eagles Signed Multiple Edge Rushers in Free Agency
The Eagles, meanwhile, seem to be taking a “by committee” approach to edge rusher in 2025. That comes after the departure of last year’s sacks leader, Josh Sweat, to the Arizona Cardinals on a 4-year, $76.4 million free agent contract.
Philadelphia signed a pair of low-risk free agent edge rushers for 2025 with Azeez Ojulari (1-year, $3 million) from the New York Giants and Josh Uche (1-year, $1.17 million) from the Kansas City Chiefs.
Ojulari and Uche have both shown they can be productive in the past. Ojulari had 6.0 sacks in just 11 games in 2024 and a career high 8.0 sacks in 2021. Uche had a career high 11.5 sacks in 2022 for the New England Patriots but only has a combined 5.0 sacks over the last 2 seasons.
