Written by Ryan Wilson at CBS Sports.com
The Eagles might be a month removed from their first Super Bowl title, but they’re not taking anything for granted. The team will trade wide receiver Torrey Smith to the Panthers for cornerback Daryl Worley, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The move comes days after Philadelphia bolstered its defensive line, acquiring Michael Bennett from the Seahawks.
Worley, originally a 2012 third-round pick out of West Virginia, now gets a chance to play in his hometown. In two seasons in Carolina, he started 25 games and had three interceptions, 19 passes defended and two sacks. Worley was a replacement-level talent last season, according to Pro Football Focus, where he ranked 79th out of 120 cornerbacks. As a rookie, he ranked 33rd overall, and the hope is that Worley will flourish on an Eagles defense that was among the league’s best a season ago.
The latest offseason maneuvering reiterates the point made by Warren Sharp and others about how teams with young, relatively inexpensive quarterbacks are building to win titles right now.
Rams & Eagles are in peak Super Bowl mode. Both have starting QBs with 3 more years on their cheap, rookie deal. The salary cap has risen by $22M since they were signed & they don’t have to spend that on a starting QB now or in the near future. It’s an arms race at this point.
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) March 9, 2018
Smith, meanwhile, gives the Panthers a much-needed deep threat. He started 14 games last season but had just 36 receptions for 430 yards and two touchdowns in the Eagles’ well-balanced offense. In Carolina, running back Christian McCaffrey was the leading receiver, hauling in 80 passes. He was followed by Devin Funchess (63 receptions), which goes a long way in explaining why the Panthers would be interested in Smith, who averaged 20.1 yards per reception with the 49ers in 2015.
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