2011 NFL Predictions: Why the Eagles Won't Trade Asante Samuel

Ever since the Philadelphia Eagles shocked the world by signing All-Pro cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, and adding him to a star-studded secondary already featuring Asante Samuel and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, trade speculation has run rampant, with many analysts predicting that three Pro Bowl cornerbacks cannot coexist on the same team, and pointing at the seemingly disgruntled Samuel as the first to go.

A press conference by Samuel that provided soundbites such as, "I want to be where I'm wanted. If they're tired of my big playmaking ability, they can ship me out," did not quiet the rumors.

Many people want Samuel to be traded, and many more believe that he will be traded.

However, it looks likely that he will stay in Philadelphia for at least one more season, for several reasons.

Firstly, Samuel has never said he wants to leave Philadelphia, despite his previous evasive comments.

At the aforementioned press conference, Samuel began by saying: "It's wonderful to be back. I'm home. Ready to go to work. Happy to be here."

He praised his new teammates, and agreed that they would not have a problem with playing time. Clearly, Samuel was far more irritated with the trade speculation, not the cornerback situation.

And for good reason.

During the 2010 season, Samuel was targeted 36 times, picking off seven passes and deflecting five more.

When throwing to him, opposing quarterbacks only averaged 3.2 yards per pass, and a 31.7 passer rating, rates lower than either Asomugha or Darrelle Revis, and good enough to be the best in the league.

When you turn in a career year, and then suddenly find your name on the trading block, like Samuel has, then you have every right to be angry that your team is even considering trading you.

The Eagles made the obvious choice after acquiring Asomugha, putting Samuel up on the trading block and seeing if they could get an offer like the Arizona Cardinals gave them for Kevin Kolb.

Recently, rumors flew across the internet that Asante Samuel would be traded for San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis.

Clearly, that sort of trade would never happen, but it demonstrates the kind of player that the Eagles would ask for in return: someone who is also among the best at their position. The Eagles cannot get equal value for Samuel, except in the form of multiple draft picks.

And in a league as pass-oriented as the NFL, having multiple Pro Bowl cornerbacks can only be an asset. For example, the Green Bay Packers used three or more receivers nearly 60 percent of the time, according to Football Outsiders, and other top teams in the league, such as the Eagles and the New England Patriots, had similar rates.

It's in the Eagles' best interest to keep Samuel, especially if they want to measure up against deep receiving corps such as the Packers' trio of Greg Jennings, Donald Driver and James Jones.

And the Eagles know their window is a short one.

Their run as Super Bowl contenders can only last as long as Michael Vick can continue to produce at a high level.

Trading Samuel for draft picks doesn't help them at all this year, and they should be able to trade him during the offseason for similar value, if they chose to do so.

If they're truly serious about contending this year, they wouldn't trade away one of their best players for draft picks that are worthless during the season.

The Eagles front office has made all the right moves this offseason. It's not too unreasonable to hope that they will make a mistake now.