Howie Roseman was lauded for his offseason trade with the Cleveland Browns back in March, turning quarterback Kenny Pickett into former UCLA standout Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a 2025 fifth-round pick.
The Philadelphia Eagles had a surplus at the quarterback position, as third-stringer Tanner McKee earned himself a promotion with his stellar play during the 2024 regular season. With Pickett on the QB3 bubble, acquiring a mid-round draft pick along with a developmental prospect in DTR seemed like a no-brainer at the time.
Times have changed significantly, however, following Philly’s 10-player haul in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Eagles ended up making eight selections on Day 3 of the draft, and among them was sixth-round quarterback Kyle McCord of Syracuse. McCord led the FBS in passing yards and set the ACC’s single-season passing yards record (4,779) in his lone season with the Orange after leaving the Ohio State Buckeyes. While Thompson-Robinson projects as the better two-way threat, McCord represents a major threat to DTR’s roster spot as Philly’s QB3.
Josh Davis of The Philly Special Show predicts McCord will ultimately beat out Thompson-Robinson, and he doesn’t expect the competition to be all that close:
“It’s pretty obvious to me,” Davis stated, “I’m going to take Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee and Kyle McCord. I get it, some people brought up the trade for Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and maybe he finds more success in Philly, but the more control over McCord’s contract does feel like the Syracuse quarterback will have every chance to beat out DTR.”
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It’s hard to argue with this take, as Roseman hit a home run with McKee as a sixth-round draft pick in 2023. McKee will rank among the cheapest backup quarterbacks in the NFL this year, with a salary cap hit of barely over $1 million, and his rookie deal doesn’t even expire until 2026. For Roseman and the Eagles, this is playing the game at an elite level, as McKee offers the team a ton of financial flexibility now while developing into an asset that can be flipped for added value in the future.
With all due respect to Thompson-Robinson, who lit up the field with UCLA for over 10,000 career passing yards and 88 touchdowns, his pro career is off to a rough start. He appeared in 15 games for the Browns, who have been playing musical chairs at the QB position for years, and ended up with a woeful one touchdown pass and 10 interceptions.
The rushing element to DTR’s game adds intrigue — he has 187 yards as a runner to his credit in the NFL — but McCord projects better in Philly’s pipeline as the next McKee, and that should be enough to keep Thompson-Robinson on the practice squad, at best.
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