The Nick Foles story \u2013 if it never gets better or has another happy chapter \u2013 is still a wild success story. The backup quarterback who won an NFC championship and then beat Tom Brady in the Super Bowl will always have a championship and a perfect sports moment, no matter what happens to him in the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, he\u2019s had a rough go of things in his first season with the Jacksonville Jaguars. After signing a four-year, $88 million contract in the offseason, Foles was injured in his first game. After he returned from injured reserve, he played just over two games where the Jags were blown out, and now he\u2019s been benched. Is his time in Jacksonville already up? The odds suggest he\u2019ll be back as the team\u2019s starter next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is a reasonable possibility but the Jaguars know that rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew II has been very good for them this season. Minshew offers a younger, less injured quarterback who could develop within the Jaguars\u2019 offense and become the team\u2019s quarterback of the future. Minshew has completed 61.1% of his passes while tossing 15 touchdowns and just four picks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foles would have to dazzle in summer camp in order to win back the job and that gives him a very small margin for error. If it\u2019s basically a tie or if Foles is anything less than spectacular, Minshew would probably figure to be the guy. The Jags will probably feel that if they\u2019re rebuilding or not expecting to compete for anything major next season, Foles won\u2019t move the needle for them enough. That could push them to Minshew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The challenge here is Foles contract. He\u2019s going to cost the team $34 million against the cap if they cut him, he\u2019ll cost $19 million. That means it\u2019s cheaper to keep him as they\u2019ll owe him $15.125 million in salary next season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This seems like the most likely outcome. The Jaguars invested a lot in Foles, so they probably won\u2019t try to unload him right now. They might wait one more year to do that. It might seem like a waste of money, but the Jaguars can reasonably keep Foles as a backup, knowing they would have an insurance policy if Minshew struggles in 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Given that Minshew is a first-year player, his second season could be rough. Think of how Mitch Trubisky has struggled in Chicago or how Daniel Jones started so well with the New York Giants but then came crashing down to earth. Minshew has given the team a spark but he\u2019s also limited physically. Having Foles as the backup is not a terrible thing for Jacksonville \u2013 even if the Jaguars paid him big money with the intention of having him as the starting quarterback. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is not a completely ridiculous possibility. The Indianapolis Colts might think they can land Foles. After all, the man who worked with Foles in Philadelphia, Frank Reich, is now the Colts\u2019 head coach. That could be the dream scenario for Foles. We now have a blueprint for these NBA-style trades where a team with a ton of cap spaces eats a bad contract but gets a draft pick in return (see: Brock Osweiler trade). That\u2019s one way that the Jags could get out from under Foles\u2019 contract and move on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, the idea that Foles will go to another team and not have a starting job seems very unlikely. If Foles is a backup next year, it will certainly be in Jacksonville.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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