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Eagles mailbag: Which positions would you swap players with the Chiefs?

It’ll be a Super Bowl rematch on Sunday. Before the Eagles face Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes again, I’m going to field some mailbag questions.

If you have questions for a future mailbag, you can hit me up on X/Twitter, Bluesky or via email.

@ShireNation: How many positions would you swap players with the Chiefs on?

This is a fun question.

The obvious one people would discuss is Mahomes vs. Jalen Hurts.

If you were starting a franchise from scratch, would you take Mahomes? For sure.

However…

Hurts has out-played Mahomes in the Super Bowl twice and for the way this specific Eagles roster is structured with its offensive line and run game, I wouldn’t want to mess with what is clearly a championship-winning formula. I’m thinking deeply here. If you were to make these types of swaps right here, right now ahead of Week 2, how would it affect the team? Hurts makes this team go from both an on-field and off-the-field perspective. I’m letting it ride with No. 1!

Dallas Goedert was a beast in the Eagles’ postseason run this past winter, but his injury issues continue to pop up. He’s hard to rely upon at times given those concerns. Give me the future Hall of Famer in Travis Kelce, even if he’s lost a step or two, at tight end. The younger Kelce brother and his fiancée coming to Philadelphia would cause quite a stir, certainly, but he’s definitely a plug-and-play guy who’d immediately help elevate the pass game.

The Eagles have a dominant offensive line bookended by the league’s best tackle duo, but the Chiefs are damn good in the trenches as well. Chiefs Pro Bowl right guard Trey Smith would be an upgrade over the Birds’ Tyler Steen. Creed Humphrey has been the NFL’s best center in the aftermath of Jason Kelce’s retirement, but, again, looking at the intangible aspect, I think changing centers midseason would prove difficult. I don’t think there’s that significant of a drop-off between Humphrey and Cam Jurgens, so I’ll just go right guard when it comes to the line.

On the other side of the ball, Chris Jones is a future Hall of Famer in his own right. Jordan Davis might have just played his best game yet as an Eagle in Week 1’s victory over Dallas, but pairing Jones with Jalen Carter on the defensive line would give the Birds an unparalleled level of interior dominance.

The Eagles’ biggest concern right now is the second outside cornerback spot opposite Quinyon Mitchell. Bringing in All-Pro corner Trent McDuffie would give the Birds their best CB tandem in decades.

So, I’ll say four positions: tight end, right guard, defensive tackle and cornerback. Kansas City is a very, very top-heavy team held together by the power of Mahomes and Reid.

@3_AV_Crue: What Eagles team does this Chiefs team remind you of during Andy’s Eagles tenure?

I dig this one a lot. I wrote earlier this week about how Eagles fans should remember Reid’s tenure in Philly and this feels like a companion piece.

We’re only a week into the season, but if Kansas City continues to give off the vibes of it being a down year from what was previously expected, how about the 2005 Eagles? That team ran out of gas after four-straight NFC Championship Game appearances and one Super Bowl run. Kansas City is in even rougher shape on that front, having played in five of the last six Super Bowls. Mahomes and Reid can clean up a lot, but at a certain point, you can’t be the best team forever. Even Tom Brady and Bill Belichick went a decade without winning it all.

The Eagles sputtered in ‘05, finishing 6-10, but it was more than that. A summer of Terrell Owens contract negotiations became a massive distraction and he was ultimately suspended in the middle of the season, effectively ending his time in midnight green. The whole season just felt off before it even really started.

In a much more serious turn of events, Chiefs receiver Rashee Rice is in legal trouble that led him to being suspended for the first six games of the season. Additionally, last year’s first-round pick, wideout Xaiver Worthy, was injured in Week 1. Kansas City quickly went from perennially having an elite roster to sort of falling apart. This version of Reid is superior to his Philadelphia counterpart and Mahomes is better than Donovan McNabb ever was, but things just feel off for them, especially if the Eagles put them in an 0-2 hole on Sunday.

Outside of magically being able to swap Adoree’ Jackson for McDuffie like in that hypothetical above, the Eagles feel a little stuck when it comes to that second outside cornerback spot. Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said this week that Jackson will again start on Sunday. I wouldn’t hate seeing a full game of Jakorian Bennett simply to see if he has any juice out there, but if Fangio trusts Jackson more than Bennett, well, then I trust ol’ Vic.

It’s too early in the year to see what teams may want to part with quality players before the Nov. 4 trade deadline, but if anyone’s going to be active working the phone, it’s going to be Howie Roseman. Is everyone hoping the Browns suck like usual and they send Denzel Ward here for a third-round pick?

I understand the worries about CB2. I know you can’t have a star at literally every position, but it’s a legitimate concern. Still, I give Fangio’s scheme and Roseman’s wheelin’ and dealin’ the benefit of the doubt currently.