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Josh Rosen reported for work bright and early on Monday morning in Tempe, Ariz., beating all of his teammates to the start of the Arizona Cardinals offseason workouts, as if everything was normal.
Of course, everything is not normal for Rosen, whom many around the NFL expect to be traded in the next two weeks. And the second-year quarterback could even end up in a bidding war between the Redskins and Giants in the NFC East.
It's all speculation, at this point, because multiple NFL sources have told SNY there is no indication that the Cardinals have put Rosen on the trading block yet. But it's certainly expected they will, just like they are expected to use the first pick in the 2019 NFL Draft on Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray. In anticipation of that, Rosen has reportedly drawn interest from the Redskins, Chargers and Dolphins, and the Giants have at least internally discussed trading for him, as SNY has reported.
Several reports have even identified the Redskins as the favorite, since they are desperate for quarterback help after the gruesome leg injury to starter Alex Smith last season. They reportedly love Rosen, the 10th overall pick of the 2018 draft, as both a short-term and long-term solution to their problem. One report indicated they might even be willing to part with their first-round pick (15th overall).
If they are, they will likely win the Rosen sweepstakes. They would certainly beat the Giants, who aren't interested in giving up either of their first-round picks (sixth or 17th). The Giants' interest in Rosen appears to be mild by comparison, depending on the Cardinals' price.
How high a price would the Giants be willing to pay and how much do they really like Rosen? From several NFL and team sources, here's everything that's known about the Giants and Rosen so far:
1) The Giants liked the 22-year-old Rosen when they evaluated him last year, but Sam Darnold, Josh Allen and Baker Mayfield all seemingly had more supporters in the organization and possibly higher grades. It is not clear where they rank Rosen compared to the quarterbacks in this year's class.
2) Their biggest concern with Rosen last year is the same one they still have: His personality. He can come off as arrogant or prickly at times, both in private and with the media. The Giants are sensitive to that after 15 years of Eli Manning, who was well-liked and respected in the locker room and trouble-free in public.
3) The Giants have no interest in trading the sixth overall pick, and while the 17th pick could be available if they decide to trade up or down in the first round, they're not going to send it to Arizona for Rosen. So if the Redskins really do offer the 15th overall pick, the Giants are out.
4) Even the Giants' second-round pick (37th overall) might be too high of a price. They value that pick and think they can get a player with a first-round grade at that spot. So to trade it for Rosen, they might need something else in return. Now, if they decide to trade down from 17 and acquire another second-round pick, that one could be used as bait. Incidentally, the Redskins' second-round pick is No. 46.
5) The Giants don't think their third-round pick (95th overall) would be enough to land Rosen, despite speculation that's what the Cardinals would have to settle for in trade. The Giants never seemed to believe that, and even if they did, they knew their third-rounder was so low it would never be enough.
The bottom line is this: The Giants will be interested, but only if the price is right. And it seems unlikely they'd be willing to out-bid the Redskins if they're really interested. If they're not, maybe the Giants could package their third-round pick with a future second-rounder or something like that to get a deal done.
But that will depend on the Cardinals, who still have to put Rosen on the trading block first.