Eagles Release First Depth Chart Into The Wild
Posted: August 8th, 2011 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 57 Comments »There’s a few surprises. We can’t make too much of the initial depth chart, but it provides some good discussion material.
I feel like our 2nd team is better than half the league.
I read something the other day which made me think that assuming Kelce is up to it maybe we could use JJ at center against the 3-4 and Kelce against the 4-3. Do you think that makes sense.
Also if we are going to play a lot of dime, then we probably need at least 6 CB’s. So where do we go light. Do we dare have only 5 LBs. This would make sense in one way because if we are only using 1 or 2 LBs in the nickel and dime then we don’t need as many as in a straight up defense. But using all these inexperienced LBs might bode for more diversity and numbers.
I’m figuring 20 linemen 10 O, 10 D but we could shave that number by one or two.
What do you think?
I’m surprised that we have two jur-RODs, spelled differently.
Interesting that JLH is the starting PR and KR guy. I would of thought they would split this between him and Moss somehow. I am hoping that Moss gets a look and can compete with JLH. Hall was a great story last year but he is gone.
No listing for lcb? That is a serious lack of balls on Andy’s part.
You can say that again. They’re gonna have to cut a lot of good talent. A couple of the bottom dwelling teams could probably improve a lot just from signing guys we waive.
Interesting to see Nate Allen is gonna be SS this year. Although the Eagles didn’t really show much difference between SS and FS in terms of scheme and responsibilities last year.
I’m also surprised that Juqua is holding on to his LDE spot after signing Babin to a big contract. Thats gonna be a fearsome rotation when Cole, Juqua, Babin and Tapp are all well rested and flying upfield every down.
Doah! Missed it sorry Andy!
Couple thoughts… Colt Anderson… great ST guy, right? Any way he makes this team? Doesn’t appear so. Will the Eagles really use a roster spot for a pure RS with Higgins? Who is the odd man out at CB? No way they put Marsh on the PS, right? Not a lot of surprises here based on what’s been going around.
Tommy,
Whatsup with Allen at SS and Coleman at FS?
Curious that JP is still the starting LDE. I like having Mathis as the utility guy on the offensive line. That frees up more space to dump a few other guys.
I’m fine with Peters, Herremans, Kelce, Jackson, Justice, Harris, Mathis, Howard, McGlynn and Watkins. You could probably even go with 9 if you feel Justice and/or Herremans are your LT fill-ins.
Yeah, I just can’t see them cutting their 3rd round pick and hoping they can get him on the PS. That makes me think Hanson is in a battle with Hughes for the 6th CB spot and that if the Eagles can find a trade partner for one of them they will try and get a draft pick out of it.
Is Colt still eligible for the PS? Maybe they go with only 3 Safeties to allow an extra CB and have Colt on the PS in case of an injury.
I hope we have a few medical redshirts this year.
Candidates:
RG Vandervelde
DE Te’o
CB Marsh/Hughes
Seems like we’ve added a lot of veteran talent, but most of it is on one year deals. If we end up cutting a bunch of young guys this year, it could affect us next year when all our one year rentals are gone.
RE: SS/FS
Castillo has “changed the names” per Jeff McLane. Very odd. This isn’t like the old days when there were major differences in the 2 spots. They are very interchangeable.
Bottom line, the guy playing centerfield will still be Nate Allen, no matter what they call him.
RE: Colt Anderson
I’ll be shocked if he doesn’t make the team. The depth chart is based on defense, not STs. Colt was easily our best STer last year. You don’t cut that guy unless he’s just awful.
The big winner is Johnny Lee Higgins. If he’s the returner, he’ll make the team as the 5th and last WR beating out Hall and Moss.
Unlike Jackson vs. Kelce or Harris vs. Justice, where the loser still makes the team. If Higgins doesn’t win the return battle, he’s out of a job.
RE: CB
Curtis Marsh = lock
Big 3 are locks
Hanson – possible trade bait
Lindley – could be cut
Hughes – mystery man
RE: rotation at C
Not likely. I’ve been trying to get up a post on Kelce to give my thoughts, but other things keep happening. Tomorrow will be a slow day (no practice). I’ll post then, if not sooner.
what happened to Abiamiri? was he released at some point recently? he’s not on the depth chart, but he’s still in the pronunciation guide at the bottom…
Can someone clarify PS eligibility and which non-first-year players can still go on the PS? Tommy? Sam?
Also, MMQB has an awesome write-up of the Eagles FA and cap situation:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/peter_king/08/08/tour/index.html
@Roger – Abiamiri is on IR again. He tore his achilles last week.
PUP list guys like Graham and Justice also aren’t on the depth chart.
This is an activity for the August junkie, but depth charts are always a little off and certain games are being played. Experience usually goes first unless a rookie (Watkins, Matthews) has been designated as the starter. Higgins is the most experienced KR (I’m rooting for Moss, Cooper, and Locke).
Tommy,
Lindley could be cut? Not that I disagree with you, but you are one of the guys saying how high the Eagles brass are on this guy. Even if you have 3 or 4 Pro Bowl cornerbacks on your roster, do you still cut a guy you think can start for you in 2 years?
I agree that Lindley could be cut.. first of all, Hughes might beat him out, or they may go with 5. Numbers game. He’s generally worth hanging on to.
DT Marlon Favorite has been on 10 NFL teams now in his 27 month career, very impressive.. rotational run stuffer.
Since I have no idea who was activated when last year, I also request with gratitude a PS-eligible list..
Lindley, Hughes, and Colt Anderson would last about three seconds on a practice squad or waiver wire.. The Cowboys wanted Anderson after they found out the Eagles wanted him.. the Giants paid extra to PS Hughes, and the Prince is ailing.. Lindley was a midround pick whose played ok in games. No way you cut your best ST guy Anderson.
Lindley is in the mold of Asante Samuel only without the big play ability (yet). Unless he shows he can play on the level as Asante, he likely doesn’t fit in the new direction of this defense under Castillo.
The last thing I would ever want for this team is a rotation at center. There is a reason no team has really every tried to do it. Bad chemistry problems
@Tommy:
Read the Peter King article and how he described Asomugha playing the slot. I know he’s tall and fast but is he big enough to be able to jam at the line of scrimmage? I really haven’t watched much of Asomugha to know how he does it. I just know that the guy is a shut down corner but he seems a little on the smaller side muscular wise to be covering TEs and slot recievers off the line. But i’m not a scout or football expert either 🙂 Thanks for this site, the info is great.
RE: Lindley
If he’s not playing well this summer, that’s the reason he’d be cut. Eagles did have high hopes for him.
Football is a fluid situation and results oriented business. If other guys are playing better, Lindley becomes expendable. If he out-plays Hughes, then Trevard stays.
RE: PSquad stuff
I’ll get Sam to write that out. Or he may have it already done. We’ll post it when we can.
Man. I really hope Philip Hunt makes the final roster and contributes this year.
The last thing I want to see is the Eagles cut him before the regular season starts and then he goes on and has a productive season with some other team with less DE depth, and the Eagles miss out on the next Cameron Wake.
I’d rather have Hunt on the roster than Tapp, Teo-Nesheim, or Parker, imho. He has too much potential to just jettison. He’s also better suited to playing RDE. Rotate him exclusively with Cole!
As a Canadian who does watch the CFL when nothing is on, I can say with accuracy that Hunt is not in Wake’s league. I mean, Hunt was very good in the CFL, but Wake was just on a whole other level.
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If Hughes outplays Lindley, cut Trevard. You’d still have DRC/Marsh/Hughes for the future. That’s a great foundation to build up. Lindley MUST step up if he wants to make this team.
I actually agree with Morton. One of the guys I was really looking forward to was Philip Hunt. I really want to see what he can do and really hope he makes the team. Of course if he doesn’t do as well in Preseason I guess there’s not much you can do.
Love Colt.
Sinorice Moss is above Hall in the depth chart right now. I think thats pretty significant given how much Andy like Hall. I’ve been hearing that Moss has been doing well, but he must be doing really well to be ahead of Hall atm. Liking these battles.
Doesn’t the fifth WR have to be able to return kicks and punts? That would seem to go against Hall. Besides, he had about one yard of YAC all last year. It would be a miracle if he stayed.
Tommy,
Is this an official DC from the desk of the coaches? Or is this just something that Spadaro pieced together from his TC observations?
As well as swapping names/terms at safety, what is happening at SAM? First, after espousing about Chaney’s ability to play MiKE or WiLL, in this D he is a SAM. For sure things have changed because he will be seeing far more snaps then any SAM we have had since Joyner. Secondly, Akeem is now the back up SAM? That has to be based on what the SAM is now being asked to do over what they once did. I wonder if Clayton is seeing time at WiLL, to better prepare him for being the primary backup at either outside backer position, because as it stands now, he is surely the ideal back up SAM.
On Kelce you might want to add that he has the best Jeff Saturday beard of them all. A smart move by young Jason?
I find it interesting that they even list who the holder on FGs is – I wonder if Romo is still running with the first team in that position in Dallas (I sure hope so)!
@LB the backups at MIKE seem to be Chaney and Fokou and Fokou is the backup at SAM, going by the fact that he and Jordan played there last year and only one did well. So the “sub” is going in at WILL by this math, which Clayton has first dibs on. Rolle, a W that’s had reps at M is a possible ST stud. Jeanty is not the better for being behind Jordan on the chart. Lloyd is trying to make it as a true runstuffing M. So you have Clayton, Rolle, Jordan, Lloyd going for the backup spots.
Are there any match ups that intrigue you for Thursday? I’m particularly interested in seeing how the defense will hold up against the run and fight against screens. Also interested in seeing Watkins and Jackson match upped against Ngata and Terrance Cody.
I am pretty sure that we will be keeping 6 CBs and 5LBs on the 53 men roster.
And 6 WR is also not out of the question..
From Matchew88 from the Blog on the EMB
“on listening to Fokou just cleared up everything. Traditional WILL plays outside and covers RBs/etc., but here the WILL is more in the middle and the Safety plays outside. This makes sense as to the Allen/Coleman position switch too, as Allen will be coming up on the outside to cover those RBs etc that the WILL used to cover. Coleman or Jarrett are better for coverage help / man of last defense. ”
@ian
I’m not sure anything Jordan did last year means anything in this system and I would still think he’d be better suited to this WiLL, which removes him from primary RB coverage, something he never seemed to good at.
If Bruce Carter gets healthy, Dallas will have a pretty decent and young LB core:
DeMarcus Ware
Bruce Carter
Anthony Spencer
Sean Lee
Jay Ratliff is still a stud and their other DEs are solid. Too bad their secondary sucks, or they could have had a great defense.
I’m never sure when the right time is to get out the annual PS post. We also will have a perma-link to a PS eligibility list. I will try to get the initial post up in the next day or so … may need more time to figure out the permanent home.
Also worth looking at for the explanation of the weak/strong flip flop is the speculation from Derek formerly of IgglesBlog, which is consistent with the one that Fokou seemed to give above : http://twitter.com/#!/igglesblog
More seriously, I’ve avoided speculation since there’s a lot of misinformation out there & we’ll be able to see soon enough, but..
…if the wide nine actually looks like a 4-3 over front with the ends out wide, there’s going to be a LOT of room on the weak side …
… which means you now need a WIL who can not just run, but also take on blocks, because that LG is going to be looking to murder him
Again, we’ll see, but the first pic here gives a sense of the WIL’s predicament the further outside the RDE moves:
http://t.co/wv7sFDk
Thanks Sam – it seems like the high level of talent and numbers on the roster will make for some painful cuts – even of players that contributed last season. It would be nice if we could get some of them to ‘hang around’ on the PS.
@NAME(?) – Hearing those comments, along with the focus on nickel and dime at training camp has me wondering how the Castillo D will fare against the run – Hopefully the preseason games will shed some light.
The reality is a lot of these guys we’re so in love with during Training Camp will get cut and disappear from the NFL within months.
Relieved to see Harris at #1 RT (assuming it’s not a token veteran deference thing, a la Juqua’s positioning on the 1st team).
Is it fair to say the following people are as good as gone?
-Marlin Jackson
-Jorrick Calvin
-Joselio (as long as Asatne isn’t traded)
I hope Eldra Buckley is given a chance to succeed somewhere else. Guy plays his tail off.
RE: goners
Marlin Jackson is done.
Jorrick Calvin is 90% gone. Needs to be great as RS in games.
Not sure about Joselio. His future is up in the air.
Tommy
Every year we see a player getting surprisingly cut and traded, respectively. Who will be that guy this year in your eyes?
Wow I would be surprised if they cut Lindley. The eagles don’t usually give up that fast. I guess they have so many good corners that someone has to go. I would think that Samuels is gone next year, so I think Lindley would really have to not look good for us to cut him. I say Samuel is probably gone next year cuz DRC will be on the last year of his contract and I would think the birds would want to see what he has as a starter.
Its gonna be tuff cutting players, we will be cutting good players. I bet the Giants pick up a few of our guys.
I have never been this amped for preseason
above
or Hughes plays really well
Tommy,
Earlier you said you don’t cut our best special teamer from last year – but with the Kickoff spot moving 5 yards forwards, does that not hurt his value to the team? Just the likely increased number of TB’s – making him just that much less valuable no?
A friend and I discussed this over lunch today. With a likely sharpe increase in touchbacks – wouldn’t holding onto special team only players be a mistake?
@Zack
Colt was our best guy on punt returns too, which haven’t been affected. According to some sites (football outsiders), touchbacks may only increase by 20%, meaning 1-2 per game. That still makes special teams valuable.
@CVD
Tony Hunt and Bryan Smith were 3rd rounders and they were cut prior to their 2nd seasons.
Jack Ikegauna was a 4th rounder and was cut prior to his 2nd season.
Macho Harris was cut prior to his 2nd season despite being a starter his rookie season.
The Eagles cutting Trevard Lindley wouldn’t surprise me.
Kevin (RC),
I understand punt returns have not been changed, but it’s just in terms of number of plays to keep a less talented player, seems like it would be a risk.
I didn’t do much research – but looking at the Green Bay Packers – Eagles playoff games…There were 11 kicks returned by both teams combined. The Packers had 6, take two of those away, and you are at 4 chances for Colt Anderson to shine (in theory). That’s not a lot of oppertunity for a player (a roster spot) that is likely considered to have no business being a defensive player. Why cut a guy who may be slightly less talented on special teams, but may have a chance to contribute on defense or help you if you suffer a injury?
One way to know you’re a good team is if you are having to cut good players to make roster limits. I’d be worried if we knew exactly who was going to make the roster.
What will be interesting in this “all-in” offseason is if we’re cutting kids who are a year or so away over vets who won’t be here in 2012. I.E.- Hanson vs Lindley. Talented kids tend to get claimed off waivers. Vets can make it to the bell squad. If we’re talking about a guy who is somewhere between #46 to #53 on the roster, I hope continue our pattern of erring on the side of youth.
Well said, mcud.
However…with DRC and Marsh being young…does that change things? Also what if it comes down to keeping 2 of 3:
Lindley
Hughes
Hanson
Do you keep the 2 young guys?
No right or wrong answers. Just good debate material.
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New post is up.