More on the Game & Some Roster Talk

Posted: August 29th, 2014 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 176 Comments »

Something occurred to me in regard to the kicker situation. After watching Cody Parkey have a strong game vs the Jets, where is Alex Henery’s head right now? If you wanted to keep him, could you trust him? Henery knows that even if the Eagles keep him, he’s on shaky ground. That has to affect his confidence. That could affect his performance. I think the missed FG in the Steelers game was due more to his head than his leg. I just don’t know how much you can trust Henery right now.

While Parkey had a strong showing, let’s not assume he’s going to be automatic from 50+ forever. The coaches have seen him in practice. They know how he’s been hitting the ball and if the game performance was an anomaly or a continuation of what he’s been doing everyday.

This is a tough decision because there is so little information on Parkey, but right now I’d go with him. Take the chance on the better leg.

* * * * *

Trey Burton is a player that I go back and forth on. He’s not ready to play against starters right now, based on what I’ve seen. He’s still learning the position of TE and he must get bigger and stronger. He is perfect for the practice squad. But…the guy looks like a gifted pass-catcher. Some team just might claim Burton if the Eagles cut him. While he might not be ready to play, he could be worth keeping on the roster for the future.

Burton would be perfect for taking James Casey’s spot in 2015. He is versatile and athletic. He is a willing blocker. Burton just lacks the strength to be a good in-line blocker right now. Like all young players, he also needs technique work.

* * * * *

I was hoping for more out of Ed Reynolds last night. I think he could be the #5 Safety, but I’m also not sure if the Eagles will keep that many. You only need 4.

Reynolds hasn’t earned a spot on the field. He’s had some good moments to be sure, but hasn’t jumped out and just grabbed your attention. He looks like someone that would be good for the practice squad. He’s got a future, but not much of a present. Burton has made a couple of wow plays and that’s why you want to be careful about cutting him. Reynolds hasn’t had any such moments and would likely go unclaimed if cut.

This isn’t just about him failing to pick off the pass. Don’t think…if he makes that play, he makes the team. I think that would have helped his case, but don’t think one play would have been enough. Reynolds needed to flash. Jaylen Watkins had a sequence last night where he was in on 3 straight plays. He looked tough and physical. That grabbed my attention. Reynolds made one good tackle. He was in on another stop, but it was less impressive. Guys trying to win those last few roster spots need to command your attention.

The one caveat here is that the Eagles love Reynolds for his brains and ability to understand defensive concepts. If he has continued to wow the coaches with his understanding of the game, that might be enough for them to want to keep him around.

* * * * *

Damaris Johnson had a terrific showing and did everything possible to impress the coaches. That still might not be enough. The biggest issue for DJ is that he’s a smaller guy with only average speed. He is very quick. He has a good burst. But he lacks the long speed you want in a smaller player.

Some of you may want to point out that Wes Welker also lacks speed. But Welker is great in other areas. DJ isn’t. Johnson was a great college football player. He had some good moments as a rookie in 2012. But I’m not sure there is a spot on the roster for him. He lacks the breakaway speed you want in a RS. He isn’t a gifted slot receiver. Johnson does have good RAC skills. And you know that Chip Kelly loves his versatility.

I won’t be shocked if Johnson makes the roster, but I’m not expecting it to happen.

I do give him a ton of credit for doing everything he can to make the team. If you watch Hard Knocks you see there are some players who just don’t have that same desire. Johnson knows his limitations and isn’t going to let the coaches cut him without a fight.

Here’s a funny tweet from one of our readers.

* * * * *

I need to re-watch the game tonight before saying anything about RB. That’s a crowded position where everyone can make a strong case.

Kelly and the staff have some really tough decisions to make. And that’s a good thing. We’ve seen other years where there were 48 players you wanted to keep. The Eagles have closer to 60 you’d like to keep this time around.

_


176 Comments on “More on the Game & Some Roster Talk”

  1. 1 jcwhy said at 11:57 AM on August 29th, 2014:

    PARKEY! PARKEY! PARKEY!

  2. 2 RobNE said at 12:23 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Butter!

  3. 3 Wintrode said at 1:29 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Lol, well done!

  4. 4 scratcherk said at 12:12 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    The other thing about taking a chance on Parkey is that there should be more options into the season if he’s not performing. McManus or Prater should be available after week 4. Feely, Bironas are less than ideal options but could do in a pinch. Take a chance with Parkey instead of accepting mediocrity with Henery.

  5. 5 RogerPodacter said at 12:50 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    odds are that Henery would still be on the street too. or the guy who Henery replaces on some other team’s roster will be.

  6. 6 BreakinAnklez said at 4:17 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Prater is not getting cut..

  7. 7 GEAGLE said at 12:29 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Starting to wonder if Polk is a Lock. IF Polk felt like he needed to play last night to make the team, no injury would have kept him off the field,.. His hamstring is a case where it will heal soon, but to have a setback now that makes you miss a month doesn’t make much sense if you are going to end up on the roster anyway….. For him not to ATleast try and play last night, leads me to believe he has been assured he will be on the roster…

    If he was worried about not making the roster, he would have played with ANY injury, or ATleast tried… No way his hamstring was so terrible still, that he couldn’t have gone on it…he has clearly been told not to bother risking a setback..

    Anyone disagree with this line of thinking?

  8. 8 Media Mike said at 12:35 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Kempski is like 110% sure Polk isn’t going anywhere. I think worst case scenario for Polk is being placed on the IR and giving him a year to work on his health.

    My own preference would be to keep him on the 53, but inactive until he’s ready to go.

  9. 9 RogerPodacter said at 12:51 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    would Polk still be an option for the short-term IR thing?

  10. 10 Media Mike said at 1:00 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Yes, I’m reluctant to use that on a depth player that I won’t really need this year if stuff goes ok with the rest of the roster. I’d rather hoard that designation for a guy who is a starter if needed.

  11. 11 RogerPodacter said at 1:02 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    good point. i wasn’t sure if it was something we had to do now in a ‘use it or lose it’ fashion. i guess its OK to ‘short term IR’ someone during the season? if so, then i agree with you. it absolutely makes sense to save that for someone more than a role player.

  12. 12 Media Mike said at 1:12 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    In either case, I really like what Polk brings to the table in terms of skill sets.

  13. 13 Media Mike said at 12:34 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I only see 3 really essential roster items:

    1) Barner had better not be on this roster over Polk, Tucker, and/or Josey.

    2) Parkey

    3) Casey Matthews had best be cut!

  14. 14 Ark87 said at 12:57 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    was good to see Long and Acho have a few moments last night. we needed that to have a chance. Matthews almost won the job by default.

  15. 15 Media Mike said at 1:01 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Long is a really solid player. Acho is better than Matthews, but simply lacks the preferred collegiate background. Quack.

  16. 16 Sean Stott said at 1:14 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I don’t see Long making this roster over Matthews at this point. Matthews has looked good in ST.

  17. 17 Media Mike said at 1:16 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    You’d be in the minority in that case. Matthews whiff on an open field sideline tackle of a 3rd/4th string running back last night was putrid. He needs to go. They have added special teams aces like Maragos and Braman to more than make up for clearing Matthews off of this roster.

  18. 18 Sean Stott said at 1:17 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Must have missed that play. My issue with Long is that he does not stand out at all. Similar to Hart – I can never notice when he is on the field.

  19. 19 Media Mike said at 1:19 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    The team writers have been very complimentary of Long. He doesn’t stand out as much as some other guys that have flashed, but he doesn’t stand out as much for bad plays as Matthews.

  20. 20 Media Mike said at 12:37 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Man, the Giants are really getting set up to fail this year.

    http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/08/29/report-injured-reservereturn-a-possibility-for-geoff-schwartz/

    Honestly, who on earth is going to block anybody up there?

    And they want to go west coast with no blocking.

  21. 21 Ark87 said at 12:53 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Barnwell at Grantland is drawing a lot of parallels of Eli this year to Rivers last year. Same deal, for years Rivers was in a scheme all about attacking down field, worked when he had huge WR’s and an O-line. Then all of a sudden he didn’t have that and he looked washed up. Switch to the W-coast offense that focuses more on getting the ball out quickly in the intermediate throws and he looks rejuvenated. Same could be said of Eli. Eli threw deeper per attempt than anyone in the league with a god-awful run game and no O-line. Gilbride gets fired and Manning gets asked to get the ball out quicker in the WCO. The parallels even go as far as Rivers was also god awful in last year’s preseason.

    Barnwell is a smart guy, but he’s a Giants homer too, so I take it with a grain of salt.

  22. 22 Media Mike said at 1:03 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    He’s a homer. The Giants O-line isn’t even close to as good as what San Diego has. That is one HUGE difference. There isn’t a single Giant who’d start on the Chargers line. The Giants are set up to fail miserably. Remember how putrid things got around here the year our whole line was injured? The Giants starters aren’t even as good as the stiffs we plugged in for Peters, Kelce, Herremans, etc.

  23. 23 Media Mike said at 1:07 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    And additionally I’d like to point out that Rivers is a significantly better football player than Eli.

    Rivers is career 64.4% completion, 32,000 yards, 221:104 TD:INT ratio, and a career rating of 96

    Eli is career 58.5 %, 35,000 yards, 229:171 ration, and rating of 81.

    It isn’t even worth arguing how much better of a football player Rivers is, he just never benefited from playoff matchups vs. Dallas and two chokes by the Pats.

  24. 24 Ark87 said at 1:25 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I’m not going to sit here and defend Eli Manning, just pointing out a reasonable though flawed contrarian argument is out there. Frankly I’d rather the Eagles buy Barnwells argument than expecting the Giants to beat themselves because they’re so bad. Those types of expectations are dangerous.

  25. 25 Media Mike said at 1:28 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I hear you there, but I have a feeling Will Beatty and/or Justine Puke not blocking JJ Watt and Clowney will take care of that for us.

  26. 26 Sean Stott said at 1:13 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Barnwell is terrible.

    Also, one of Eli’s biggest strength is his deep ball. He just throws it so beautifully and hits the deep wideout in stride.

    They shouldn’t try to take that away from him.

  27. 27 Media Mike said at 1:14 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    It’s been taken away because there isn’t going to be any blocking there.

  28. 28 Baloophi said at 2:24 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    …in stride, or in the helmet. Whatever works.

  29. 29 A_T_G said at 12:52 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Clearly expecting Parkey to remain perfect from 50+ is unrealistic. That is why we need the next name ready.

    This should be our new policy: Any time a kicker misses one inside of 60, a new guy is given a tryout. Maybe we make a change, maybe we don’t. If you don’t want that possibility, don’t miss.

    The position might be in flux for a few years, but eventually we will end up with a kicker with self confidence, a strong leg, and ice-water nerves (because any kicker without these traits will end up institutionalized. )

  30. 30 Sean Stott said at 1:12 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Inside 60 is ridiculous and the numbers bear that out. Even 40+ should be considered a hard kick. Inside 35 should be automatic though.

  31. 31 Media Mike said at 1:14 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    not in this NFL. I expect anything inside 50 to be made 80% + of the time. R. Diddy was explaining that last night on Comcast.

  32. 32 Sean Stott said at 1:21 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    The percentages drop precipitously after 35 yards out.

    http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2013/0823/expected_FG_g_mp.jpg

  33. 33 Media Mike said at 1:27 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I understand that, but R. Diddy stated, and Roob agreed, that good kickers make those kicks 80% of the time. I don’t want to compare my team’s guy to kickers who miss those too much and pull down the average.

  34. 34 Sean Stott said at 2:25 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    True, that image was league average, which unfortunately includes Henery.

  35. 35 Neil said at 1:20 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Sadly, this might be a joke but it’s not too far from how everybody’s actually thinking.

  36. 36 CrackSammich said at 1:37 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    That’s missing the point a bit, too. No kicker is perfect from 50+. Fortunately, kickers are cheap and plentiful.

  37. 37 A_T_G said at 12:55 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Is there any chance they keep Burton instead of Casey this year? He isn’t quite ready this year, but last year we made a pretty strong argument that we can be effective without Casey’s role while we wait.

  38. 38 RogerPodacter said at 12:57 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    i think Casey will carry a big cap hit if we cut him or trade him now. i think Kempski said it was like 2 Mil. i doubt they give up a guy if it means spending MORE money.
    I agree with Kempski’s second idea – that next year, Casey will not have any penalty to cut so it would make sense to already have a replacement on the roster in Burton. all we have to do is find a way to stash him on the roster for a year.

  39. 39 Sean Stott said at 1:10 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Casey is only guaranteed 2 million out of his 4 million salary this year. If you cut him, you save 2 million. That’s a savings, not a cost.

  40. 40 RogerPodacter said at 1:15 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    oh, i must have misread that. thanks.
    somehow i interpreted it as if he had more dead money, but i guess not!

  41. 41 GEAGLE said at 3:07 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    We don’t need to save 2mil right now

  42. 42 Media Mike said at 1:09 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Why not keep all 4 if you’re going to run a lot of 2 TE anyway given the lack of a #1 WR and WR depth overall. I don’t want to see Ertz and Celek burned out by week 8.

  43. 43 Sean Stott said at 1:11 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I was thinking about this last night. You save 2 million in 2014 cap if you cut Casey today. He has been invisible on this team. But is Burton any better? I’d feel better w/ Casey if Ertz or Celek go down.

  44. 44 BlindChow said at 1:21 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    No way. They rely on Casey to block. Burton isn’t ready.

  45. 45 Baloophi said at 1:59 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    To BlindChow’s point, Casey saved our bacon last season with the “sift block” adaptation. Granted he didn’t scheme it up, but his fundamentals as a blocker made it an easy switch… perhaps one that doesn’t happen as smoothly with Burton. This year, anyway.

    To Media Mike’s point, keeping 4 TE’s doesn’t seem crazy if the plan is to utilize 2 TE sets in a DeSean-less environment. We rely on Celek so much that if he goes down, the offense has to change… or at least we’re suddenly razor thin at TE. I don’t know what the specific trade-off is to keeping 4 TE’s… going with 4 Safeties on defense and letting Ed Reynolds twist in the wind?

  46. 46 eagleyankfan said at 2:49 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    No.

  47. 47 GEAGLE said at 3:06 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    No..

  48. 48 Charlie Kelly said at 1:06 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    5 WRs 4 RBs 4 TEs

    that means.. you choose between Benn and brad smith..

    keep 2 of josey polk tucker barner (id go josey and polk)

    and burton as the 4th TE.

  49. 49 Media Mike said at 1:08 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Just keep Barner the hell off of this roster. Quack.

  50. 50 Charlie Kelly said at 1:08 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    yeah he hasnt earned it.. he could have if was a difference maker on returns but he wasnt

  51. 51 jay said at 1:06 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    i’d be pretty bothered by them cutting reynolds. i know excuses aren’t worth much but the guy was forced to sit out during some important installations an dhas been playing catchup. i don’t know that it’s fair to expect him to have shown his true ability yet.

  52. 52 Media Mike said at 1:07 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    He’s a 100% lock to make the practice squad, so I won’t be irked unless he gets claimed.

  53. 53 Bert's Bells said at 1:17 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Considering the paucity of safety talent around the league, it’s very possible he gets signed to some team’s roster.

    Heck, Patrick Chung is still playing. Sean Considine kicked around for 7 years and picked up a Superbowl ring.

  54. 54 BlindChow said at 1:20 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Not a chance. Reynolds hasn’t shown anything in preseason that would make a team give up one of their 53 slots for him.

    It’s a universal truth: fans overrate bottom-of-the-roster players in preseason. Remember the panic when the team cut Acho last year? He was never picked up. And Acho actually performed in the preseason.

  55. 55 jay said at 1:28 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    jimmy smith, laroi glover, james harrison, and tony romo were all on practice squads, and smith and glover were claimed by other teams. i’m not saying reynolds will ever be in any of their ballparks, but we don’t know and it would suck to stash a 5th rounder and then watch him develop into a stud for someone else.

  56. 56 BlindChow said at 1:34 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Exactly my point! Let’s get Reynolds on our practice squad. No one’s going to put him on their roster at this point.

  57. 57 jay said at 1:38 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    hope you’re right. either way, what a nice problem to have for once!

  58. 58 Bert's Bells said at 1:31 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I agree that fans overrate their own players, and he is just a 5th round pick.

    My point is that if there’s any position that’s likely to get poached, it’s safety.

  59. 59 BlindChow said at 1:36 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    True enough. But there are plenty of safeties getting cut this weekend, some who are veterans, and some who have actually flashed in the preseason, unlike Reynolds. I’m not too worried (though I certainly may be wrong–Poyer was picked up last year, after all…).

  60. 60 Baloophi said at 2:08 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    This phenomenon is called “Nate Ilao Syndrome” in scientific circles…

  61. 61 Ark87 said at 1:42 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    That principle can be spun either way like, “Christ you got cut as a safety given how terrible the safety position is in this league, how god-awful are you” I mean we aren’t exactly the Seahawks in safety depth either.

  62. 62 Charlie Kelly said at 1:09 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    i havent seen ed do anything.. hardl;y even hear anything about him..

  63. 63 Media Mike said at 1:11 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    He had a very nice run tackle last night when he came into the LOS area and really wrapped up well. That doesn’t negate the botched INT that turned into a TD however.

  64. 64 Charlie Kelly said at 3:48 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    ok, i wasnt watching the entire 2nd half.. was doing ish at the same time..

  65. 65 jay said at 1:15 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    he hasn’t had the same amount of time to learn and acclimate yet. wasn’t that the argument supporting Ertz last year? i’m not saying he’s good, i’m saying we can’t know that yet.

  66. 66 Charlie Kelly said at 3:47 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    meh.. no excuse for not making any plays (that i saw)

  67. 67 Cafone said at 1:13 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I think it’s a legitimate question to ask where Henery’s head had been for the last three years. I realize the guy’s a kicker, but he’s got smaller biceps than a 12 year old girl. C’mon son, you’re in the NFL, hit the weight room.

  68. 68 barneygoogle said at 2:39 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Com’on. I know Henery has been working out with Todd Pinkston in the weight room for months.

  69. 69 botto said at 1:33 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    i actaully thought Barkley’s arm looked pretty strong last night. he sure just lets it rip with out thinking to much. he throws into coverage and seems like he will throw at least one INT every game though. but he looked compitent. Kinne also looked really good i thought, i know the competition is 3rs stringers but i like him.
    the fact that our offense can score with our 4th string qb makes it seem obvious that Chip is a really good coach. the offense just looks good no matter what.
    josey is pretty awesome i think, who is he going to play for i wonder?

  70. 70 Media Mike said at 1:33 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    It got better as the game went on. Maybe he has some Kyle Kendrick in him and doesn’t exactly come out throwing his best stuff right away.

  71. 71 Ark87 said at 1:38 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I thought it was because Kemski started heckling him half-way through the second quarter or something. Barkley just needs to go full waterboy and have Kempski in his head chanting “noodle-arm” everytime he steps on the field.

  72. 72 GEAGLE said at 3:05 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Kinney has an awesome gig… Basically he knows he gets to chill and watch football, play fantasy football like a fan all year, and he spends the spring/summer as a pro QB in a red jersey..he is a QB who NEVER gets hit…..his job is so awesome it rivals Dorenbos

    You are right about Barkley, I feel like his consistent mistakes are ego driven. He is so not used to being a 3rd stringer, I feel like every chance he gets he is probably too eager to show he is better than a 3rd stringer and will always try to do too much and force the issue at times.
    I kind of get how I feels, but he needs to accept the reality of his situation and understand it’s going to take time to climb himself out of this 3rd string whole he is in..HE WONT change his situation in one game, so there is no point in him forcing it and trying to do to much..

    I’m not ready to say he can ever be a decent NFL QB. Two years from now he could be one of the top 32 QBs in the league but it’s not automatic..he has to work. And not be discouraged by the blow to his ego

  73. 73 RobNE said at 1:34 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    question: last two games, granted it’s a lot of backups but we looked WAY better than the other teams. Can I read anything into that?

    one thing maybe is Kelly gets the backups so many more reps they are able to pull off plays (i.e., blocking schemes) better.

    but does this just mean our 2’s can beat your 2’s but who knows about the 1’s.

    I mean, the total yards last night was crazy.

  74. 74 Media Mike said at 1:38 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I think the pace of our practices mean that our 2s and 3s get more reps than that of other teams.

    But, Beau Allen is still going to be routinely planting some starting centers directly onto the laps of QBs and RBs all year.

  75. 75 jay said at 1:41 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    he may be my jersey request come christmastime

  76. 76 Ark87 said at 1:48 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I also like that our practices focus a lot of fundamentals. I look at the 2nd string O-line, they just dominated. To me it’s just running the sleds and chutes all offseason long. Nothin fancy, just running the same thing to perfection over and over. It shows big time in the preseason i think.

  77. 77 Media Mike said at 1:49 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    sleds and chutes; you must have seen the Dallas front 4.

  78. 78 RobNE said at 1:55 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    yep I agree, but I also want it to mean – SB!!

  79. 79 RobNE said at 1:37 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Josh Andrews and Kinne released.

  80. 80 Ark87 said at 1:43 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    it begins…

  81. 81 BlindChow said at 1:59 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I think the only real player in danger of being poached if cut is Burton.

    Maybe Josey, but I think there are a bunch of teams who’ve had backup RB’s go off against 2nd/3rd stringers in the preseason, so I’m doubtful another team will clear a spot on their roster for our guy…

  82. 82 Baloophi said at 2:03 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Agreed: Burton provides a skill not easily attained on the street.

    Counter-argument? He’s not polished, he’s somewhat of a project, and there’s not a lot of special teams tape on him. There’d only be a handful of teams with the space/situation for him at the bottom of a roster. But yeah, I could see him getting scooped by the Niners or the Patriots…

  83. 83 Media Mike said at 2:13 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Or Giants. They currently suck at TE. And suck badly.

  84. 84 Baloophi said at 2:22 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Good point. Burton would actually be an upgrade at QB for them…

  85. 85 GEAGLE said at 2:27 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Giants I assume will try and get Dennis Kelly on waivers..but they def could use TE’s too

  86. 86 Media Mike said at 2:27 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Kelly needs to refuse to report there.

  87. 87 unhinged said at 2:26 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    If Trey Burton “gets bigger” he’s still not going to be close to a prototypical NFL TE (unless maybe he gets bigger the Mark McQuire/Bobby Bonds way). He’ll probably never be a fierce blocker. The guy is a receiver, and he’s pretty effective on ST. He’s got exceptionally good hands, runs good routes, and knows where the seams in the D are. He’s a football player, and I’m guessing he’ll be playing in Philly, but, if not, somewhere in the NFL.

  88. 88 D3FB said at 3:10 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    He will never be a Y-TE. However if he adds a little bit of mass and some strength he could very much be the prototypical F-TE.

  89. 89 barneygoogle said at 2:37 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Tough to cut an experienced veteran like Henery. but Parkey has upside–Henery is as good as he’s going to get. If Parkey fails badly–Eagles can sign a vet after week one with no guaranteed salary.
    Does anybody know why Indy cut Parkey so soon?

  90. 90 NinjaP said at 2:43 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    They traded him to us.

  91. 91 Sean Stott said at 3:04 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Kinda sorta.

  92. 92 barneygoogle said at 3:49 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    For RB Fluellen. To me, just an exchange of unwanted garage sale stuff. Puzzling.

  93. 93 GEAGLE said at 2:46 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Adam Vinatieri probably has something to do with it

  94. 94 T_S_O_P said at 2:39 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I mentioned Johnson 13 days ago Tommy and your answer then was very short and to the point. Now he is mentioned in a post; is that distance travelled on his part or yours? Other than Sproles, do we have a player that can stretch the field horizontally while remaining a threat to carry he ball? He adds value on special teams and he probably adds value in practise in terms of playing against short and quick slot recievers. Sure he is on the bubble, but agan, 13 days ago, he didn’t even seem to be that.

  95. 95 GEAGLE said at 2:45 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    See, I think it’s a mistake to put too much emphasis in the performance of 1 game….Damaris has been with Chip for over a year and hasn’t done much to earn snaps under Chip….now he tore it up against 3rd stringers and a bunch of kids who won’t even be in the NFL after tomorrow and that’s supposed to change opinions of him?
    ….
    If anything yesterday’s performance might change opinion on how we should use him, but Chip has seen him practice over 100 times, can’t just forget everything he has seen and go off of how the kid played yesterday

  96. 96 T_S_O_P said at 3:04 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Which of the 2 1 games are you referring too?

  97. 97 GEAGLE said at 3:23 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I don’t know about you, but personally I don’t think yesterday effected many decisions.. For the most part I think everything has been decided… I certainly don’t think a player Chip saw practice every single day for over a year, drastically changed the coaches opinion because he had some success against 3rd stringers who won’t be NFL players after tomorrow
    ….
    If he were to make the team, I’d make him Sproles backup instead of a wide receiver. Jason Avant sucked last year and Damaris couldn’t get into a game as a WR?

  98. 98 Baloophi said at 2:55 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Ironically, Johnson is very short and to the point.

  99. 99 T_S_O_P said at 3:04 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    :thumbs up:

  100. 100 GEAGLE said at 2:39 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I do not want to lose Reynolds before we see how much he can grow this year.
    ..
    Thinking back to this time last year, Zack Ertz didn’t exactly set the preseason on fire. Stanford kids are always going to get off to a slow start, halfway thru their rookie year they start getting comfortable and you really see what type of player they can be…. Like to see the kid develop into an agressive, playmaking version of Nate… From what I saw of them in person, Reynolds and post knee surgery Nate seem to be on a similar level in terms of athleticism..

    I’m very eager to see how Reynolds develops. And I think adding a second young safety should breed a healthy competition between Wolff and Reynolds

  101. 101 Sean Stott said at 3:02 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    No way is Ed Reynolds on the same level as Nate Allen athletically. Not even close.

    I don’t see Ed making the team, they really don’t need to keep 5 safeties, especially since Watkins can play safety.

  102. 102 GEAGLE said at 3:15 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    From what I gathered from live practice. Wolff is the fastest and most athletic safety we have. Jenkins was faster and more agile than Nate…..and unfortunately Reynolds looked most similar to Nate, the worst of the 3..

    Coming out of college Nate would have outclassed Reynolds athletically… But Brandon Graham isn’t the only player who injury robbed of athleticism

    But I thought Watkins looked quicker than Boykin

  103. 103 RogerPodacter said at 3:22 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    do you think that Reynolds would get claimed if we tried to put him on the PS? i think he is a great candidate for the PS.

  104. 104 GEAGLE said at 3:28 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I think he would be poached… We couldn’t keep Poyer on the practice squad and Reynolds is much better prospect
    … They way teams are claiming eagles castoff left and right, I would be really afraid of trying PS him …. I wouldn’t risk it. I would love to be wrong and see our coached working with him on the practice squad all year….but teams always need safetys

  105. 105 RogerPodacter said at 3:45 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    excellent point. forgot about Poyer!

  106. 106 GEAGLE said at 2:52 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I like how cocky Chip was at hisress conference last night: “players should see how well our backups do and how we get them reps here and should want to come here”….

  107. 107 RogerPodacter said at 3:17 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    anyone else following the cuts at BGN and elsewhere?
    Kinne & Andrews the first to go.
    reported that Josey & Momah are gone as well.
    reports of Benn headed to IR with a back problem (?!) gotta be designated to return, can’t imagine them keeping him on IR for two straight years…

  108. 108 GEAGLE said at 3:26 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Josey and Momah officially gone?
    ….
    They IR Rejus? WTF? And they cut Momah? Are they giving a roster spot to Maehl or Damaris?

  109. 109 RogerPodacter said at 3:29 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    now it sounds like short-term IR for Benn.

  110. 110 GEAGLE said at 3:30 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Interesting…are they going to keep a 6th WR AND IR Benn?

  111. 111 RogerPodacter said at 3:31 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    this is from Sam’s twitter:

    Short Term IR is NOT THE SAME THING as IR-Designated to Return. Short Term IR means the player will be cut when healthy and can’t re-sign.

    i didn’t know there were two different things here. i think Benn is short term, not designated to return. which sounds like he is just collecting paychecks until he is healthy and will be cut? wow

  112. 112 RogerPodacter said at 3:38 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    also from Sam’s twitter:

    This means team and Benn don’t agree on injury severity / settlement

  113. 113 GEAGLE said at 3:40 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Geez…all these IRs and PUPs confuse me.. He played last night lol, how does he get to collect injury check? Lol

  114. 114 RogerPodacter said at 3:44 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    it really adds some drama here.
    my guess is that the team saw he was mildly hurt. he downplayed it saying he was fine. team sees more of an injury risk, tries to IR him, benn wants nothing of it (why should he?). team then tries to reach an injury settlement, can’t reach terms with benn. he gets put on the IR until him and the doctors agree he is healthy. he gets paid his usual salary until then.

    no idea if any of that is true, but it sounds right to me : )

  115. 115 GEAGLE said at 3:49 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    It’s better than what I can come up with so I’ll roll with that

  116. 116 Joe Minx said at 3:25 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Les Bowen just tweeted Burton made it.

  117. 117 GEAGLE said at 3:26 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    How does he know who all has been cut already?

  118. 118 RogerPodacter said at 3:29 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    “sources”

    god only knows if any of these guys actually have a source within the team. lol

  119. 119 GEAGLE said at 4:25 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Yeah seems like players are being told they have been kept.l.. Burton, Polk both made it, Damaris is trying to be traded , Benn is on IR… Signs point to that weasel Maehl making the team again… How?

  120. 120 mksp said at 4:57 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    what’s your fucking problem dude? why is maehl a weasel? he has a role, seems like a good dude.

  121. 121 GEAGLE said at 6:40 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    37 posters talking about how Maehl is worth less then trash cans and is black mailing coaches! but like always! you feel the need to suck my dick.. Keep it up groupie. I respond to 1 of every 20 dumb comments your write under my posts, I never respond or read any of your posts, but you feel the need to swing from my nuts every single day? Fuck off, I like woman. Find someone else that swings that way you fuckin bitch

  122. 122 mksp said at 7:32 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Listen carefully internet tough guy:

    All I really want, is for you to disappear from Eagles blogs. 24/7 is far better without you polluting threads with your misogynistic and homophobic tough guy BS. But now you only post here, which means page after page after page of GEAGLE nonsense, repeating the same nonsense, over and over again. Just words….so many words. All of them meaningless.

    Your comment above is indicative of the intelligence I’ve come to expect from you, so it’s hardly surprising, but clearly has no place in the comments section.

    From my perspective, igglesblitz is a really great bar, there’s just this one drunk, loud, obnoxious dude who annoys everyone else. And is *always* there. Like seriously, get a life.

    Look man – you have a little following here, I get it. You should leverage that and go start your own blog. I’m sure everyone that enjoys reading your nonsensical rants will visit.

    Anyway, I hope you get over Jeff Maehl making the team. Life’s too short. Try getting outside sometime.

  123. 123 fran35 said at 5:26 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Weasel? Really? I just thought he was a guy trying to make the team. Who actually looked good last night

  124. 124 GEAGLE said at 6:18 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    LOL sigh not that serious mate

  125. 125 Baloophi said at 3:27 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    If Casey Matthews makes the team again…

    – Nothing is certain but death, taxes, and Casey Matthews.

    – After a world war induces a nuclear winter in which the sun vanishes for five years, the only life remaining on the planet will be cockroaches and Casey Matthews.

    – Casey Matthews will officially become the human equivalent of “Other” memory on my iPhone.

    – Before the bye week, his white jersey will have aged to a creamy “parchment.”

    – Even after we die, hair, fingernails and Casey Matthews’ potential will continue to grow.

    – We will be forced to recognize that God has chosen to send his next messenger to us in the form of a special-teams only backup linebacker.

    – Freddy Krueger will start to hear footsteps.

    – The Franklin Mint can officially release the Casey Matthews commemorative coin.

    – At a loss for other things to try, the coaches will give him a wispy goatee and introduce him as Casey’s evil twin.

    – I will cry.

  126. 126 GEAGLE said at 3:43 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    If Casey Mathews is going to get to stay on this team, he should have to beat Alex henrey in a fight til the death, hunger games style man to Man combat

  127. 127 McNabbulousness said at 6:57 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    while they’re at it put Matthews in to kick a few, sadly he’s probably better than henery in that dept. at his juncture

  128. 128 barneygoogle said at 3:47 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I heard Matthews just signed a five year contract similar to Peters.

  129. 129 Baloophi said at 3:47 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    With the devil?

  130. 130 FairOaks said at 3:55 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I won’t be too mad unless there was another ILB who really deserved to make it. At this point, he’s purely a special teams player, and I’m sure played well in that role. I don’t remember him playing bad there that year, so if the coaches think he’s worth it there, then fine. The only problem is if he is forced into an actual defensive role. But the coaches didn’t do that last year (played Goode and Acho instead) and I doubt they would do it again this year. This isn’t Juan Castillo deciding he’s the starting LB based purely on his draft study (and forcing it all through training camp when it was obvious he wasn’t up to it). At this point, being happy at his being off the team is really based on helping us fans to forget those 2011/2012 memories, rather than his actual impact on this year’s team.

    That said, I hope they find someone who’s worthy of beating him out. 😉

  131. 131 Ark87 said at 4:20 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Phil Sheridan referred to Casey Matthews and Jeff Maehl as “bullet proof”, you definitely took it to the next level haha.

  132. 132 RobNE said at 4:44 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Casey is suffering from Coleman’s problem, which is that rather than expectations based on his talent or draft spot, people are mad b/c he got thrust into a starting role and couldn’t handle it. I don’t understand the frustration with Casey hanging on as a special teams guy.

    Same with Maehl in a way. If they think Benn is hurt (which obv they do), they aren’t really keeping Momah over Maehl.

    In another year or so these guys will be gone. In the meantime we’ll hardly ever be talking about them except in August.

  133. 133 Baloophi said at 4:56 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    You’re missing a crucial point: I enjoy having an irrational punching bag.

  134. 134 RobNE said at 4:59 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Henery is available! For another few hours.

  135. 135 Baloophi said at 5:03 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I don’t want to kick a guy when he’s down… which is more than I can say for Henery, who CAN’T kick a guy when he’s down.

  136. 136 McNabbulousness said at 6:55 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    please don’t cry

  137. 137 D3FB said at 3:28 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Josey got cut. Officially staying off twitter and comment sections for 48 hours. See you fella’s when this shit storm of overreaction is over.

  138. 138 RogerPodacter said at 3:30 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    it really says something about your team’s depth when everyone is up in arms about the 4th/5th string RB getting cut. i don’t think we did much of that last year.

  139. 139 Ark87 said at 4:18 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Says more about the fan base, that’s investment. We saw a bit of that with Acho last year (partially because Casey Matthews made the squad).

  140. 140 GEAGLE said at 3:41 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Not at all surprised… The overreaction was silly

  141. 141 A_T_G said at 7:34 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I’m disappointed, but I’ll just assume he will follow in Jordan Poyer’s footsteps.

  142. 142 GEAGLE said at 3:48 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    LOL Jerry Jones “if we had picked Manziel he’d guarentee our relevancy for 10 years. I told everyone in the war room, drafting anyone else is a ticket to 8-8”

    Tony romo is trying to hold his back together to get ready for a season and the owner is running around publically pissed off that they passes on Manziel? Lol
    How does tony Romo feel? How does Zack Martin who has to keep dudes from murdering feel? Manziel isn’t even lighting it up so I don’t get why Jerry is so pissed off? Really sucks that Dallas didn’t draft him… Would be so awesome to have Manziel in a cowboy jersey twice a year

  143. 143 NineseveN said at 4:18 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Saddest moment of the draft for me was when Jerrah passed on Johnny Fruitcake…would’ve been a perfect match.

  144. 144 GEAGLE said at 4:23 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Really would have been glorious… When Johnny was on the board at 22, we should have called Dallas offering them the pick lol… Trying to help Dallas get Johnny!! Lol

  145. 145 NineseveN said at 4:26 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I guess we can rejoice in the fact that Jerrah wanted him so bad…there’s always next year for him to break the team with another series of stupid draft picks. Good to know that leopard still loves his spots.

  146. 146 Ark87 said at 4:53 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    by relevancy he means filling the seats of his ginormous stadium in spite of the mediocrity he’s destined to have for as long as he owns that team, I assume 😀

  147. 147 GEAGLE said at 3:51 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Polk made roster

    Damaris name is in trade discussions right now… Looks like Maehl is going to make the roster(I don’t know Maehl making the roster to be true tho, just speculating there)

  148. 148 GEAGLE said at 3:53 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Damaris is being traded

  149. 149 RobNE said at 4:45 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    who would you rather keep? remember, they think Benn is hurt. Whomever you name should be good on special teams (i.e., you can’t reasonably name Josey or Momah).

  150. 150 Bert's Bells said at 5:11 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Who would I rather keep than Maehl?

    Trash Can comes to mind.

  151. 151 Baloophi said at 5:12 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    All I know is that if we kick Trash Can to the curb, he’ll get picked up for sure on Thursday morning…

  152. 152 barneygoogle said at 5:29 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Maehl’s got pictures on somebody.

  153. 153 GEAGLE said at 7:03 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Watch it… The Maehl police is lurking

  154. 154 A_T_G said at 7:32 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Tampering with Maehl is a federal offense.

  155. 155 GEAGLE said at 6:17 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Doesn’t mean we have to keep a 6th WR… Especially if we already keeping Burton a 4th TE…

  156. 156 GEAGLE said at 3:53 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    PRatt released

    Bucs cut kicker Connar barth

  157. 157 barneygoogle said at 4:05 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Could it be they trade Sanchez, bump Barkley to #2 and add Lewis? I’d prefer to keep Sanchez but maybe the deal is too good to turn down.

  158. 158 GEAGLE said at 4:06 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I don’t see a team paying as much as Chip values a stud #2. Chip would want too much for Sanchez, and I don’t see anyone paying too much for a QB on a 1yr deal in september that still needs to learn your terminology and offense…could sign Thad if we flip Barkley for a 3rd rounder…we are contenders and Sanchez is insurance policy to our entire season..chip will value that

  159. 159 CrackSammich said at 4:43 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Blaine Gabbert was worth a 6th. He’s better than Barkley is right now. 3rd rounder would be robbery.

  160. 160 Sean Stott said at 5:34 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Not comparable situations. Barkley still has 3 years left on his peanuts contract.

  161. 161 GEAGLE said at 6:15 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Blaine Gabbert isn’t better than you… His combined QB rating this preseason is like 17.4 lol

    Blaine already got his chance and failed, that makes him worth less then unknown Barkley

  162. 162 RobNE said at 4:38 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    no. But GEAGLE, I don’t think you are getting a 3rd for Barkley. If you do, take it.

  163. 163 GEAGLE said at 6:14 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Not worth trading him for a 4th… 3rd or no deal

  164. 164 GEAGLE said at 4:13 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    They threw the book at Aldon. 9 game suspension… Last year we played Packers without Rodgers, now we play the Niners without Aldon,Navarro, Boone… People are going to start with how we are lucky and beating teams without their top players…but we make out own luck.

    We try to train our players as best as we possibly can, emphasize recovery to try and keep our soldiers healthy as possible and We have made character/intelligence a prerequisite for joining this team….. NFL team, lose so many players as it is to injury, Chip doesn’t want to add to losing players by signing idiots who keep getting in trouble and getting suspended,,,.

    Teams lose enough key players to injury, can’t also be losing players to getting in trouble off the field…

    If we can have one of the healthiest rosters every year and not lose players to arrests and make it a habit of losing guys to 4 game suspensions like Lane..keeping all our players on the field would be a major advantage for us going forward…. It’s amazing how well this culture has been built in only two offseasons… Now we go start reaping our rewards during the regular season… GET SOME!!

  165. 165 Sean Stott said at 5:32 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Bottom line, depth is just as important as your starters. There’s no such thing as playing shorthanded in the NFL. You show up to play, you play to win. Doesn’t matter who the opposition is. Excuses are like assholes, etc.

  166. 166 Insomniac said at 5:04 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Someone tell Chip that you need to groom your raw talent. Trade Damaris? WHO THE HELL WANTS A SCRUB.

  167. 167 Baloophi said at 5:11 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Definitely not TLC…

  168. 168 barneygoogle said at 5:30 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Any word on Henery?

  169. 169 Sean Stott said at 5:37 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Maehl… boy what an overachiever, a real gym-rat, scrappy kinda guy.

    No.

    He makes this roster because he can play.

  170. 170 GEAGLE said at 6:49 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Don’t get why we would keep a 4th TE AND a 6th WR… Let me guess, chips going to want 4 running backs too?
    ..
    The argument for keeping 4 TE is to use Multi TE sets this year needing Less WRs, and we keep average 6th WR Anyway? Don’t get the line of thinking..I’ll withhold judgment til ii see the complete picture

  171. 171 OldDocRoss said at 6:52 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I never pay too much attention to the make-up of the roster (in terms of numbers at each position) after final cut-downs. Pretty sure we’re going dumpster diving so every chance a guy like Maehl or Burton finds himself getting 86’d even if they survive the initial cull.

  172. 172 GEAGLE said at 6:54 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Chargers waived Kruger already,,,does that mean he is eligible or our practice squad again? He was a charger for like 4 days

  173. 173 OldDocRoss said at 6:58 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Not to whizz on anyone’s lollipops but being waived by a second team in a week might mean he’s not very good.

  174. 174 Anders said at 8:01 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    SD just noted him for depth in the last game.

  175. 175 Anders said at 8:01 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    I could see us bring him back on the PS as we have no real PS DE candidate (Mays maybe?)

  176. 176 mksp said at 7:44 PM on August 29th, 2014:

    Cody Parkey gonna beat out Alex Henery.

    From the same guy who “broke” the “DeSean is in a gang” story, so YMMV.

    http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2014/08/cody_parkey_makes_eagles_53-man_roster_according_to_source.html