Roster is Set…For Now
Posted: August 30th, 2014 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 162 Comments »The Eagles made their moves official. There were a couple of surprises.
The team decided to only go with 3 RBs. I was expecting 4. They went heavy at WR, keeping 6 players. Jeff Maehl, who had a good showing vs the Jets, got the final spot.
Dennis Kelly did make the roster. It could be that Matt Tobin’s ankle injury had a lot to do with that.
As expected, Emmanuel Acho was cut and Casey Matthews got the final ILB spot. This isn’t set in stone. Per Les Bowen, the Eagles are looking for ILB help. If they find someone they like better than Matthews, they’ll make the move.
Cody Parkey is your PK for now.
The roster:
QB – 3 – Foles, Sanchez, Barkley
RB – 3 – McCoy, Sproles, Polk
WR – 6 – Maclin, Cooper, Matthews, Smith, Huff, Maehl
TE – 4 – Celek, Ertz, Casey, Burton
OL – 9 – Peters, Mathis, Kelce, Herremans, Barbre, Tobin, Molk, Gardner, Kelly
DL – 7 – Thornton, Logan, Cox, Curry, Bair, Allen, Hart
OLB – 5 – Barwin, Cole, Smith, Graham, Braman
ILB – 4 – Ryans, Kendricks, Goode, Matthews
S – 4 – Jenkins, Allen, Wolff, Maragos
CB – 5 – Williams, Fletcher, Boykin, Carroll, Watkins
STs – Jones, Parkey, Dorenbos
The roster is only penciled in. You can bet that Howie Roseman is scanning the waiver wire for players of interest. There is also the possibility that he’s shopping players, most likely Matt Barkley.
While the team got the roster down to 53 players, don’t think that means that everything will stay this way.
Travis Long and Arrelious Benn did go to IR.
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By keeping only 3 RBs on the roster, the Eagles could keep 2 on the practice squad. Matt Tucker is a virtual lock. Henry Josey could get the other spot. The Eagles reached an injury settlement with Kenjon Barner. I’m not sure how that affects his chances of being on the PS.
Here are some comments on the players who were cut from PE.com.
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Remember to check here if you have questions about practice squad eligibility. Great info from Sam Lynch.
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Marsh, Carmichael, Henery, Barner. Matthews aside, it was a pretty good day.
can’t complain, no real “wtf” moves to speak of.
sidenote: anyone a penn state fan here. shouldn’t have come down to a last second kick but im glad we pulled that out of our asses. go state!
Not a PSU fan, but it looks like you guys got a serious QB prospect on your hands for a change. I’m not a fan of any team, I’m a fan of quality NFL prospects
He looks like the 2016 #1 overall pick in the draft to me.
Top 10 caliber for sure….ATleast for now… There was a time when people were saying the same exact thing about Barkley….but I agree, he looks elite for sure… Top QBs this year can’t say, I’ll avoid this QB draft with Marriott! Jameis,Hundley, when they will have to compete with this kid in the following draft…good for penn state… Bout time. Easily gonna be the best since Kerry Collins
He already is. 🙂 Though, that is a pretty low bar.
Like Tommy said, I think this roster is in a “for now” state and there likely will be changes coming. I assume the Eagles felt Burton would be scooped up if released and also decided to go heavy on WR. If Barkley is truly on the block, they may go with only 2 QB and use that spot for another position. They definitely need ILB and RB and I wonder who is going to handle the KR and PR duties?
I hope we can hold onto Henry Josey. He looked excellent in the preseason games.
Yes, hope Josey has a future with the team. Great production
against SEC defenses and only one of his linemen was drafted.
I took a lot of crap for saying we would value Dennis Kelly… Teams just aren’t going to give away capable young Lineman…now he probably won’t be on the roster when Lane comes back, but it gives us a month to find a trade partner and it let’s the teams who were waiting for us to cut him know that they will have to part with some trade compensation if they want a capable young lineman. Sorry Giants fans!
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The henrey era is now just unfulfilled promises of the past.
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Not surprised we only kept 3 backups which is how it should always be. I wouldn’t have been mad if we kept 4, but keeping 5 was absurd talk.
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Sick about Travis long tearing his ACL again.
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I hope we can trade Kelly once Lane is back. I like how Kelly plays, but he’s a free agent at the end of the year (I think), so might as well get some value.
No… Think we have him signed on e more year no?
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2012 Andy’s collapse final year was when he got thrust in the game as a rookie when all our starters got hurt… Last year was his secon year, this is his 3rd, and I believe rookies have 4yr deals, no?
I despise Casey Mathews like the rest of you but as soon as word came out that Long tore his ACL, Casey became a lock..his contract is going to expire soon, doubt we extend him…unfortunately he won’t be fetching us much in terms of compensatory I picks….
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Not surprised we went with only 9’DBs..I’m Ok with it now, but if someone steals Reynolds away, I’ll be pissed. Like to see easy Ed, Momahtron, Josey all make the practice squad
Boy, do I have beef with Chip over this 53 roster. Not that he will care, why should he (I wouldn’t if I were him :D), but to me, they made some mistakes here you simply can not make.
First of, how in the world can you cut Reynolds? Yeah, he didn’t impress during camp, but how should he? We KNEW that he will miss OTAs because of the Stanford graduation rule, we KNEW he wasn’t ready to play and we still picked him in the 5th. Even the 7th round would be a shame, because we KNEW those things and we couldn’t expect anything different. But the 5th? You simply cannot throw away 5th rounders in this league. If he would have been a player we thought would help right away and he turns out to suck – well, bad drafting, but it would be more understandable. But to pick a very raw player knowing how raw he is, you cannot cut him after one TC. Bad, bad mistake from a philosophical standpoint, it really doesn’t matter how he looked.
Second: how in the world can Maehl be on this team? Everyone knows he won’t help this team on Offense. We have depth problems at WR, we even took Burton on the team, who’s a WR/TE hybrid at the moment, and still Maehl makes it over all those RB who played extremely well in Preseason. Yes, the blocking was great, I can understand why you take 9 Linemen. But every single one of those RBs gave the team more than Maehl.
And no, ST is no good reason for Maehl. He’s not even a standout in this area. We already have 3 guys who can’t play Defense as pure STer. Maragos, Braman and CM. You cannot build a roster with players who can ONLY play ST at the end of the roster. A few are ok, as long as they are standouts, but 4? Come on.
If you take away the locks, you simply couldn’t chose worst than Maehl (+ CM) over Reynolds and all the RBs (+ Acho). Maehl or CM would have been a head scratcher, but there could be logic. Both, that’s just tough to swallow for me.
Now, if they somehow get Tucker, Josey and especially Reynolds into the PS – the harm is limited. Doesn’t mean the decision were right.
We’re in a situation were we talk about depth only. That’s a good thing. But that doesn’t mean you should purposely harm the depth of your football team now and in the long run with players like Maehl on the roster and raw 5th round picks cut.
You cut Reynolds if 1) he turned out to be a player you really didn’t like or see potential for, or 2) you are completely confident nobody will claim him and you can get him to the practice squad. I’m guessing #2. He may be ready to help in the future, but sounds like he’s not ready to help a lot right now, and Kelly has plainly said he doesn’t like using roster spots on people who can’t help now. There probably are some planned inactive players, but you’ll only have so many of those. The practice squad is perfect for Reynolds. Maybe there was a better player to draft in that spot, but that’s water under the bridge at this point.
As for Maehl… yes, STs matter. You have 11 players on the field for the plays; may as well make them as good at that job as possible. The more the better. A 6th WR won’t see much playing time elsewhere. He was on the team last year, so he brought something that Kelly liked. But, it would not surprise me if he was an early cut candidate if someone else shakes loose, or if Benn is designated to return from IR (I have not heard what his expected status is, or he’s just on IR until they reach an injury settlement).
Matthews… is here for STs. I have a feeling they will be looking for someone who is better as an ILB though. Sounds like they were prepared to cut him until Long got hurt.
He saw Reynolds for a month… Reynolds is behind, like ertz was behind last summer over the dumb Stanford rule…
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I’m cool with him cutting Reynolds! but if he gets poached from our practice squad! I’ll be pissed
No such thing as a dumb Stanford rule. Unjust, perhaps, but never dumb.
According to the reports, the Eagles placed Benn on a special IR that mandates they cut him as soon as he is cleared medically and he cannot play for the Eagles this year…supposedly this happens when there is a disagreement between the team and player on the validity/seriousness of the injury. This is interesting because the reports are Benn was fine during the game and even stated he was fine in the locker room afterwards…which leads me to believe something funny happened in the interim; Did the Eagles try to convince Benn to go on IR so they could keep him and Benn wanted none of it? Did Benn fake an injury to avoid being cut in hopes he would be placed on IR and the Eagles called his bluff?
I was LOST on this situation before reading your comment, so I’m all ears, I can’t offer anything concrete on this subject cuz I’m lost….but I don’t see how your theory could be plausible….what’s to stop Rejus Benn to go public with the eagles sneaky methods?…
Oh I have no concrete evidence, I am purely speculating based on how a player who declares himself fully healthy after the last game and played quite well suddenly is put on IR the next day…it is supposedly a short-term IR designation used when the team and player cannot agree to an injury settlement or disagree on the validity/seriousness of the injury. The rules are once the player is cleared medically, the team must release them and cannot have him play for them. The situation just seems very strange, hopefully one of the reporters can get some more detail…
Ok, but I don’t get that…placing him on this Form of IR means we have to cut him, and that he will no longer be an eagle, so what is the benefit for why the eagles would do this and not just cut him now?… Either way, Rejus will end up on waivers, what are the eagles getting out of placing him on IR and prolonging us inevitably having to cut him, since you don’t get to keep the players you place on this form of IR?
I have no idea which is why I raised the issue and asked the questions…the only reporting has been that Benn was put on this short-term IR and will need to be released as soon as he is cleared medically and cannot play for the Eagles.
Perhaps teams cannot cut injured players outright and so they need to work out a settlement or retain him on this short-term IR until he is cleared at which time they can let him go legally. Maybe it gives both parties time to negotiate further on an injury settlement.
The strange thing for me is how quickly Benn got injured. He was fine during the game and fine after the game in the locker room and then, boom, he is injured. Who knows, but hopefully Tommy or other reporters will look into it more and find out.
That is just a dump statement from Chip. I think he’s way too smart for acting like he talks there. If you want a Ray Rhodes Eagles roster full of vets (hey, they can help now…) just say it, then I can stop watching.
Plus: he wasted a roster spot on Iggy last year (0 snaps in all of 2013). He let Burton on the 53 because he could be a good player in the future. He makes exceptions, they should make the right ones.
Exactly. Chip needs to realize that the NFL isn’t a desperate win now situation like college where players might just stay a year or two. We had groom-able talent that could have done what these scrub vets did all of their career this season.
It’s not like Chip is just going against the wishes of all our assistants and pulling rank and making a bunch of unpopular decisions when it probably doesn’t work like that… I wasn’t happy at losing Kruger this soon, but I doubt that decision was all on Chip, I’m sure Azzinaro, Billy Davis both had a lot to say…so while from my point of view I don’t like seeing is lose Kruger this soon, i don’t put that all on Chip…coaching staff as a ton of Imput..
I share some of your concerns, but really believe this does not reflect the team that will take the field vs JVille. Reynolds hopefully will make it through waivers and be put on the PS. If they trade Barkley and go with 2 QB, then they could add Tucker or Reynolds. If they can find a better ILB cut, then Matthews is likely gone. Maehl is the 6th WR and may also be a place holder if they identify a better option.
While I hope you’re right, I don’t think it will turn out that way. I’m just a casual fan, but if I’m the Raiders, the Jags or basically any franchise who knows it can’t win now, I sign this Reynolds. He came out too early, yes, but you’re basically getting a 5th round draft pick FOR FREE. If you don’t need the roster spot, take him. And if you can’t win now, why would you need that 53rd roster spot? And don’t forget, there are some teams who need Safety help. They may need it right away, but hell, if there’s a raw prospect with potential, who can maybe help you next year, why not take that flyer?
Maehl may be a place holder, but why waste the roster spot anyway? The chances of getting one of the RBs or Reynolds into the PS are better if the other teams finalized their roster. If you find a good #6 WR, take him and release the promising player then.
It is definitely a risk…the Eagles are gambling that no team will want Reynolds on their 53 man roster. We’ll know in about an hour if that was smart or not. Even if he makes it onto their PS, however, any team can grab him at any time. I agree more with your prior point that DRAFTING Reynolds in the 5th round if he was this raw, would miss OTAs etc. could be viewed as a mistake. We’ve gotten very good players like Cole & Celek in the 5th round and need to make sure those picks count.
Well, it’s one way or another. I wasn’t high on the Reynolds pick, but I barely knew him, so what do I know.
IF you pick him you literally cannot care how he plays today. If you go that road, you cannot turn in the middle. That’s really stupid and I thought those times were behind us. And all of that bs for a scrub like Maehl. smh
If they get Reynolds into the PS – OK. But shame on you of you just piss away 5th rounder for scrubs.
Yes, you can. 5th/6th/7th round picks get cut a lot. There are seven players inactive on game day; in that total you have to account for injured players, etc. There really are not many spots for players not ready to help on the field in some manner. If you thought Reynolds flashed amazing promise, i.e. could very well be the next Brian Dawkins, then yes keep him. If he looks like he could just be a solid safety down the road, waive him and try to get him on the practice squad. Maehl helped last year; he will help this year. If you are going to keep extra players, it helps if they are good on STs. But again I would not be surprised if Maehl is dropped for someone else.
” 5th/6th/7th round picks get cut a lot.”
First: you have to differentiate. If you’re the GM and 5th and 7th rounders are equal to you, you should get fired. 5th round isn’t something you throw away. Your roster will be horrible in no time with this attitude. You don’t expect Pro Bowlers out of the 5th, but those players should contribute in some way.
Second: if Reynolds isn’t good enough next year – cut him. It’s still bad drafting, but it happens. Cutting 5th rounders in their Rookie season is just horrible. Cutting raw 5th rounders in their Rookie season isn’t something a well run Franchise would do.
Third: Reynolds was a very raw 5th rounder. They knew what they were getting, it wasn’t a surprise to anyone. If you think it’s not enough, just don’t draft the guy.
Those are players the practice squad was made for. You do also draft for depth — in case Allen or Wolff got injured or regressed, you have a guy who knows your defensive scheme. Since all the other safeties have played well and are healthy, the situation today is probably better if he’s on the practice squad.
PS would be good for Reynolds, yes. But he has to get there and he has to stay there. Reynolds isn’t the UDFA the city liked during camp, he is no Momah. He’s a freaking 5th round pick in his Rookie season.
As soon as one team poaches him, you throw away a 5th round pick. Howie said he wants to build through the draft. If you throw away 5th rounders, you can’t build through the draft.
And it’s not like we have so many talented players on this roster so we couldn’t do anything but hope for the PS.
Let me give you this rule of thumb: a team that has room for Casey Matthews and Jeff Maehl should have room for a raw 5th round Rookie.
Trying to get Reynolds on the practice squad doesn’t really bother me… But then when you remind me that Maehl is on the team, and we are risking losing a 5th round pick after we only saw him play for a month…..YEAH,THATS TOUGH TO Swallow…
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Pissing away potential, for a guy we know isn’t good enough is just smh…. Wtf is Maehl gonna add? If all our WRs get hurt and we have to play Maehl! how much better will he really be then if we sign Will Murphy off the street and stick him in the game? I don’t see Maehl coming off the bench and saving anyone’s season….especially when we already kept the extra Tight End
Funny thing is: you can ALWAYS sign Maehl from the street. I cannot imagine a team would sign this guy. For what?
Emergency WR won’t cut it. Simply no explanation.
Tons of 5th to 7th rounder players get cut each year.
Remember this year we had have Tobin, Bair and Burton maek the team as UDFAs (Tobin and Bair was UDFA then PS last year)
Reynolds better not get poached… They better know what they are doing with him…because he missed all if OTAs.. If you are spending 5th round picks, only getting to see them for a month, and then another team gets to have them, I’m going to be pissed….Reynolds shouldnt even be competing for a spot in This franchise til next year… A rookie who didn’t even get to participate in OTA’s…just pissing away 5th round picks…. You can get a fucking Sproles for a 5th round pick, and we are wiping our ass with them,.,, better not get poached!!
Chip Kelly is at the Ohio St vs. navy game today and he has talked about how he personally talks to every player we cut and has their coordinator and position coaches talk to every single player the Eagles cut… If Chip is at the early Ohio St game, then he had to have made all the cuts by at the latest yesterday since I doubt his sport science developed a teleportation device yet to get him to the ohio st game,….impressive that in today’s media age, all the cuts were made yesterday and so little of them were leaked….Howie addresses the meedia today at 4;00
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Question: when is the next opportunity to fire Goodell and hire a new guy? When does Goodell contract expire? Had it with this fool..
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He can’t grasp the concept of consistency. Lane Johnson isn’t allowed near Novacare or contact with coaches for a month, because he got caught putting something banned in I his body for the first time, yet that piece of crap Aldon Smith got a 9 game suspension and he is allowed to remain a part or the team? Josh Gordon smoked pot and he is banned for a year, not allowed anywhere near the team. Blacmons life is spiraling out of control, bet it would have been a big help to that young man to continue to allow him be around the structure of a pro team….Ray Rice was suspended two games for KOing a woman and carrying her lifeless body thru a casino..
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Why should Lane Johnson not be allowed near the team, spending September working out in Dallas for first time banned substance penalty while Aldon Smith who failed the substance/banned substance policy multiple time, broke the personal conduct policy multiple times, getting arrested for guns, and shouting Bomb while drunk in an airport…is allowed to remain part of the Niners while he serves more then double of lanes suspension?
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He made himself look like a clown when he suspended Rice for only two games, and even worse he then caves to all the activist groups and implements this ban for beating woman….no way rice deserves two games while Lane sits out 4…but the only reason Goodell changed is because the two game punishment made him look bad. It’s like the ref giving the other team a make up call…. I really can’t stand this commissioner… Maybe I was too young to really remember tagliabu and past commissioners but I find it very hard to believe that Goodell is the best man for the job,,,,
Any commissioner would be just as bad as Goodell IMO…the job requires protecting the shield first and foremost and being at the beck & call of the owners. Their main goal is to maximize the amount of money they can make and the value of their franchises. Every decision will be filtered through that prism. Goodell has done a fantastic job from the owner’s perspectives just like Tagliabue. Rozelle was really the last innovative commissioner and would not be hired now since the league is firmly established as the top sport’s league. In that context, all the owners need is a care taker type who avoids making waves and keeps their goals as his top priorities.
Naturally, penalties for banned substances are also negotiated with the NFLPA and contain all kinds of illogical compromises.
No reason why you can’t be consistent… That’s all players ever ask for in all aspects of sport… Players don’t care how you call a game as long as you call it consistently for both teams. Players will accept the punishment as long as they are consistent… What he is doing with Alson Smith is NOT COOL. Lane not being allowed at Novacare is a major disadvantage..
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He won’t be able to be in meetings and see the way the Oline is adjusting to the different things they encounter from defenses over the course of the season….As Fans we only really look at how many games a player is suspended for, but not letting the player stay with the team really hurts…
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I hope Goodell gets hammered consistently to explain how he can allow this of Aldon smith after all his crap…
The point is the system does not allow for consistency since there are conflicting priorities and illogical compromises the commissioner has to deal with in his performance of the job. Things negotiated with the NFLPA are vastly different than rulings made by vote of the owners etc. Plus consistency is not part of the commissioner’s mandate: his mandate is to protect the shield, facilitate the making of as much money as possible for the owners and otherwise keep things quiet so the NFL monopoly can continue making that money. Decisions are made in a very PR and CYA way which is true for any sports league.
Exactky why I don’t understand… How does giving Aldon the same punishment as everyone else threaten the NFL sheild…..it doesn’t even make sense because it will not be popular with the public unless you live in San Fran..it’s not helping out the owners to kick all their snap ended players away from the team but let the Niners keep Aldon around….knowing what Goodels job is and what Goodell cares about, it makes no sense to do this for Aldon and the Niners…
Couple curve balls. We’re a run heavy team so I figured 4 RB’s was a virtual lock, especially considering how good Tucker and Josey looked. I figured one of the two of them would stick.
I wasn’t sure they’d actually pull the trigger on Parkey, but I’m glad they did.
From a depth perspective 2 positions we absolutely cannot afford many injuries to are ILB and safety. We really only have 1 backup at each spot that I think are competent NFL players (Wolfe at safety, Goode at ILB). Once you get past that I think we’re in trouble. A toast to Kendricks, Ryans, Jenkins and Allen’s continued good health!
Feel bad for Travis long…suspect his injury saved Casey Mathews eagle career. Was looking forward to Long being the OLB and ILB, instead if the he previous year when Casey was the ILB and Barwins backup….. If Marcus smith wasn’t a raw rookie, I wouldn’t mind seeing him get Longs ILB snaps…if you see Marcus up close, he has a shredded elite football body with the long arms,.at 250lb plus, he is so trimmed, cut, fast, smooth runner that he looks like he is 230lbs…..it’s going to require patience and it doesn’t help that this city is all about instant gratification, but next, and really by the year after, we are going to have an Outside linebacker version of Mykal Kemdrick on our hands?!?Marcus will pay off in a big way, hope this fanbase and media don’t act like I rational trash and bash the kid and make it hard on him…Lane really screwed Marcus over. fans heard how Raw Lane was when we got him, but then saw Lane produce, so now fans hear Marcus is Raw, and when they see he is really Raw, they already talk like he is a bust
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Sucks we could get anyone to bite in a Damaris trade…curious to see who he ends up signing with..doubt we will miss him much more than we miss Dion Lewis..
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Wonder if Alex henrey has a NFL job this year?
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Gut punch when hearing about Long.
For the kid, it must have been so much worse.
Want to know how did Jake Knott’s injury most hurt the Birds? He’d have been in against the Jets in the 4th Q instead of Long.
Come to think of it, why were Acho and Matthews in there?
The reason why Chip cut our raw players? Blame Curtis Marsh.
The anti-AR?
Burton III could be the exception that proves your point, though.
Re: Who is Trey Burton?
Full name . . . Lawrence Godfrey (Trey) Burton III.
Grandfather . . . the original Lawrence “Larry” G. Burton, a Purdue WR whom the Saints selected in Rd 1, 7th overall, in the ’75 draft.
Grandfather Burton also finish fourth in the 1972 Munich Olympic 200 meters. (Burton was one of just 2 American sprinters to make it past the qualifying round, with Eddie Hart, because the hosts had notoriously given the American sprint coach the wrong heat times, so nearly every one missed the qualifying sprints. The Munich games were horrible at so many levels: Black September, of course, is beyond sport; the Soviets get 3 chances to win the Gold in basketball; American sprinters given the wrong start times; the great miler Jim Ryan is tripped and falls in the 1500 meters.)
Burton I quick pro football in 1980 to become a social worker who focused on young kids. And he and his wife, besides their own kids, gave homes to 8-10 other fatherless and wayward children.
Burton III . . . besides versatility and great genes (but not LGB-I’s speed) has character, too. Lots of it, I’d wager.
One of the eagles fans I post with on another forum went to high school with Trey. He is a d-bag I hear.
Well . . . I’ll defer to those who know him best.
Maybe the kid’s matured some. One hopes.
My guess is that most star football players are d-bags in high school, or at least perceived by many around them to be d-bags. It’s almost unavoidable.
You always come thru like the Wu.
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I LOVE keeping players with a nice ceiling and unfulfilled potential who coaches are confident can help them to realize that potential. The last player on the depth chart at most positions probably isn’t going to be able to save the day If the star at that position goes down….for Example, Maehl… If we lose Maclin, Jordan, Brad huff and have to start Maehl next to Cooper, we are SCREWED.. You probably aren’t going to find anyone on waivers significantly more NFL ready than Maehl…so why not carry deep reserves with high ceiling young players with unfulfilled potential to coach them to realize… I’m always Down to keep a Burton type as the 4th RB, 4th TE, 6th WR…
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For example, if we absolutely had to keep a 6th WR, I would have been much happier with Momah. Today, you would trust Maehl in a game more than Momah……but it shouldn’t take Momah much longer to reach Maehl’s level…and with quality coaching there is a good chance he can be better than Maehl…..
black september was worse than even the Cowboys. hard to do.
sort of like the helmet stickers in college (osu, uga, etc.), we could just add extra roman numerals to the ends of player names for performance. and just watch Goodell and Troy Vincent deal with trying to fine “Foles XXIV” in March for uniform violations
I wonder if any of these cuts are similar to what happened between Chip and Howie during the draft (with regards to Taylor Hart Chip wanting him in the third but Howie assuring him he would be there in the 5th.) I could see Chip wanting to keep Tucker on the squad along with Reynolds but Howie assuring him they will be able to make it onto the practice squad. Just a thought that popped into my head.
Re: Tucker
He was a final-cut casualty last season . . . no team picked him on waivers.
Eagles had Tuck on the PS . . . no team signed him away.
Tuck’s looked pretty good this season. But I’m wagering that — with an AC shoulder sprain — and lots of chances for other teams to sign him last year, that Kelly/Roseman see him as a very safe cut.
Of course, I could be totally wrong.
I get the same impression…. He is eligible for PS again right?
Going with only 3 RBs will come back to bite us. Especially since Sproles isn’t really a RB. Cutting Josey and Tucker…. I really can’t believe that. Polk is NEVER healthy.
On another note, I really didn’t see Ed making this team.
It’s worked for every team in the history of modern NFL… If shit hit the fan, and you had to rely on a play offer the street, easiest position to fill adequately is RB and Kicker…why can’t we just sign a RB off our practice squad if we suffer a ton of injuries?
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If we lose Shady and Sproles….Tuck? Barner? Josey? You can have all 3, we would still be DOOMED
Teams go with 3 RBs. We have 1.
Sproles is not a RB and Polk is a ghost, since he is never available to play.
We will have 1-2 RBs on the practice squad, and can bring them up if the need arises. We did that with Tucker last year, probably would work the same this year.
How many games has he missed that you are acting like Polk is Buckhalter? Most his injuries are offseason..he played 7 games as a rookie and 15 last year… Polk can play. I expected him to make the roster, why would u want to cut him, because he was injured this summer?
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Sure we will have Practice squad backs
I’m glad that you guys aren’t running the Eagles.
I liked Josey & Tucker as well, but lets be honest – they were UDFA’s for a reason, and RBs like those guys are a dime a dozen. Typical Philly overreaction to meaningless preseason games.
Maehl has shown that he belongs in the league. He knows the offense, can get open, and catches the ball. He also adds value to special teams.
Sucks that Ed Reynolds wasn’t good enough to make the team, but better to admit your mistake now. Everyone was pretty lukewarm about the pick when it happened, why so much surprise that he was cut?
Guys who we could have taken with that pick:
Vinnie Sunseri (S) – Saints
Ronald Powell (OLB) – Saints
Jordan Tripp (LB) – Dolphins
Devon Kennard (OLB) – Giants
Antone Exum (CB) – Vikings
Robert Herron (WR) – Bucs
Jordan Zumwalt (LB) – Steelers
Shamar Stephen (DT) – VIkings
A lot of talent there that we could have used. Jordan Tripp would be nice to have right now. So chalk it up to a bad pick for Howie/Chip.
Probably their 2nd questionable pick IMO, the first one being Matt Barkley last year.
When? Where? Are there games in the NFL only a few selected members are allowed to watch?
boy, I think I may sit down with another couple of beers, and just waste a few hours tonight going back and finding every good player drafted, ever, after the Eagles made a bad pick.
did you hear about this Brady guy we passed on once?
p.s. regarding Tripp specifically — post-draft, Chip and Howie admitting to targeting ILB but seeing a large drop-off in value after Mosley. Tripp came in for a visit as well, if I’m not mistaken. But we were very familiar with him. For every other name you mentioned, there’s 3 more being cut as well.
Micheal Sam was cut
He wasnt very good and we shouldnt pick him up because he is stiffer than Graham
We can’t pick him up, because we would have to put him on the 53 and he isn’t good enough for that….but I would love to get him on practice squad… Is there a point where the rams would lose his practice squad rights and you can sign someone else’s player to your practice squad? Just curious,,,not like I really care about getting him
Any team can sign him to their practice squad right now, at least once he passes through waivers. Once on a practice squad, they can only be signed off to go to a 53-man roster. Eagles signed several players from other teams to be on their practice squad last year; will be interesting if they prefer their own cuts or others’ this year.
Ok… So for example, right now the Charges can sign Kruger to their Practice Squad?
Im not sure of Krugers exact situation, but my understanding of the rules is this. You have 24 (or it might be 48 hours) to put a waiver claim on someone after they are released. If you put a waiver claim in on a player they are added to your 53 man roster. If they pass through waivers with no claim you can sign them and place them on your practice squad. If you sign someone that is already on someone’s practice squad you have to add them to your 53 man roster immediately.
Why would you want a small non athletic DE?
Re: The Benn “special I/R” designation . . . Why it may matter for Benn
Not sure exactly what the dispute is. Commenter Gary Barnes raised some great points in other comments.
BUT . . .
Benn’s entering his 4th NFL season. So far he’s been on an NFL roster, or IR, for the prior 3 full seasons.
If Benn’s deemed injured for the first 3 games this season, that designation has important ramifications for him at least in terms of future pension benefits and playoff shares.
Specifically, a 3-game injury designation for a player — even if he’s not on another roster for the remaining 14 weeks — results in a full season’s credit for pension purposes. It also guarantees that player a full playoff share if the team for which he’s on “Special IR” makes the playoffs.
Now maybe Benn wants to be cut loose to avoid the “He’s Just Always Hurt” designation — which he has now anyway.
Maybe Benn wants to be cut loose to get a shot with another team ASAP.
Maybe the Eagles want to cut Benn loose, but Benn’s claiming an injury.
Don’t know — as Gary Barnes said — where the push’s coming from here.
But for Benn, this is a big deal in terms of his financial future post-football.
[NOTE: This is a back-of-the-folder analysis.]
Interesting…. Howie addressed the media at 4, I’m sure he was asked to clarify this new IR
If Roseman said it’s *not* about money (even if not by saying anything one way or the other) . . . .
You can bet its about money, at least to a degree, for one of the parties.
Lol it has to be.,…what else could it he about? This is a new rule, I just want to know what this rule is designed to accomplish? How does it benefit the player, how does it benefit the team..
…
It’s like ok you are going to lose Benn, but you aren’t going to lose him right now…as soon as he is healthy, ready to go, then you will lose him…,,lol…ok….
Sounds like a player-protection rule.
It’s not a new rule. You cannot outright waive somebody if they are injured (via on-field injury anyways). If the player comes to an injury settlement with the team (usually paying some/all of that year’s salary, though probably not very much for camp players), then he can be waived. Eagles did that with a couple players today. Otherwise you have to let them get healthy before they are waived. This at least lets players use teams’ facilities to recover and rehab injuries (and get paid) before they try to find work elsewhere.
Some details at http://overthecap.com/what-exactly-are-injury-settlements/
It’s a new rule…I’m sure of it
FYI . . .
This rule is not in the CBA. May be in a side-agreement letter. Or some other mutually agreed-on document by owners and NFLPA.
FO:
Per the standard Injury Settlement agreement for NFL players (Appx L to the CBA), once the player signs that agreement, he’s a free agent and has given up any claim to using team facilities.
If a player and team can’t agree on a settlement, the CBA allows 25 days for the player to lodge a greivance. And in the meantime, he gets treatment etc.
Your comment may not be inconsistent with this; not sure.
Benn said he was healthy on twitter, so most likely Eagles think he is injured and Benn wants to get to a new team now so that he can be on a roster for 1st week (I think he is a vested veteran now, so if he is on the roster first week, salary is fully guaranteed and I also think it helps in terms of future benefits)
He hurt his back doing the “Lincoln financial field Leap”
A:
NFL players become “vested” once they have 4 or more years in the league.
This is Benn’s 4th season.
I just re watched chips post game press conference… Interesting that he didn’t mention Benn when listing all the players that got injured after the last game
Do we really need 3 QB’s?
Isn’t Brad Smith supposed to be the emergency QB? If you burn through your 1st and 2nd string QBs, doesn’t that qualify as an emergency? Is Barkley active game days just in case? Seems like a big waste to me.
Its not like Barkley plays special teams, or provides much value over, say, Kinne or any other 3rd string QB whom we can stash on the practice squad and have on the ready just in case.
If we bother having Smith active, why not capitalize on his ability as an emergency QB, trade (if possible) or release Barkley, put Kinne on the PS, and use that roster spot on (insert name of your favorite cut player here…except Momah)
I mean we needed a 3rd QB last year, unless you wanted to watch the Lane Johnson QB Lead the Eagles against Rival Giants last year
Thanks GEAGLE. True, we did need Barkley, but he was pretty pathetic. Is it more realistic to carry Barkley on the active roster every week just in case he has to come in, or use that extra spot for someone who can contribute week in and week out?
Further, I have zero faith in Barkley coming in to lead the team back from a deficit in a must win game. At best he can come in and preserve a lead. And I think with practice Smith could probably do that too. If we are behind that game is probably just going to be a loss, whether or not Barkley or Smith has to come in.
If you have zero faith in Barkley, you should probably have less in Smith. If he was a better QB than Barkley, he’d have that as his sole position, I’m pretty sure. It’s one thing to be good enough for surprise gadget plays, another to be good enough when the defense is gunning for you. We need 3 QBs. Look what Green Bay had to go through when they lost Rodgers last year after trying to just keep 2 QBs.
ATleast there is a good chance we could end up only carrying two QBs and making Barkley inactive on Gameday while Sanchez and FOles are healthy… If FOles and Sanchez both get knocked out in the same game, who really cares if we have to suffer a half of Brad smith QB? ATleast we can go back to our 3rd QB during the week….
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But not all teams keep 3..if I’m not mistaken Giants..only have 1 backup for Eli…
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I would actually bet money on the eagles eventually trading Barkley! but we have time! no reason to rush the trade. Trade him today and it’s hard to find a team to give up more then we spent on him,, but you sit on him, after another year of growth, you put him in a preseason game and all he has to do is have a few quarters or amazing mark Sanchez type play, and he will end hp being worth what Kirk Cousin is….if we sit on him, we will end up getting a good pick for him at some point. Teams are always desperate for QBs and we won’t play Barkley enough to let teams see his faults! and every year he will be sharper against backups in the preseason til some desperate fool ends up giving us more than the 4th we spent on him..we have two more summers to build his value, Make him look good and end up getting value for him…
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What’s the point in trading him for a 5th now? We just cut our 5th round pick who is a 22 yr old rookie that missed half the offseason because of Stanford’s trimester rules.. We don’t seem to value 5th round picks much so what’s the point in dumping him now? Especially since we don’t know if we can keep Sanchez here past this year
This…I understand. So you are saying that when building a franchise even back up QBs are more valuable than pre-season performance by undrafted RBs against other long shots…ridiculous! Haha
Good long term strategy, but I want Tucker, Josey or a back up ILB now!
Johnson Era!!!!!!
Emergency QBs:
Brad Smith
LG Burton III
MSmith II (if Chips really desperate)
Be honest, there has to be some small part of you that wants to see Lane Johnson keep the ball on a Zone read? Big Lane can run, and he has a cannon arm…
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Lol before Brad Smith came, was our emergency QB James Casey or Avant? I can’t reps ember..
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Probably raise good money for charity… We can have a green and white scrimmage…you coach the Marcus Smith QB Green Team and I’ll coach the Lane Johnson QB white team…I’ll even be a gentlemen and let you wear Kelly Green 🙂
you’re killin’ me!
if LJ wasn’t suspended . . . he’d have been choice #1
Hahahahah!!!
I think it is more of a case of having three guys learning the plays. You need a backup who knows the system if one of the first two is out for multiple games.
I guess the argument could be made that Kinne is safe on the PS, but it would be a risk.
Kinney has the best job in sports…QB the eagles every summer, only wearing red jersey. Never get hit, never blow a game for this franchise…as long as Chip is here, Kinney has the best summer job in the world
Re: A Bit More on the Ram’s Release of Michael Sam
Sam was battling a rookie free agent DE named Ethan Westbrooks from West Texas A&M.
He measured 6’4″ 267 lbs at the Combine. He was the best looking player on the field in the East-West Shrine game.
And the Rams apparently are on the hook to him for a $25K signing bonus — which is A LOT! for a RFA, plus another guaranteed $25K in salary.
Anyway, local St. Louis media were all over Westbrooks like the Philly guys were on Matthews — in relative terms, at least.
Really wanted to see Westbrooks get signed here after the draft. Maybe he can’t play in space like Graham. But the kid’s apparently looked very good.
Never understood why Sam went drafted and Ethan went UDFA. Ethan has an NFL body and NFL athleticism, all Sam had was “omg SEC leader in sacks”
great point. well said
Yeah but to that I say, “omg SEC leader in sacks!”
Should go get Champ Bailey? he was just cut by the Saints
no
yes?
still no
And now? LOL no way I would ever, ever want champ on this team at his age. Not even at safety!
Colts cut Fluellen. So Howie may have pulled off an important trade that pays big dividends (fingers crossed), while giving up nothing.
Nice to think we’ll have to cover fewer kickoffs this year. That could be the real dividend, not so much long field goals.
Not like the Colts lost anything, they was cutting Parkey when they traded him here.
I liked Fluellen to… If we can’t get Josey or tuck on our practice squad, I wouldn’t mind turning to fluellen
If Tucker and Josey both end up on the practice squad then I think we’re fine. But, if we lose one or even both, it’s gonna seem pretty silly to keep Maehl as the 6th WR. On a run first team we have Shady, a guy who will never take more than 10 carries a game even if Shady goes down, and a guy who is always injured. If Shady misses time at any point, things could get real dicey.
Huff can play RB, and so can Burton.
I just glanced at the stats for Burton III at UFL.
Impressive variety of numbers.
Colston II?
Smaller Aaron Hernandez without the problems
Was listening to Ray Didinger talk his all time best eagles at every position! and normally I don’t care much about these lists and historic rankings but catching the Offensive line part of it really stuck out in my head and helped me realize what a special time this Could become…
…
When he discussed who he would keep as the RT and LT on his all time Eagles team, Jason Peters was easy choice, and he ended up chosing Runyans durability over Tra Thomas…
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At Guard, Welbourn and Mayberry got some consideration, but Shawn Andrews and Evan Mathis got the not for best guards in Eagles history…
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Center, Ray Didi went with Kelce citing that he was the best center in the NFL Hands down..
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We are talking about an OLine that boast 3 of the best players in franchise history at 3 of 5 positions on the Offensive Line, blocking of a running back who is already flirting with all time best eagles status… We had elite Lines and Elite RB under Andy, but having that with a coach like Chip who will run the ball all day is a different story….these are key positions we are talking about..how can we just bow down and not look at ourselves as contenders?
AC Viking: you go way back like 4 flats on a Cadillac, would you disagree with Didingers all time eagles offensive line?
Sounds like RDiddy went post-merger — because he left off HOFer Bob “Boomer” Brown at RT (1964-68; 1st Rd pick, 2nd overall in ’64 from Nebraska . . . of all places) and, it sounds like, gave no props at center to Concrete Charlie Bednarik.
But post-merger . . . the Eagles were historically bad on the O-line. Until Reid.
Can’t argue with RDiddy’s choices if the time period’s post-1970.
The Eagles really didn’t register on the NFL radar from 1962-77. Then again, on the O-line at least, from ’82-’99.
Bednarik is more famous as LB than Center for most people
A:
You’re right. And the irony is even in 1960 — when he knocked Gifford into the next season, literally — Bednarik was filling in at MLB because of injuries.
A classic moment in Eagles history:
Nov. 20, 1960 – Trailing the Eagles 17-10, the New York Giants were trying to mount a late comeback at Yankee Stadium. Halfback Frank Gifford reached back to catch Charlie Conerley’s pass, and he turned upfield in routine fashion.
That’s when Chuck Bednarik came along and changed both their lives. “Chuck knocked him right out of his shoes,” Eagles defensive back Tom Brookshier said.
Bednarik’s crushing blow to Gifford’s chest left the running back on his back, out cold with a severe concussion – and out of football the rest of that season and all the next year as well. As Eagles linebacker Chuck Weber recovered the fumble that seemed almost an afterthought to the ferocity of the hit, Bednarik stood over Gifford, pumping his right arm, doing a dance and yelling. “This —— game is over.”
A pic worth a thousand words: http://prod.static.eagles.clubs.nfl.com/assets/images/imported/PHI/photos/features/615_chuck_bednarik_102313.jpg
Lol I was waiting for you to drop bombs of old school knowledge 🙂
“4 flats on a Cadillac” . . .
Un divertente giro di frase
Yes, funny phrase. It’s from “It’s All About the Benjamins.”
Or “how high?”… Don’t remember which movie, but Mike Epps said it
We have a solid OL… No doubt about that.
But “best players in franchise history” doesn’t mean a whole lot when the position was mostly ignored until Andy Reid showed up.
Also, I’ll take Runyan over Thomas at RT because he played RT. But for durability? That’s a stretch. Thomas was pretty damn durable.
Also stated not Strahan used to get the better of their matchup in the early battles but towards the end Runyan started to get the best of the hall of famer… Either way he valued both very highly?.
Why is it so hard to find players that are both good at special teams and not crap on the regular teams?
I like the team, but we sure are awful light on depth at LB and safety with three special teamers taking up spots.
Many of the players who can do both often do not do both because you wont expose them them to injuries.
Take Brian Dawkins, never played ST the last 10 years (except for a play here or there), but I guarantee that he would have been one of the best in the league.
Dawk would have been a killer!
Because the NCAA only lets Oregon give out some many scholarships each year.
ILB Max Bullough (Houston), Andrew Jackson and Nico Johnston seem like the most promising lbs to shake loose. Kenny Ladler (cb/s) from Vandy also looks promising. All can contribute to ST
Do it, do it.
Would love to kick the tires on Ladler.
They’re all 2 down LBs. All too slow to cover but could play the run well.
I forgot that Casey Matthews is a 3 down LB with countless passes defended and ints padding his stats. Please.
Just a few thoughts.
– I don’t see this group of 53 guys and/or the position breakdown on it being the final one.
– ILB / Spec team upgrade for Casey Matthews should be hear soon. Rob w/ the Kecle avatar had a ton of better names ready. Get it done Howie.
– It wouldn’t shock me to see the additional WR (Smith or Maehl) dropped once Huff is 100% healthy and then we’d see the extra RB added.
– If they can get Barkley traded, they’ll just rock 2 QBs on the 53 and use that spot for……..I’m not sure yet.
– I’m glad they didn’t cut any of the good backup O-line guys. Hoard them all year if necessary so the Giants don’t get to claim any of them. I’m hopefully one of them can be traded as we move towards the return of Lane.
I don’t think Chip will go with 2 QBs after last season. As well as, looking at the history of the Eagles over the last 10 or so years is not good regarding starting QB’s. I think there was only one year the starting QB stayed healthy all season.
I look forward to Chip’s next press conference. With all this disapproval of Matthews and Maehl, I hope reporters put him on the spot with their agenda. I’m confident he has logic to back his roster choices, and it should be very entertaining while he addresses those that try to push his buttons.
Reporters asked Howie about the Oregon bias and he told reporters that they are basically full of shit and Chip only cares about fielding the best team to give us the best chance to win…. Bunch of beat reporters have already written articles about Howie answering the Oregon bias inquisition of bored reporters…. Someone brought up a great point the othe day that no one ever bitched about all the Cincinatti bearcats we used to have on our roster
I’ve seen/read some of that. Howie is very professional and smooth when he talks. Chip on the other hand will put these reporters in their place, and make them look like idiots. Can’t wait!
Lol…yeah hopefully they Ask him on a day when he is in one of his feisty moods…. I can’t believe how dumb our fans and media can be… I despise Maehl, but I’m hot crying some bloody Oregon bias…
Nothing personal… but I would like to see you in the Chip cage. For your effort… I will provide you an inflatable doughnut on your way out.
Champ Bailey talked about moving to safety when he got older. I wonder if he would be better than Nate Allen?
Champ Baily is 36 years old and Nate has actually played really damn good so far. I don’t think there is even a little bit of a chance.
I guess Polk is healthy. I was shocked when people were saying the Eagles were going to keep 5 rb’s. I thought there was a slim chance for 4, but 5 never seemed reasonable. I am a little surprised about the 4 TE.
“Cody Parkey is your PK for now.” Why “for now”? Why not, “for the season”? Or do you know something?
As OregonDucker posted earlier… Burton can play RB. He had 11 TD’s his freshman year rushing. Huff also has some experience.
I’m thinking — playing rb like that in college, you can get away with it. I’m not so sure about it in the NFL.
I meant more in an emergency type of situation.
Yeah 5 RB talk was just crazy…4 is a stretch.. You keep a back on your practice squad that you can call up if one of your 3 backs gets hurt, problem solved…. Polk isn’t healthy, but he is very close… He will be good by the opener from what I hear….
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We have to keep in mind that unless we can get trade value for Dennis Kelly. Someone will have to get cut when Lane comes back
Did anyone see the size of the Wisconsin kicker? Now that guy looks like he can KICK IT DEEP!!!!!!!!!!!
yeah looks like he ate wisconsin’s former kicker
That’s what she said
Chip is awesome… Talked about how rough making these cuts were “wish I could buy stock in some of these guys as people, a guy like Villanueva will be successful in whatever he does in life… I had to tell him we were cutting him, and he says coach you don’t have to explain anything to me, successful people make tough decisions”…. Like to see that athletic freak take the Momah route, work on his game and come back next year and try to make the practice squad, but that dude will have plenty of doors open for him that he may not want to dedicate himself to an NFL career and put on the work Momah did alone this past year
Stephan hill was cut…saints cut Brandon Coleman so they can try to get him on practice squad… He looked like crap in OTAs but made ton of improvement at saints camp… I’d cut Jeff Maehl immediately and pick up either 6’5 WR… If we don’t like what we see from them, guess what? Maehl will be sitting at home waiting for us to call him back…
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Laugh at Stephan hill, but I’m not ruling out offensive players who look shitty on Rex Ryan’s jets ever again, aka the Mark Sanchez clause
Tommy,
I am bit concerned about the 2014 draft. While Matthews seems to be on track as a solid second round pick, and Allen seems to be a potential diamond in the rough late round pick, Smith, Huff, Watkins, and Hart don’t seem to be anywhere near NFL ready. And Reynolds, a 5th rounder, didn’t even make the team. Is the Eagle’s talent evaluation slipping? Are we seeing a 2011 draft class repeat here?
http://www.phillymag.com/birds247/2013/08/29/eagles-wake-up-call-wither-the-2011-draft-class/#disqus_thread
Will you share what you’re smokin?
“TICAL….what’s that shit that they be smokin?…. TICAL!!!”
Is that better than Labrador?
NFL ready is irrelevant when talking about draft picks… Marcus smith will grow into an OLB version of Kendricks and philly will fall in love with him… You will just have to wait more than two months before it pays any dividends…. NFL ready should have no place in a convo about draft picks… Who got he best player 3 years from now, is the only measure of a draft pick…and 3 years from now, Chip will look brilliant over Marcus and a bunch of fans and media members will look clueless as always… The kids been playing defense for like 3 years…
You are right, we do need three years to really know how well the 2014 draft will turn out…but from where things stand now, the early indications are not good. For a first round pick, you should expect the to see some meaningful snaps in his rookie year. Smith was picked a bit late in the first round, but even so, first round picks should show some production, even in year 1. Not to say that Smith will be out of the NFL in three years, but the last time the Eagles took a chance on an inexperienced player with only a few years of football experience, he wound up putting out fires in Dallas instead of moving D-Line beef out of Shady’s way. Based on the preseason, I don’t see how Azzinaro even puts him in the rotation. I suspect he will be inactive on game day throughout 2014.
Smith aside, after Matthews, the rest of the draft gets only a grade of likely bust, with the possible exception of Allen. 2nd and 3rd rounders should be making a contribution in year 1, and 5th rounders shouldn’t be bagging groceries.
You should be an NFL GM. You clearly have the insight and intangibles…what are you waiting for?
I imagine that there has been more than one 5th rounder who didn’t succeed.
Florida State kicking short to try and avoid Hill. Ugh. Parkey be that one man kick off machine you mentioned. No coverage needed.