What Will Happen At Safety?

Posted: April 2nd, 2015 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 310 Comments »

The Eagles went hard after free agent Devin McCourty. He proved to be a complete traitor by re-signing with the evil Patriots. If you can’t convince a man to leave his friends and teammates by throwing money at him, you have to wonder what kind of a world we really live in.

Since Traitor McCourty turned his back on the innocent children of Philadelphia, who dreamed of having a star FS for the first time since 2008, the Eagles are now faced with the task of figuring out what to do at Safety. Malcolm Jenkins is a good player, but the spot opposite of him is more open than DeSean Jackson being covered by Bradley Fletcher.

Jimmy Bama offered some thoughts on the situation. While I’m extremely confident the Eagles have several future Pro Bowl types already on the roster, Jimmy is a bit more down on the situation.

In summary, the Eagles are probably going to be bad on the back end in 2015. Again. Apologies for stating the obvious. And God forbid Jenkins get hurt.

Apparently someone hasn’t seen Jerome Couplin’s YouTube highlights, right?

By the time he’s done, Couplin will make Brian Dawkins look like Jarrad Page. (okay, that might be going a bit too far)

Just in case the Eagles want another option beyond Couplin, they might consider spending a draft pick on a Safety. Let’s talk about some of the guys.

* Landon Collins – Alabama – 6-0, 228 – I don’t see him as a legit target. Collins is more of a pure SS. He’s a good prospect, but I don’t see him as a good fit for what the Eagles want.

* Shaq Thompson – Washington – 6-0, 228 – Former LB/RB who some teams like as a S. Same size as Collins but a different guy. Lacks Collins speed (4.64 to 4.53), but much more agile. Thompson had a short shuttle time of 4.08 to Collins’ 4.33. Thompson is the natural athlete. He can do a bit of everything. Good instincts. Playmaker. I don’t know if Kelly would be interested in a project like Thompson, but he’d have to be at least curious. The Eagles are either going to work him out or bring him to Philly.

* Damarious Randall – Arizona St – 5-11, 196 – Ideal fit for the Eagles. But a highly inconsistent player. Put on the USC game and you’ll be impressed. Watch the Oregon State game and you’ll be highly disappointed…or worse. As long as you don’t take him too early, worth a look because of the fit. Can play SS, FS or the slot.

* Adrian Amos – Penn State – 6-0, 215 – Has played CB and S. I’m interested in him as a CB, but don’t love him as a S. Inconsistent as a hitter/tackler.

* Kurtis Drummond – Michigan St – 6-1, 208 – I like him as a mid-round target, but don’t know what the Eagles think. Has some man cover skills, but not someone you’d want covering slot receivers on a regular basis.

* Byron Jones – UConn – 6-1, 199 – Spent his first 2 years at S before moving to CB. Has the skills and athleticism to play either position. Chip Kelly went to his Pro Day so there is more than casual interest. Do they like him at CB or could Kelly see him as a S? There are plenty of talented CB prospects in this draft. Finding the right S isn’t so easy.

* Eric Rowe – Utah – 6-1, 205 – Played S for 3 years before moving to CB as a Senior. Kelly was at his Pro Day. Another guy that could play either spot in the NFL.

* Quinten Rollins – Miami O – 5-11, 195 – Former basketball player has one year of college football experience. Played CB. Physical player. Had 7 INTs. Natural athlete and instinctive player. Could be an interesting candidate at Safety.

I’m not going through every guy the Eagles could like. These are the big names. I don’t have a favorite player among them yet. That will change in the next couple of weeks.

* * * * *

I think Reuben Frank owes us an explanation. From UConn’s Pro Day

Reuben Frank, who worked out with the defensive linemen and receivers, matched Whitmer with a vertical leap of 33½ inches, an inch better than receiver Deshon Foxx and two inches better than 300-pound defensive lineman B.J. McBryde.

What was he doing working out with those kids? What is Geoff Mosher’s vertical jump?

We deserve answers, Roob!!!

_


310 Comments on “What Will Happen At Safety?”

  1. 1 SuPaFrO said at 11:17 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    You would think science was advanced enough to be able to clone Dawkins by now. Back to the future lied to me. Disillusioned.

  2. 2 EagleNebula said at 12:17 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I have wanted a hoverboard for decades! the 6th Day actually had cloned football players as a plot point, but to watch that you have to sit through Swartzenager talking to himself without gauging your eyes out…

  3. 3 SuPaFrO said at 3:27 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Oh hoverboard. How i wish i was born in the future

  4. 4 Bracey said at 11:20 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    Talking about Shaq Thompson playing safety, do you think the Eagles could give kendricks a shot there? He’s even faster and quicker than shaq, his size fits better at safety, and he can shoot to the sidelines quicker than almost anyone in the league. Worth a shot in training camp in my opinion.

  5. 5 TommyLawlor said at 11:34 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    Nah, he’s a LB. Gifted athlete, but he’s 240 pounds. Doesn’t show Safety instincts.

  6. 6 SuPaFrO said at 3:28 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Nether have any of our past safeties.

  7. 7 eagleyankfan said at 8:21 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Wow. What about Cox? He’s a hard hitter. Fights his way through traffic. Good hands and good nose for the ball. I can’t believe CK hasn’t thought of this yet.
    …..
    Defense is not a plug and play sport. Square pegs n round holes stuff….

  8. 8 CrackSammich said at 9:20 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Real life, no. In Madden, it’s not the worst idea ever for your dime and big nickle sets.

  9. 9 wee2424 said at 5:29 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    How does his size fit better for a safety? He would be the heaviest safety in the league. He is considered short for an ILB, yet alone a safety that may have to do jump balls. No safety instincts, and occasionally even has trouble matching up against a TE. Forget a receiver down field or a slot receiver. You would be ruining a very good LB. While we are at it lets move Cox to RG, he has good size.

  10. 10 Mitchell said at 11:35 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    Anthony Harris, Derron Smith, Clayton Geathers. There are Safeties out there, we just have to pick one up.

  11. 11 GEAGLE said at 11:18 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    my fav names, besides Rowe or B Jones at safety

  12. 12 Iggles Nation said at 11:43 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    What’s Macho Harris up to?

  13. 13 Javi Echie said at 11:46 PM on April 2nd, 2015:

    Marlin Jackson still alive?

  14. 14 D3FB said at 12:05 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’d be really interested in converting this player to S:

    Strengths Highly competitive. Very physical and
    aggressive for the position. Focused and consistent when asked to jam at
    the line. Excels as downhill player. Displays closing burst and ball
    skills to consistently contest passes (24 passes defensed over last two
    seasons). Won’t give an inch when big running backs are bearing down on
    him around the corner. Wraps up and finishes as tackler. Fights to
    disengage and attack bubble screens.

    Weaknesses Doesn’t have fluid hips to turn and chase if
    beaten off the line of scrimmage. Scouts believe tape shows
    below-average football intelligence and a lack of speed. Labored
    backpedal. Panics in man coverage and will get grabby (second-most
    penalized senior cornerback). Doesn’t have length or fluidity to play in
    trail coverage.

    Lets play: Name that propsect!!!

  15. 15 A_T_G said at 12:25 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Nolan Carroll?

  16. 16 D3FB said at 12:39 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Player is in the upcoming draft.

  17. 17 GEAGLE said at 8:45 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    ….

  18. 18 A_T_G said at 12:39 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You think a 5’10” guy can play safety for us?

  19. 19 D3FB said at 12:42 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Jaylen is 5’11 and 3lbs lighter.

  20. 20 A_T_G said at 12:47 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    “…________ is tailor-made for the Tampa-2 scheme. An aggressive, physical player in run support who can also limit yards after catch underneath, ________ does his best work in off coverage. As long as he can keep everything in front of him, _______ should be able to compete for a starting spot in the league.”

    (I don’t want to give the name away because I cheated.)

    In general, it seems a Tampa 2 cb is close to what we look for in a safety.

  21. 21 D3FB said at 12:54 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    That quote is where the idea first struck me.

    Tampa 2 corners have to:
    -Play man, but aren’t expected to stick in a hip pocket 30 yards down field
    -Be excellent in run support.
    -Be good in zones and reading route concepts.

    That skill sets sounds familiar.

  22. 22 MagsDaffyDilly said at 12:59 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It was Cover 2 first. Bring back Mel Blount. Dude looks like he could still play.

  23. 23 Tdoteaglefan said at 8:41 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Who is Ifo ekpre olumo?

  24. 24 GEAGLE said at 8:42 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    no, its troy hill I assume

  25. 25 D3FB said at 11:49 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You’re wrong jackass.

  26. 26 D3FB said at 11:48 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Right state, wrong school

  27. 27 Tdoteaglefan said at 3:13 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Ah steven nelson

  28. 28 GEAGLE said at 8:49 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    lame… save your “hint”….. Troy Hill is a character problem. Lets not leave out the suspension/arrest…

  29. 29 James said at 12:42 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    oooooooooo ooooooooo I got it…..Da’Breck’hesahw Liptitysmack?

  30. 30 Pennguino said at 12:25 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    CONDOR! Dark horse baby!

  31. 31 ian_no_2 said at 12:51 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    There’s the common sports phrase ‘addition by subtraction’ and never was there more addition than by the subtraction of Mr. Allen. I harped on him early and often. I am a believer that at safety, you don’t have to devote high draft picks or free agent money on the position as long as you assemble a group of plausible candidates, guys with the basic athleticism, high intelligence, hitting abilities and proven coverage chops and see what sticks to the wall. Out of the group the Eagles have on the roster, everyone is basically unproven as a starter except Jenkins but only one or two of them has to step up. We will get a chance to see that process since the job will not be handed to Mr. Allen this year, they have finally wised up and Allen will be payed handsomely by the delusional junior high schoolers by the Bay. Kelly seems to like these CB-S guys or at least he likes to visit them so maybe one of them will be there in the middle rounds.

  32. 32 Mac said at 2:18 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Look for Allen to bounce back in a division facing Manning and Rivers 4 games this season… pffft (couldn’t keep a straight face).

  33. 33 eagleyankfan said at 8:13 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I hated Nate, probably more than most fans and probably more than I should have. However, I can’t agree that he was “handed” anything. IF CK is handing out any positions to starters, that’ll go against all that we believe in CK. So, no, CK didn’t hand Allen the job. Your(and everyone else) concern should be — why didn’t a safety step up last year to beat out Allen? Nobody could do it last year, and we’re expecting it to happen this year? CK went hard after a SS and lost. That speaks volumes on what he thinks he has on his roster. And those leftovers from last year are not better than what left…

  34. 34 GEAGLE said at 8:40 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    “nobody could do it last year”??? what were our options?
    ..
    Prosinski, a pure ST signing
    ,,
    Maragos a ST signing
    ..
    Woff injured
    ..
    Jaylen Wakins a rookie CB
    ..
    Ed reynolds was on the practice squad
    ..
    you would have a point if wolff sat on the bench healthy all season, but realistically who was going to beat out Nate who has like 4 years of game experience last yeat?

  35. 35 eagleyankfan said at 8:50 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You’re supporting my argument. Nobody from last year provided any fight whatsoever– hence — ‘nobody could do it last year’ — and shame on the staff for lack of a weak list of players.
    …..
    Who, from that list are we expecting ‘do it this year’? Another questionable “injured” Wolf? A converted rookie? A practice squad guy?
    ……
    As of right now, there’s no “addition by subtraction with this list of players….

  36. 36 GEAGLE said at 8:50 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    im not expecting anything…. but I certainly dont rule out players because they didnt provie instant gratification as rookies

  37. 37 eagleyankfan said at 8:56 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s not “instant gratification” I’m expecting(I don’t think I was saying that). IF CK thought there was value in what he had, he wouldn’t have gone head over heals after the guy NE signed. CK doesn’t like what he has, so no, I’m not expecting any of those guys to step up.

    …..

    Wolff’s injury situation is a little perplexing. Wolff was healthy enough to start in place of an injured Nate Allen during Week 9 and hadn’t recently been listed on the team’s injury report prior to his deactivation. It appears Wolff was healthy enough to play through injury. His effectiveness on the field may have been limited, however. Wolff failed to impress while playing both defense and special teams. The team signed Chris Prosinski in early November to fill Wolff’s special teams role.

    With Wolff not expected to be fully healthy until May, he may miss some of the team’s offseason workout schedule beginning in late April. Wolff certainly hasn’t done much to inspire confidence through his first two seasons with Philadelphia so it will be important for him to get healthy and impress the coaching staff in the offseason.

  38. 38 GEAGLE said at 9:49 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I read the tea leaves different…. Chip threw a boatload at McCourty, the PERFECT player in every way for what we are looking for…. when he struck out and couldnt sign him, he didnt turn to the next best available safety.. That tells me he isnt as desperate as we say he is to fill safety… He was willing to pay for ELITE solution, but wasnt willing to settle for 2nd, 3rd, or 4th best, and he didnt even try to keep Nate…… That to me says, they acknowledge the NEED, but think they can take care of it without overpaying for guys that maybe the liked but didnt love….
    ..
    Now if chip tried to sign McCourty and struck out, then turned his attention to Rahim and Searcy, striking out again, and then turning his attention to gilchrist, striking out… then I would have to agree… but thats not how things went…

  39. 39 eagleyankfan said at 1:28 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    you can’t argue tea leaves…

  40. 40 ian_no_2 said at 5:56 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Your point is valid but I surmise that Kelly was deferential to Davis and his own size parameters when he could have given people a chance. Ed Reynolds didn’t light it up in pre-season, Keelan Johnson got into legal trouble, Wolff, who apparently needs to be coached off the playbook because he doesn’t read it but has the size/speed, got hurt, Maragos learned from the Seattle guys and is prepping to play but is considered a ST guy, not to be counted out at S. Reynolds didn’t play badly in preseason and looked like a good pick at the time, worth keeping around and not to be counted out either.

    Jerome Couplin is an intriguing player with lesser college competition but a combination of elite athleticism and intelligence/ intangibles. Historically that hasn’t always translated to NFL success as with some other cases. Learning the game at a top college level help but there are many NFL exceptions like Couplin at S.

    Watkins played well when he briefly was given a chance against good WRs during the regular season, by no means an extended sampling, though. Most teams don’t give a player like him a chance until late in his rookie year unless there’s injuries.

  41. 41 ian_no_2 said at 6:00 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    We never found out what would happen if, during his early days in the dime D, someone said on the Eagles boards, ‘Just let Quinton Mikell play!!’ because no one seemed to expect him to be that good or shared that view at least as far I recall..

  42. 42 ICDogg said at 1:39 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    “Take Away His X Best Carries And He’s Average”

    http://www.footballperspective.com/take-away-his-x-best-carries-and-hes-average/

  43. 43 Anders said at 6:17 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Shows that Murray was more stable than some other RBs, as his YPC wasnt inflated by a few big runs

  44. 44 ICDogg said at 6:40 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I think it mostly demonstrates how YPC is a bullshit statistic

  45. 45 xmbk said at 8:14 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Not sure I agree. Comparing someone’s YPC without his top runs to league average with top runs included may not be apples to oranges, but at least grapefruit to oranges.

    Would be interesting to see a median run published, maybe with SD included. Guarantee guys like Kelly look at that.

  46. 46 CrackSammich said at 9:15 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Truth. But it also demonstrates that arbitrary constraints on that statistic makes it even more bullshit.

  47. 47 CrackSammich said at 9:16 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I… am really not sure what this information provides at all. I mean, interesting, sure. Valuable? not at all.

  48. 48 ICDogg said at 2:20 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    “Eagles Finding Value In Injured Players”

    http://overthecap.com/eagles-finding-value-in-injured-players/

  49. 49 James said at 12:35 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    How does sports science help with post ACL-surgery Rehab?

  50. 50 Ankerstjernen said at 5:39 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Usually its difficult for me to locate the player Im looking for in the highlight videos if they are not marked or circled before each play. With Couplin I just look for the freakishly long arms and see him straight away. He really has a freak build. But he does not look explosive in any way. Anyone knows how he did in the 40/3-cone?

  51. 51 GermanEagle said at 6:17 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I unfollowed Roob on Twitter. He’s a twat.

  52. 52 GEAGLE said at 7:29 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Hopefully the Chinese calender says its finally “The Year of the Wolff”….
    ..
    curious to see what watkins and Ed Reynolds look like at safety in the preseason

    regardless what happens, I expect the best secondary since we lost sheldon.. that might be “the tallest midget in the room” syndrome, but I am excited about the depth at CB, and our LB’s in coverage
    ..
    Very excited about the defense, I wish we didnt have to talk about safeties any more, but at least defensively we are only going into the draft with 1 hole that needs filling.. Problem is its probably the hardest hole to fill in this draft class…
    ..
    Even if we draft a safety, knowing we probably wait til rounds 4 or 5, Im not expecting the rookie to be able to start at safety anyway.. so unless a trade is made, it should come down to Wolff vs. Watkins vs. Reynolds (no idea about Couplin)

  53. 53 eagleyankfan said at 8:59 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’m just having some fun — you said last year you were excited about the defense. :). No need to rant about the front end of the defense, I already know.

  54. 54 GEAGLE said at 9:02 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    this post had nothing to do with you

  55. 55 eagleyankfan said at 9:05 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I know, this post was up first. We talked a lot last year about the defense only to have the secondary screw our dreams. Cheers to a better secondary this year…

  56. 56 GEAGLE said at 9:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    oh i have no doubts the secondary will be significantly improved… we may have not improved one of the safety spots, but we improved our ability to cover WR’s without needing safety help…we might have a question at one of the safety spots in the center of the field, but we should also have Jenkins, Kiko, Kendricks, Barwin, Marcus dropping into coverage, making it tough to throw down the center of our defense.
    ..
    as long as that one safety doesnt get Killed when they send TE’s down the Seem… doesnt let anyone behind him when he is helping a CB with over the top help, and can make a tackle if they throw short and look for yards after catch, we should be fine…. we dont need Ed Reed to improve, just need to be solid in those 3 areas, the rest of the secondary has superbowl rings in the past 4 years playing on quality defenses. with the exception of Nolan and Boykin.

  57. 57 eagleyankfan said at 1:27 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’m not sure I can hear Kiko’s name said enough…can’t wait to see him. The Giants proved, during their last SB run that a strong front 7 will hide secondary problems…anything can happen…

  58. 58 GEAGLE said at 4:19 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Kiko, Byron Maxwell, and I also think walter thurmond and Nolan will be pleasant surprises… hoping Jaylen watkins or wolff can run away with the safety spot…. our front 7 certainly isnt to be fucked with… all those front 7 beasts for the most part are young beasts who are still growing and should be better then last year besides Barwin

  59. 59 Frencheaglesfan said at 7:43 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Agholor or Strong?

  60. 60 oreofestar said at 8:21 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s close but I’d rather have Agholor in the 2nd than Strong in the 1st

  61. 61 Frencheaglesfan said at 8:23 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’m afraid we will need a trade up to get Agholor in the 2nd.

  62. 62 oreofestar said at 8:25 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    If that’s who they want the. I still have no problem with it. White, Cooper, Parker, DGB, Strong, Smith, Perriman, Agholor, Lockett, Funchess I mean there’s enough dudes that even if you don’t trade up you can get a fine wr at 52

  63. 63 Frencheaglesfan said at 8:32 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yeah but looking at the visit and private training it seems quite clear that they have identified 2 guys that could be here at 20 or 52 and that they like. I really don’t believe in the hype surrounding Perriman. DGB as such a big bust/ big win uncertainty that I’m pretty sure only a playoff team like NE or SEA will take the risk. White is such an awesome prospect sadly won’t be here at 20.

  64. 64 oreofestar said at 8:40 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    im just saying that unless 10 was go in the top 50 which I doubt them well be fine plus if they really Nelsom you can trade down and take him or trade up for him I still think Jones or Nelsom will be become Eagles they fit too well

  65. 65 GEAGLE said at 8:41 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    thats what they said about Marquis Lee

  66. 66 wee2424 said at 9:32 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    If Perriman can put it all together I think He could be great. He needs to work on his hands, hard. With his speed in college he never had to be a precise route runner. If he works on that and his hands I don’t see why he couldn’t become a very good player.

  67. 67 wee2424 said at 9:24 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I agree with this. I don’t think there is much of a difference talent wise in the two. Strong with this WR class is early 2nd round talent that may go in the first. I would rather go Oline or BPA in first with Agholor in 2nd if he is there. That is of course if BPA in round 1 is not a WR.

  68. 68 GEAGLE said at 9:27 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    i dont disagree, but i found it weird to see yesterday that Kiper is now Ranking Agholor as his #18th best prospect…. if thats how GMs are viewing him, we can kiss him goodbye in round 2

  69. 69 wee2424 said at 9:29 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You know how it is. There may be a team that views him as the 3rd best WR, and then a team that doesn’t even like him that much.

  70. 70 GEAGLE said at 9:35 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    yeah I certainly dont take Kipers opinion as Gospel, i was just surprised to see anyone rate him that high.. I knew he had been impressing this oredraft process, but I dont think its been that big of a surprise so I guess I didnt expect him to blow up like this……

    But even if we agree he is probably better suited for round 2, I assume Chip wont have the traditional view point on prospects and that Chip could look at a round 2 prospect, and LOV E him in round 1…and there is no one to stop him from pulling the trigger..

    I trust chip choosing players. ESPECIALLY offensive players for HIS offense…but I assume his draft will piss fans off because it probably wont match the value of these prospects brainwashed into our heads from months from all the predraft media…

    if every mock draft fans see for months has Agholor in round 2, and then chip drafts him in round 1, fans probably wont be too happy… Me, I will hope that chips evaluation is better then the Mel Kipers, especially for his offense…

  71. 71 wee2424 said at 10:06 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s very possible, but I think its very possible that Chip learned about draft value from Howie last year. He seems to be a guy that while implementing his own ideas he is open to learning. We will find out though.

  72. 72 Mitchell said at 9:53 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Then we take Strong and win anyway.

  73. 73 GEAGLE said at 8:36 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    important nugget of WR info:

    “I think you would think that I might get a whole lot more outside reps now just because Maclin is gone, but I already had talked to coaches, and they were already going to implement me more on the outside as opposed to just the inside regardless,” Matthews said. “I don’t think that’s a crazy, huge deal.”

    Kelly said last week that he can envision Matthews playing “a lot of different spots.” Kelly kept Matthews in the slot because they wanted him to learn only one position as a rookie. Now that Matthews is more comfortable entering his second season, that role can expand.

    Matthews said he ran the whole route tree as an inside receiver, and that playing the slot helped him with his physicality and navigating in traffic. He believes that will help him when playing on the outside.- via Zack Berman


    Huff is a chess piece that will be moved around everywhere even lining up in the backfield at time.
    ..
    Miles Austin, can line up outside or inside..
    ..
    Jordan is planning on moving around in year 2
    ..
    The rookie WR we draft will ONLY line up in one spot next year, because thats how chip treats all rookies with the exception of Jaylen Watkins who he let play multiple positions as a rookie. But come year two, the rookie WR we draft probably needs to be versatile enough to lineup inside and out…

  74. 74 GEAGLE said at 8:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    smh Elliot Shorr Parker strikes again…another Gem on his mission to try and make his readers as dumb as possible… welcome to Philly eagles coverage: http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/04/if_landon_collins_is_gone_will_eagles_start_earl_w.html
    ..
    “If Landon Collins is gone, will the eagles start Earl Wolff”…. LOL!!!!

    just to illustrate the difference between a Tom Lawlor eagle convo…. and a Local hack media thought process…. Thank you Tom, for being better then the local nonsense

  75. 75 oreofestar said at 8:20 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I hate Landon hope we don’t take him

  76. 76 GEAGLE said at 8:21 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I dont think you have to “hope”…

  77. 77 oreofestar said at 8:22 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yeah I would think we don’t have a first round grade on him

  78. 78 GEAGLE said at 8:31 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    i would think we dont even have him on our draft board

  79. 79 Mitchell said at 9:52 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Totally not worth #20. I’ve been saying, if you want someone like Collins, you might as well draft Thompson. He’s a better prospect anyway, imo.

  80. 80 GEAGLE said at 10:00 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    you want Landon Collins? might as well just play with all 3 of our ILBs on the field, Kendricks, Kiko, Meco…. Im not sure Collins can even cover better then Kiko or Kendricks lol….. If we are just going to spend a first round pick on a mini LB that is a Liability in coverage, might as well go with our 3 ILB’s while we are at it lol

  81. 81 Mitchell said at 12:55 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    No I don’t want him AT ALL.

  82. 82 Dominik said at 8:59 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You’re right about not being a scheme fit. I just wonder, after you missed on McCourty, wouldn’t it be time to change your scheme if Collins is the best player you can hope to add at this position in this season? It’s not like Jenkins wouldn’t be able to play centerfield. And it’s not like Collins isn’t viewed as a good prospect overall, it’s just he doesn’t fit the interchangeable Safety scheme.

    But it’s probably just me hoping we can fix this position, even if you have to change the scheme for it, rather than to HOPE we reach Nate Allen level of play next year.

    It’s funny, Chip changes things on Offense, but “holy hell, no way you could have a FS/SS combination at Safety. That would…” actually make your team better?

  83. 83 GEAGLE said at 9:02 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    no…. you arent going to change your entire defense, all the checks to go with a mini LB strong safety… for us the safety positon is about “Coverage”.. and I see them sticking a CB back there, before they ever change scheme and start using true strong safeties…. but I would love to be wrong. I love me a bernard pollard type of strong safety that will knock your head off!!! it just doesnt seem like it will happen with this regime..

  84. 84 eagleyankfan said at 8:26 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    That Marcus picks last year. Its off season so we beat it to death. I don’t care whose pick it was. I still say the Eagles were caught off guard and had to pick someone(by that, I mean, there was reported conversation that Howie had to talk CK into NOT taking JM. Sounds like there were discussions happening before that pick). My concern with Marcus was the lack of ‘talk’ about him in camp and during the season. You never read glowing remarks about his work ethic or ‘picking up the defense quickly’ or ‘he’s a smart kid out there’. Maybe he just got lost in shuffle last year. For what it’s worth, nobody is saying they’re expecting him to step up this year either. Again, maybe it’s the FA/Draft time of the year – but man is that camp on Marcus quiet.

  85. 85 Frencheaglesfan said at 8:30 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I kind of disagree, They were always saying that the talent and athleticism were there just as they expected. Chips insisted it was a problem of constitency (not such a surprising thing for a rookie). It didn’t help him that the starters were playing to such a high level, as well as to learn a different position by mid year (ILB). I still have big hopes for the guy. The only thing I was really disappointed with was his lack of special team reps.

  86. 86 eagleyankfan said at 8:37 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’m with you and hope I’m wrong. But as you said “lack of special team reps”. That’s another knock on him. Where are the “he’s a beast on special team” kind of talk. Basically, where are the positive comments? CK can’t say the kid stinks or is having difficulty with the nfl speed, so what else is there for CK to say? IF he was impressing the staff, CK would say something more positive there.
    …..
    Here’s an example. Huff. He already played a ton for a rookie and signs are showing he’s going to be a major player this year. We all know this. Why then does a report come out that he’s working hard and is ‘ripped’ and his burst has improved? That’s tremendous stuff to read even if it isn’t true. Where are the Marcus articles about his off season improvements?

  87. 87 GEAGLE said at 9:00 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    normally i would agree about ST, but this was a special circumstance, by a coach who put an insane emphasis in ST, and Marcus had beasts ahead of him at his ST positions:
    ..
    James Casey, practically a rich man because of his ST play
    .
    Burton, only made the roster because he was a ST beast.
    ..
    Brandon Graham played like a monster in his contract year.. that was the first year BG really blew up as a ST player, and it didnt come til year 5 of his career?
    ..
    Braman…. Only on this team because he is a special teams SAVAGE!

    who was marcu ever going to play ahead of? Marcus became a linebacker a few years ago, before that he grew up as a QB which means he probably didnt grow up playing ST…

  88. 88 eagleyankfan said at 9:02 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Sounds like you have still have hope. That’s a good thing. We’re all hoping to see that second year leap…

  89. 89 GEAGLE said at 9:06 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    second year leap, 3rd year leap, whatever….. just turn into a player worthy of the 1st round pick who we want to extend longterm and I’ll be happy…
    ..
    most of the reason he didnt play last year was a lack of strength, not uncommon for that position transitioning to the NFL… Sounds kind of foolish to rule out a kid who’s main problem is he needs to get stronger, when he has a world class strength and conditioning program behind him…. but to each his own….

  90. 90 Dominik said at 9:10 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You know what sucks more than not hearing good things about Marcus? Reading all the interest in early edge rushers. We have our starters in place, long term. And while you’d hope to see more out of Marcus during his rookie year, it was still his rookie year. But if you draft an edge rusher early now, the organisation shows you that they don’t believe in Marcus. Simple as that. I don’t want to hear shit about “bpa” when they pick an OLB in the first three rounds. They don’t trust him to be their #3 OLB, playing 30-40 percent of the snaps, if that’s the case.

    Having a bad rookie year is one thing. Not being trusted as a back-up in year 2 would be a really, really bad sign for a 1st rounder.

    An edge rusher in round 1 or 2, for me personally in round 3, would hurt on many levels. First, you don’t fix your holes at S or WR and you don’t get younger at the O-Line with this early pick, the three most important things imo in this draft. And second, you basically say Marcus is a bust. I know some say that already, but I would not say that about a rookie, even a 1st round rookie. But in drafting an edge rusher early, the organisation would say that and that would be sad.

  91. 91 BreakinAnklez said at 9:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I don’t think you say he’s a bust. He could be behind Barwin. I’m not sold Brandon Graham can be the full time starter. He did squat in last two games when he got his chance to start.

  92. 92 Dominik said at 9:15 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    They re-signed Graham to a solid starter contract. And they promised him a chance to start. Kelly doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who breaks his promises to players under contract.

    Drafting an edge rusher early would be because of Marcus, not because of Graham.

  93. 93 GEAGLE said at 9:18 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    dont you think every position should have a backup? or are you going to assume we can keep playing Barwin 97% of snaps on the defense thats on the field the most in the league for what the 3rd year in a row?… might want to prepare for the unfortune of him getting banged up and missing a 3 game stretch….. Brian Braman doesnt count….love Braman but he is no more of an OLB then Cody Parkey

  94. 94 Dominik said at 9:22 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You need depth at OLB, no doubt. Don’t forget Long, but I agree nonetheless. But you can get that in the later rounds. I’m not saying “don’t draft OLB at all”, I would only say that about RB or DL. I say don’t draft one early, which is round 1-3 for me.

  95. 95 GEAGLE said at 9:26 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    was a big fan of travis Long, but he has been significantly injured 3 of the last 3 seasons… he will have to be a pleasant surprise if he pans out, because no one is counting on him at this stage in their roster plans…. but I was a big fan of the kid and hope he can stay healthy and be the player he was…. im surely not expecting or counting on it

  96. 96 BreakinAnklez said at 10:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    He also said Nick Foles was our QB for the next 1,000 years. Graham got a reasonable contract. He hovers between $5-7M a year, at which point in 2 years we can get out with very minimal dead money. He’s in the middle of the pack salary wise, which is where he is as a player.

    If a dynamic player like Dupree, Beasley, etc. falls, we take them. Graham has never proven he can be the starter. Give him some competition. It also has the added benefit of pushing MS II

  97. 97 GEAGLE said at 9:16 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    yeah i dont view it that way at all….

    Im a marcus fan, and I still want us to draft Bud Dupree.. why?
    1) need multiple edge rushers to throw at defenses
    .
    2) Only have 3 OLB’s.. need a 4th… two veteran starters BG/Barwin, need two OLBs on rookie contracts behind them. Marcus is 1, draft hopefully provides #2
    ..
    dont think its a need to where we HAVE to get an OLB n the draft, but if I can get my hands on fowler(not happening) or Bud Dupree(doubtful), Id take them and run!!!
    ..
    and THAT has nothing to do with Maaaaaarcus Daaaaarling!

  98. 98 Dominik said at 9:19 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Allocation of resources, buddy. Two starter contracts, two first round picks (who you draft because you expect them to get good starter contracts when the extension time comes…), only two players can start –> bad allocation of resources.

  99. 99 GEAGLE said at 9:24 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    yeah, dont quote my own phrase lol….
    ..
    allocation of resources huh? we talking about one of the 3 premier positions… go tell the seattle seahawks about skimping on t he edge rusher position, and they have the best secondary the league has seen in YEARS..
    ..
    talking about a position where you ALWAYS need to have at least 3 Playes rotating in every single game.. we have 3 right now, you cant assume none will ever get hurt.. you cant be left with two edge rushers in a game, and we talking one of the most expensve positions to fill in free agency..
    ..
    to act like its ok to have 3 OLB’s, and not one will ever get hurt or dinged up is absurd… and its a position that is grossly over drafted because of its importance so you are going to have to get one in the first few rounds, or dont bother at all…. I dont think we need to chase OLBs in this draft…. but i dont think there is any way we would pass on one if someone we really love is available
    ..
    but we’ll see.

  100. 100 Dominik said at 9:35 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You’re right about the importance of edge rushers, but I’m right when it comes to allocation of resources. 😉

    See, in a perfect world we filled all our holes at FA and draft simply the best prospect there is in our opinion. FA is filling holes, Draft is for the future, you don’t care about the position.

    Thing is, we don’t life in a perfect world. Because of the roster turnover, we couldn’t fix our holes this Offseason in FA. And because of that, you don’t have the luxury to go bpa, imo.

    We’re not re-building, then you don’t care. Chip is win now and if you’re win now, you better not have any glaring holes on your roster. You can get away with a lack of depth at some positions, depends on the position and depends on luck.

    But it’s very tough to overcome glaring holes when it comes to starters. People like to say “well, Belichick won the SB with Patrick Chung”, but Billy D is no Belichick. Not even close. Not even the same universe. Billy D thought it was a good idea to let Bradley Fletcher cover the best Receivers in the game one on one. He needs talent, especially in the Secondary, he simply isn’t good at scheming for the Secondary.

  101. 101 GEAGLE said at 9:44 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I dont think they botched the OLB building… I think this is THE PERFECT World scenario… two quality edge rushers BG and Barwin being paid good money… two quality young talents with 4-5yrs of cheap rookie salary, being groomed behind them to eventually hopefully be good enough to get extended and take over when the veterans ahead of them contract expires..
    ..
    If you want to talk about “allocation of resources”… cost 20mil in Guarantees just to get an 8 sack edge rusher in fee agency these days… getting 3rd and 4th edge rushers on 1st or 2nd round salary for 5 years is how you Allocate Resources at such an expensive and important position…. and if you can find a future starting OLB in round 4 or 5, god bless you, even better,..
    ..
    but until we get a 4th, I view that as a NEED!.too important of a position…
    ..
    Last year Marcus was our 4th, he didnt play much, we didnt need him to since Barwin, Cole and BG all stayed healthy for 16 games… but you can bet that if one had gotten hurt for 4-5 games, Marcus would have been thrust into rotation action…
    ..
    I wish we could count on Long. Shame what that kid is going thru with injuries these past 3 years..but he cant be counted on…. hopefully you get your way and we dont draft an OLB til round 5 and he ends up being the next trent Cole…. but for me, if Bud Dupree falls to #20, I think it would be criminal to pass on such a savage! plus couch Minter was his defensive coordinator a few years ago, so he should know how nasty he can be…. but we’ll see, fortunately we are 4 weeks away….

  102. 102 Dominik said at 9:49 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    G, I’m not against having good OLBs. But the way this roster stands right now, there are simply other positions to fill.

    How did our OLB depth helped us last year when our O-Line had injury problems and no depth? These are the kind of things I’m talking about when we talk about alocation of resources.

  103. 103 GEAGLE said at 9:52 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    and Im not suggesting that its some IMMEDIATE NEED we will chase and draft early at ALL costs…. I just dont believe that Bud Dupree would fall to #20 and we would pass on him. I cant possibly believe that, but thats just my opinion, I dont know that to be the case at all…. lucky for you, he probably doesnt fall THAT far…

  104. 104 GEAGLE said at 9:57 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    but if we are talking allocation of resources..
    ..
    Odds are that you come out with a better combo of players by drafting an OLB in round 1 or 2, and an OL in round 4.. instead of drafting OL in round 1/2 and drafting an OLB in round 4…

    BTW, I think we have next years starting OL, so your OL NEED is just a DEPTH NEED, no different then my 4th OLB NEED….. and you are talking to a former offensive lineman who would love to draft both Oregon Guards in the first 3 rounds…. so im really not even disagreeing with you…I just think that if we have a chance at a player we view as an ELITE future pass rusher, you take him Over a Guard….
    ..
    I expect Barbre and Mathis to start next year with Tobin being an acceptable backup(if he is the only backup that needs to play and doesnt find a different backup lined up next to him every game)..so your OL NEED, is NO BIGGER then my OLB NEED…atleast in terms of immediate needs..

  105. 105 Dominik said at 10:03 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    If he truly is the elite talent you believe he is, it would be one thing. But then I read we brought in Odighizuwa for a visit, an athlete without production in College, and we’re talking 2nd round – that’s the kind of picks I would really hate.

    To be honest, I haven’t watched Odighizuwa tape, but he cleary seems like a raw prospect. Sorry, we have one of these at the position already. It’s not like Marcus will ever be hold back by his athleticism. I’m really in no mood to go for raw talent early on again.

    In the later rounds – sure. There is value in rawness compared to more ready, but never going to be great players because they lack the athleticsm. But in the early rounds, I want players who can contribute early on. Not Pro Bowlers and things like that, but contributors.

  106. 106 GEAGLE said at 10:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    i like Omigawbe, but I like him if we go the vinny Curry route with him and move him into the interior pass rush role if we lose vinny next year…. probably weird to have them both on the roster tho, and I prefer not losing my man Vinny..

  107. 107 GEAGLE said at 10:12 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    we are also talking to shane Ray, doubt he would fall to us tho

  108. 108 unhinged said at 11:11 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    What if the edge rusher in round 1 becomes a starter in year 1? Graham has been rewarded for diligence and commitment in learning a new position, but an edge rusher in round 1 – if he’s the right guy – would be a natural at the position, and Graham could conceivably be backing him up by playoff time. This draft is thin on safeties, deep on WR and OL. After QB, edge rusher is the other exception to the resource-allocation argument. Of the 32 teams in the league less than half have great QB’s, and the number for edge rushers is right there.

  109. 109 b3nz0z said at 12:07 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    nope. BPA or death

  110. 110 RobNE said at 9:05 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Barnwell considers what the Titans should do in the draft, and when talking trade considers the Eagles out of the running b/c they got Bradford. Wow, that’s a big jump to conclusion there.

    http://grantland.com/the-triangle/second-city-blues-what-should-the-titans-do-with-their-no-2-pick/

  111. 111 GEAGLE said at 9:08 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    lol bigger jump are the morons who actually think its reasonable for us to trade that high…. but I digress..

  112. 112 RobNE said at 9:43 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    well we can disagree about whether it makes sense but I think that concluding Bradford trade means Chip has no interest in MM is really dumb.

  113. 113 unhinged said at 10:54 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Barnwell doesn’t make that conclusion. He’s not convinced Kelly would give up a #2 to get Bradford when, in his words, he could have used that #2 to move up for Mariotta, if that was his intention. Nobody in their right mind is going to argue that Chip has no interest in Mariotta.

  114. 114 botto said at 12:22 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    thank god

  115. 115 eagleyankfan said at 9:18 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    “People ask me about being the No. 1 wide receiver; Forget it. I want us to be a receiving corps. That’s what I want it to be,” Matthews said, via the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I don’t think one ‘No. 1 wide receiver’ was in the Super Bowl this year, but they’re two Super Bowl-winning teams that have receiving corps that work their butts off, that block in the run game, that catch the ball when they have to. Whatever public perception about what they think we should look like or what they think we need, if we go out there and put a product on the field that wins games, then we can change all perceptions.”
    …..
    Have to love this kids attitude….

  116. 116 GEAGLE said at 9:19 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    i think he will look like a Monster this year,… im talking an alshon Jeffries type of year two Leap

  117. 117 anon said at 9:23 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    ok

  118. 118 GEAGLE said at 9:30 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    to clarify, I dont expect him to look like alshon jeffries. stylistically they arent very similar.. just talking about the kind of leap that Jeffries made from his rookie year to second season

  119. 119 Donald Kalinowski said at 1:16 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Great way to say “I’m not a #1 receiver” 🙂

  120. 120 MattE said at 1:32 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Having (3) 1,000 yd receivers sounds awfully nice in this equal opportunity scoring offense.

  121. 121 Jernst said at 4:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’ve literally never seen any player come into the league with an attitude this good.

  122. 122 EaglesFan1 said at 9:21 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Couplin reminds me of a defensive version of Momah based on what we know so far. Big, athletic, practice squad player who, if he puts it all together, can be a nightmare for opposing teams.

  123. 123 GEAGLE said at 9:29 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    no defensive coordinators will ever be having nightmares of Momah.

  124. 124 EaglesFan1 said at 11:25 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I share that exact same sentiment

  125. 125 OldDocMcQuackadillyBlip said at 9:38 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    If this is intended as praise, it isn’t.

    Momah was terrible at football. Just awful.

  126. 126 EaglesFan1 said at 11:24 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Haha it’s not praise at all. Just something I thought of

  127. 127 James said at 12:17 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I wouldnt qualify him as being awful at football. Momah is more like mediocre/bad that couldnt make it at the pro level.

  128. 128 OldDocMcQuackadillyBlip said at 2:26 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yay, let’s not say any players are terrible as long as they’re better than a guy on the street. Participation ribbons all round!

    Momah sucks. Out loud. Ridiculous that some people got so excited about him.

  129. 129 wee2424 said at 2:29 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Not really, he had all the things you couldn’t teach. The exciting part was whether or not he would learn the things you could teach. The NFL is littered with players that just couldn’t make it their first try, or maybe 2 or 3, then something turned on and they lit it up.

  130. 130 OldDocMcQuackadillyBlip said at 4:05 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    In the nicest possible way my good sir, no. No, no, no.

    No.

    He was tall and allegedly fast at running in straight lines. That was it. He could not play football. It was pretty obvious that the gargantuan talent gap he needed to overcome just to make a 53 was vanishingly unlikely to ever be bridged.

    Will Murphy was considered a more worthwhile member of the practise squad because he could at least be a passable facsimile of an NFL receiver in drills. Momah could not.

    Because he sucked. Out loud.

  131. 131 wee2424 said at 2:45 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I don’t think you are fully understanding what I am saying. It’s obvious at this point he cannot play. I agree on that. What I am saying is IF he could put other things together he could be a force with his size and straight speed. That’s why it was exciting, because IF he could work on his deficiencys and improve on them he had the ability to be good with the size and flat out speed he has. Obviously Chip and ARZ agree on that, and that is why teams keep giving him shots.

  132. 132 OldDocMcQuackadillyBlip said at 2:56 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Giving him shots…..and then cutting him.

    I’m entirely understanding what you’re saying. The point is that the “if” in your argument is ridiculous. He was never going to be able to correct his deficiencies because they amounted to a complete inability to play football.

    He had the tools to be a force in the same sense I have the fundamental tools to become a brain surgeon (working limbs, possession of all my faculties). I mean, I haven’t the least bit of medical knowledge but hey, you can’t teach four working limbs and a fully functioning brain!

    His upside, if he was super lucky, was to be a decent camp body and fringe roster player. That’s it. Being tall and running in straight lines doesn’t make you an exciting prospect unless you have a semblance of talent to back it up. Momah did not. Because suck.

  133. 133 wee2424 said at 3:06 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    The IF is not ridiculous. The IF factor is there with ever player some more then others. Obviously it was larger with him. We know now he sucks. But we took a low risk gamble to see if he could do it. He couldn’t. Taking a shot on a low risk high reward is not ridiculous. Hind sight is 20/20, you are saying it was stupid to do it because you know NOW he can’t crack it. Well no crap. Don’t you think it’s apparent that the NFL coaches who see him everyday saw something in him to keep giving him a shot? Something that you couldn’t see for obvious reasons. If you were so short sighted then it’s very possible you wouldn’t have given alot of these late round picks or UDFAs the chance to improve where ALOT of them have, and are actually huge contributors to the sport. Him and players like him are the reason the practice squad is around.

  134. 134 OldDocMcQuackadillyBlip said at 3:17 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Hind sight is 20/20, you are saying it was stupid to do it because you know NOW he can’t crack it.

    This isn’t what I’m saying. Fire on. Give him a shot. There’s 90 spots, feel free to take a flier with some of ’em.

    What I’m saying is that the level of hype and expectation that built up around Momah by some fans was patently ridiculous. They acted like he had a legitimate shot at greatness (or at least very-goodness) based on nothing but his height and his alleged ability to run quickly in a straight line. That’s the definition of ridiculous.

    It is not hindsight to say he sucked. It was blindingly obvious as soon as he stepped on a football field.

    This doesn’t mean you should stop taking chances on projects in training camp. It *does* mean that fans should probably moderate their expectations for players whose talent is negligible. Even if those players are tall enough to reach things from the very highest of shelves.

  135. 135 wee2424 said at 5:21 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I think me and you are agreeing and debating at the same time. I agree with everything you just said. There is a difference in being excited that he may turn out to be a good player and just thinking he probably will be a good player. You can have excitement for a very raw player but expecting someone like Momah to be good is foolish. I may forget some comments, but I really don’t remember seeing any that go farther then let’s hope he puts it together and becomes a half decent player.

  136. 136 anon said at 10:00 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s over for Sam Bradford: Redskins acquired FS Dashon Goldson and a 2016 seventh-round pick from the Bucs in exchange for a 2016 sixth-round pick.

  137. 137 GEAGLE said at 10:02 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    LOL… If Sam is healthy he will light shit up… just watch…
    ..
    Im worried that he “lights shit up for 3 game”, the ultimate cock tease, and then gets hurt for the year and we are stuck with 12 games of sanchez..
    ..
    Goldson lol, will they ever prioritize adding players that can actually cover in the redskin secondary/?

  138. 138 Dominik said at 10:06 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s not like Goldson wouldn’t have been a good upgrade for us…

    And a 6th against a 7th in ’16 is really no biggie. Goldson has a bad contract, but they can threaten to cut him, since the Buccs will swallow the dead money. And the draft pick investment isn’t a big deal. I think they can restructure him and then they improved at Safety and we didn’t.

  139. 139 GEAGLE said at 10:10 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    who are the bucs safeties if they traded him and Mark Barron?

  140. 140 unhinged said at 1:19 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Just like Eagle nation has been waiting for a safety that slightly resembles Dawk, ‘Skins have been trying to get back to Sean Taylor. McCloughan drafted Goldson in SF, but doubt that he’ll make any fans in DC forget about ST. 2 years of nothing in Tampa and the guy’s still getting paid.

  141. 141 wee2424 said at 2:26 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Honestly I think you would be surprised at how bad he really has been the past two years. Being dead serious he was worse then Nate Allen last year.

  142. 142 CrackSammich said at 12:56 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    That’s one hell of a deal by Washington. Don’t tell me their FO is figuring it’s act out…

  143. 143 GEAGLE said at 9:34 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Lol 8mil for a bum, you would praise their front office smh

  144. 144 CrackSammich said at 1:41 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Move back 30ish spots for a vet? Especially for a team that has no respect for the salary cap, it’s a steal. He’s at least replacement level, which is hard to come by for safeties.

  145. 145 botto said at 3:46 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    what’s he got to do with Sammy boy?

  146. 146 wee2424 said at 2:25 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    The Dashon Goldson that is WAY overrated, old, and has actually been one of the lesser safeties in the league the past two years? All’s he is now is just name recognition.

  147. 147 Ben Hert said at 10:13 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I think one of the most important things we need to improve safety play is a stable back 4, consistency of scheme, and a good DB coach. Good players are important too, but the secondary, to me, seems like much more of a coordinated, group effort, than anything in the front 7. And by maintaining consistency in the important aspects of safety play, it would give us a much better shot at having a solid secondary.

    When I think about how you judge a safety, its about his instincts and ability to make the right decisions. Front 7 stuff, while still having aspects of that, seems more predicated on having the ability to beat guys one on one, and having phsyical control of your body, or opponent. Secondary stuff seems to focus being able to mentally control the backfield, and putting yourself in a position to make a play. I can’t say for certain if instincts and intelligence like that are genetic or taught, and I’m sure its a bit a both, but it seems like something that can be taught more easily than the ability to pass-rush or control a gap.

    To me, its less about cycling through players until we find the next dawkins, and more about finding guys that can handle the physical responsibilities and play as part of a unit. Once that is established, then it becomes about the ability to coach those guys to play as one.

  148. 148 James said at 12:14 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Secondary is in flux, way less coordinated than the front 7 in my eyes. If we grab Byron Jones, I would feel much much better though.

  149. 149 Insomniac said at 12:33 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    B&B would make me feel much better too.

    Byron & Byron. Bed & Breakfast

  150. 150 James said at 12:45 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    The Legion of Bed and Breakfast would be equally tasteful and intimidating.

  151. 151 Insomniac said at 2:20 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Makes you sleep better at night lol

  152. 152 James said at 2:39 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    niiiiiiiiiice hah

  153. 153 anon said at 10:14 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Jordan Matthews has been working with Cris Carter in Florida this offseason.

  154. 154 GEAGLE said at 10:30 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Jordan Matthews has been working with Cris Carter in Florida this offseason.
    Matthews has been focused on speed and weight training this year, in addition to position-specific drills, after not being able to hone his craft in the pre-draft come-up last offseason. The second-year receiver already has the reputation as a tireless worker and is out to improve on his 67-872-8 receiving line from 2014. Matthews expects to see more opportunities on the outside in year two.-roto

    wonder how much speed you can improve on in an offseason?

  155. 155 BreakinAnklez said at 12:27 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I assume it’s more burst/explosion than pure speed.

  156. 156 Insomniac said at 12:37 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yup. If people could actually get faster when they’re already in shape then we would have had more people like Usain Bolt in the NFL already.

  157. 157 MattE said at 1:13 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yeah but guys built like JMatt can be taught to create longer strides

  158. 158 Insomniac said at 2:02 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    He already does that.

  159. 159 Jernst said at 4:45 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    yea you can definitely improve a little bit. You can train your muscles to be more quick twitch…slightly, because it takes an awful lot to change the composition of your muscle fibers. You can train to alter your stride slightly. You can definitely train to improve your release so there’s less wasted motion. But, when it comes to pure speed you’re pretty much what your genetics allow you to be.

  160. 160 GEAGLE said at 9:33 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Good post….Apparently people think you are born at a certain speed and won’t run any faster no matter how hard you work, but yes, Jordan can improve a little. Obviously he won’t add a significant amount, but at his level, every little bit helps

  161. 161 botto said at 1:47 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    ask Nick… you can’t.

  162. 162 wee2424 said at 2:21 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Barely noticeable top speed wise, but the initial burst which is more important you can really improve on.

  163. 163 Mitchell said at 12:00 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I think foot speed is tremendously important and doing things like line jumps, the dot drill, ski jumps, even jump rope can make you more explosive. All of these drills train your brain to get your foot more quickly off the ground once it strikes. The theory being less time on the ground is less time standing still. So, while too speed is something difficult to improve on at a certain level, foot speed is something I think can always be worked on. I do not buy the whole, ” people can’t get faster at this level.” its bull. The problem is, the amount of work you would have to put in to increase pure speed isn’t worth it. In summation, foot speed to me would be more important and easier to improve upon.

  164. 164 James said at 12:50 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Wait… this Cris fellow doesnt still have a “problem” does he?

  165. 165 Mark Sitko said at 11:58 AM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Tommy – can you help me with something – all the beats, even you, seem to dismiss Collins because he isn’t great at single high or playing man on slot WR, so then the logic seems to go…well, Collins isn’t perfect, so clearly the Eagles will pass on him and take one of these EVEN LESS PERFECT S that will be available in rounds 2 – 5…I mean, no team has 2 safties that can do it all – NONE – so why would the Eagles pass on the best S in the draft? I don’t get it – I mean, ask Kam Chancellor (from the greatest S pairing in the league) if he worries about not being able to play single high or man on a slot WR? Right?

  166. 166 b3nz0z said at 12:10 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    allegedly it would limit our scheme since the ideal is mirrored play. i agree with you, however, that a little flexibility would go a long way.

  167. 167 Brian Pillion said at 12:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    It’s the same thing I’d argue as the Kendricks situation. It’s a question of resource allocation. You don’t give Kendricks a big second contract if he doesn’t fit what you want to do scheme wise and you don’t invest a first round pick in a safety who doesn’t fit what you want to do scheme wise. That doesn’t mean both aren’t very good players.

  168. 168 GEAGLE said at 4:36 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    he doesnt fit your scheme? lol funny chip talks about how and I quote “we are a different team with kendricks on the field”… have you seen him play the past two years? where does anyone get off saying he isnt a fit for the scheme, he is turning into a stud playing in this scheme…
    ..
    assumptions that we will lose a great young player because we didnt want to lose an injured old man from our locker room for another year? the media has been saying this is meco’s last year for the past 3 years, now he is 10months when the season starts removed from a major injury at the age of 31, and the assumption is we will piss away one of our best young players? interesting….

    if there is no mariota trade, lets see how thrilled fans are about losing Mykal… wonder when people will realize that Meco wont be ready to play football at a high level 10 months after surgery?…
    ..
    since Meco, Kendricks, and Kiko are all coming off injuries, Meco restructured to save us money, and Kiko and Kendricks are on cheap second round rookie contracts, is it that unbelievable for people to think all 3 will be here this year?
    ..
    our entire stable of ILB’s will cost under 10mil, and thats with Kiko, Kendricks, Meco, Brad Jones and Acho…
    ..
    we’ll see about this…

  169. 169 Brian Pillion said at 6:53 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Well, it’s been talked to death by myself and several others, but I doubt you have too much time to read what anyone else writes what with your apparent quota of 10,000 posts a day (additionally, I think your . button may be broken), but here goes: that quote you so lovingly misinterpret, that “we are a different team with Kendricks on the field” was Chip (over-)stressing the issues he’s had with Kendricks’ durability. Kendricks HAS played very well the past two years, but simply put Chip wants a taller player at ILB. Because Chip wants a taller player at ILB, he will not pay the sub-6′ Kendricks close to what he’d be able to earn on the open market (from an organization who places a higher value on what he CAN do). As such, Kendricks is almost definitely gone after next year, at the latest. Rather than lose him for nothing (assuming we’ll be active in free agency again next year), it makes a ton more sense to trade him at the draft, independent of whether or not we make a play for Mariota. Jones, Goode, and Acho give us depth behind ‘Meco, should he not be ready for the start of the season. Additionally, as D3FB and others have noted, I think you’ll probably see us target a (tall!) ILB early (Anthony or McKinney). You say, “if there is no mariota trade, lets see how thrilled fans are about losing Mykal [sic],” but quite honestly, who cares? Certainly not Chip.

  170. 170 Mitchell said at 12:59 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    We’d have to change our scheme to fit Collins because he is going to get abused at the NFL level. There are more pressing and important needs than safety, especially at 20, such as, OL, OLB and WR. If you wanted to go Collins, I think Thompson would be a better fit because he has more uspdoe and far better from a coverage point. Finally, just because everyone says Collins is the best doesn’t make it true and different safeties who can be had lower in the draft probably have more upside and better scheme fit.

  171. 171 Insomniac said at 2:17 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I wouldn’t rule out a “box” safety in this scheme. If Billy D can find his Adrian Wilson then go get him. That being said, Collins isn’t even on the same level as a prospect as Wilson was or ever will be.

  172. 172 Mitchell said at 10:15 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    That’s totally fine but then we have to make sure we have a sideline to sideline safety. Is Jenkins that guy?

  173. 173 Insomniac said at 11:03 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Yes. In a lot of ways Jenkins is similar to Antrel Rolle who played that role opposite of Wilson. They did just fine.

  174. 174 D3FB said at 6:32 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    The difference being that the Seahawks run a scheme that uses a box safety. It’s a philosophical difference.

    You wouldn’t draft a 5’11 280lbs 3-tech, or a 400lbs sluggish OL.

    Why? Because they don’t fit what we do.

  175. 175 wee2424 said at 2:16 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Because he isn’t the best S in the draft for what we want him to do. Their are other safeties that you can take later that will do what we want them to do better then Collins. With his type of play I highly doubt every team has him rated as their best safety. He would be a huge liability attempting to do what we ask our safeties to do. Put Kam in our system he would fail. Honestly Collins really even isn’t that good.

  176. 176 b3nz0z said at 12:04 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    dashon goldson to the skins

  177. 177 James said at 12:12 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    If DeSean Jackson were still on the Eagles That would be an automatic concussion. Maybe he’ll do it to him in practice tho.

  178. 178 Daniel Lee said at 12:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    is couplin really not an option?

  179. 179 Insomniac said at 12:50 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Couplin needs to..

    1. beat out his camp competition
    2. make the team
    3. dominate in the pre-season
    4. pray that everyone else stinks more than he does

  180. 180 wee2424 said at 1:12 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    He has great measurable and athletic ability, but if he is on teams practice squads and burried on the depth chart when on the roster, that means he is lacking in all of the other departments. The good news is that the stuff you can’t teach he has, the stuff you can teach he doesn’t seem to have yet. It’s up to the coaching staff and most importantly him to progress. As of right now he is not a starting or maybe even backup safety in this league. The best safety we have on this team right now after Jenkins is Wolf.

  181. 181 botto said at 1:21 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    the year of the wolff

  182. 182 wee2424 said at 4:51 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Unless he looks bad in TC and pre-season I am actually sort of excited to see him start. As a rookie he showed some real flash at times. More athletic then Mate and Jenkins. We all ripped on him because he was constantly saying he was hurt. Apparently he really was. Micro fracture surgery isn’t that small of a deal. I think if he is healthy he may surprise alot of us. It will be his third year. I know he hasn’t seen the field much but there should still be improvement from his rookie year. Safety is a cerebral position, and just from practice and film it should have helped him to improve. He is strong, good quickness and closing speed, decent hands. Chip couldn’t get McCourty and it almost seems as though he didn’t think a safety other then him was worth it. Maybe he has high hopes for Wolff.

  183. 183 botto said at 7:10 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I agree, I thought he looked super athletic and fast and tough. he should be better this year. maybe he is our guy.

  184. 184 wee2424 said at 10:29 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    That’s the best case scenario. I think the majority of people are counting that out.

  185. 185 GEAGLE said at 4:27 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    we got him off waivers… you think starting options at a position so scarce are just sitting on waivers waiting to be signed for cheap?

  186. 186 GermanEagle said at 12:51 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Tommy,

    Did you know that the Redskins Front Office is also reading your blog?!

  187. 187 MattE said at 1:25 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Tommy,
    If Snyder offers you their GM job I will hold no ill will, just better keep the blog going and not forget about us little people lol.

  188. 188 Frencheaglesfan said at 1:49 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    That would be a dream scenario, Tommy gets the GM job, trade the whole draft to the eagles in exchange of Barkley, gets fired. Eagles thank him with a job. Profit + Superbowl.

  189. 189 Patrick said at 1:36 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Link?

  190. 190 GermanEagle said at 2:44 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/04/03/bucs-trade-dashon-goldson-to-washington/

  191. 191 Donald Kalinowski said at 1:09 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Bucs are paying the $4 million that’s guaranteed on Goldson’s contract. Not a bad deal by Washington. Goldson got it good. He’ll probably get paid the full $8 million since two teams will be splitting the bill. Otherwise he would have gotten cut and then would have signed with another team for $1-2 million deal.

  192. 192 GermanEagle said at 1:13 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    He would have gotten more as a free agent on today’s open market. Have you seen these ridiculous deals these days?!

  193. 193 Greg Richards said at 2:46 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Goldson has played horribly the past 2 years.

  194. 194 GermanEagle said at 2:47 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    So has Nate Allen…

  195. 195 BreakinAnklez said at 3:42 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Also 3-4 years younger

  196. 196 unhinged said at 5:34 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    6 years.

  197. 197 BreakinAnklez said at 6:52 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Goldson is 30, turning 31. Nate is 27, turning 28.

  198. 198 unhinged said at 7:53 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    You’re correct sir. Don’t know who I was mistaking for our once -decent safety.

  199. 199 GEAGLE said at 4:22 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    shhhhh he has a big name, let the dopes cry…

  200. 200 GermanEagle said at 7:02 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Who’s crying?!

    I never said that Goldson is any good nor that I would sign and pay him lots of money.

    I am just of the opinion that he would have gotten at least a $3m / year deal from someone. And that’s not far-fetched at all if you look at the recent deals in this year’s free agency.

    Blimey even a Miles Austin just signed for $2.3m…

  201. 201 eagleyankfan said at 1:30 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Is that dead money that counts against the cap?

  202. 202 Bert's Bells said at 1:59 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Yeah, I think 4 million is against TB’s cap -which means he’s already banked it. Then there’s a roster bonus he’s due of $4 million (?) that’s on DC now.

  203. 203 James said at 2:37 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    1-2 million.. aaaaah, no.

  204. 204 ICDogg said at 3:33 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Just found this “Chip Foley” pic when searching for something else. Apparently “I’m Chip James bitch!” hasn’t been done yet.

    http://i889.photobucket.com/albums/ac98/Beavfan83/ChipFoleyMotivationalspeaker.gif

  205. 205 Insomniac said at 3:44 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    What’s the consensus on Byron Jones being our first round pick here?

  206. 206 NinjaP said at 3:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Chip gonna chip

  207. 207 Alistair Middlemiss said at 4:05 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Really like him, and has the athletic profile to be able to be dominant if he can achieve his potential, which is always a plus point. Good players who can never be great due to limited physical skills are frustrating.

    I am liking the depth of the WR’s in this draft more and more. Some really interesting later round prospects (Kenny Ball and Dres Anderson are personal favourites) so i think you can go BPA first 2 rounds and come around for OL and WR picks 3-5 where you can still find starters (and i think WR at that point may well be BPA).

  208. 208 Frencheaglesfan said at 4:19 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I like this idea a lot but what about OL?

  209. 209 Alistair Middlemiss said at 4:31 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I am up in the air, i would be happy if they went OL back to back in 1st and 2nd, and would be happy if they went for OL much later.

    Good OL can be found throughout the draft, and while we have long term big need at both OG spots we can make do this season with Babre and Mathis and be effective. If we miss on OL this draft we will have to spend premium resources next year (FA or high draft), but we can ‘gamble’ on options this year.

  210. 210 GEAGLE said at 4:38 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    good players at every position can be found throughout the draft… hopefully we have decision makers who can identify these players

  211. 211 wee2424 said at 2:10 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I think if you don’t spend some early draft resources during this draft you will have a very good chance of a repeat from last year on the line. Every old player on that line is another year older. At this point in time the depth is worse do to the cutting of Herremans. We invested ALOT of resources in RB and our very fragile QB. Barber may just be adequate, but I think we may need better then that, and god forbid him or Mathis goes down. We can’t afford to have the guards (Tobin or Gardner) just pushed back into the RBs or QBs face again. We didn’t draft a single OL last year. I think last season proved we really need to go OL early. There are guys early that really match our system very well. Clemmings, Fisher, and Marpet in the second. Let’s make our Oline young and dominate again. Well at least the majority of it young. You don’t want to go into 2016 season having to possibly replace both LG and RG, and then maybe RT because Peter’s will definitely be slowing down considerably then and Johnson having to move over there.

  212. 212 Frencheaglesfan said at 4:24 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Byron Bias

  213. 213 D3FB said at 6:25 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I’m D3FB and I endorse this pick.

  214. 214 wee2424 said at 11:00 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Would you take him over Clemmings and/or Fisher? I think I would take him over Fisher but not Clemmings. If you did take him in the first would you try him at safety?

  215. 215 D3FB said at 1:11 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Over Fisher yes. Clemmings, that would be a tough call. Probably just due to positional scarcity. You can go get a Mitch Morse in the third. Who are you going to draft in the third at CB? Alex Carter or D’Joun Smith? Ehhhhh.

    I would play him at CB first. It’s alot easier to have him move to safety and put on 10lbs in 2 years, having worked on his coverage ability and learned the defense than it is to have him lose 10lbs in a couple years and try to get him used to man coverage all the time again.

    Additionally a shutdown corner is probably more valuable than a very good safety.

  216. 216 wee2424 said at 1:49 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    You think he has the ability to be a shutdown corner? I’m not debating just asking. That is putting him in very high company. There are only arguably 2 of those in the league right now in Revis and Sherman. The reason both of them are so good is 4 reasons: their physical nature, intelligence (game tape), power in and out of cuts, and their hips. Jones has the physical nature of play, he seems to have the intelligence, however he is slow at times from getting out of the back pedal and his hips aren’t as fluid as you would like for a shutdown corner. This effects him getting in and out of cuts/breaks. He has other physical abilities that are better then both Revis and Sherman but I believe his hips are what could hold him back from being that shutdown corner. I’m not a scout, I haven’t watched tape on him. I have simply read alot of reviews on him and that is what I based my info on. I just think if you are slow to get out of back peddle, not great hips, and at times slow getting in and out of breaks, that will keep you from being a shut down CB. He is very explosive but that is different then being what you can refer to as a quick twitch athlete.

  217. 217 D3FB said at 7:39 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I have to disagree. Unless people are getting tape I haven’t seen, his hips and footwork are very good (he’s got some minor technique stuff to clean up but so does everyone), the only issue I have with his tape is he can get a bit panicky with the ball in the air.

  218. 218 wee2424 said at 9:10 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Gotcha. I trust your judgment. I like I said am not a scout. This information was based on some reports I read, the major one a piece on BGN. From those reports is where I made my judgment. If the FO believes he can develop into a shutdown CB then you would have to take him in the first considering how scarce true shutdown CBs are. If you think he could really be a shutdown CB then I assume you think he is the best in the draft? I know he won’t fall to Seattle but I hate to think what they could do with him. They seem to be able to take big athletic DBs (even when not regarded as good coming out) and develop them into great players. Someone needs to spy on their secondary coaches. They do this on a very consistent basis. The benefit of great coaching.

  219. 219 D3FB said at 10:11 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Ehhhh Seattle still misses more than they make. For every Maxwell or Browner, there is a Tharold Simon, Eric Pinkins, Mark Legree, Jeremy Lane.

    Byron Jones is my 2nd CB. He played against lower level comp and doesn’t have a ton of time at the position. While he has shutdown ability he’s more likely to grow into a legit top CB ala Cromartie, Haden, or Maxwell.

    I mean maybe Kaye is seeing something I’m not, but here’s a 5 min clip against him v ECU and I just don’t see the hip problems.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7_QyaJ0-E8

  220. 220 wee2424 said at 11:44 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I’m going to watch it right now. What draft position was Lane selected? I thought he was one of the better slot CBs in the league. Your right, they do have misses, but I think their ability to turn alot of UDFA or late round secondary talent into very good players is impressive, probably more impressive then any other team right now.

  221. 221 D3FB said at 1:49 AM on April 5th, 2015:

    Lane was a 6th round pick (originally ours, part of the Cox trade) he’s primarily been a special teamer, he played a little bit for them this year, he’s pretty meh. Better than their other depth options, but he’s a jag.

    Browner and Maxwell are the only guys I’m really willing to give them credit for developing.

    -Kam was a good college player, it’s just nobody knew what the hell to do with a 6’3 235lbs safety.
    -Sherman was one of three midround press corners in that draft that everybody really liked. You had Marsh (measurables and speed to burn, highest upside), Cortez Allen (most consistent, but played at Citadel) and Sherman (flashed on tape, but ran slow). Personally I had it as 1.Allen. 2. Sherm 3. Marsh in that order all as fringe top 100 picks.
    -Earl’s one of the best DB’s to come out in the last decade.

    The thing about Byrons tape is I went to go look at it after the combine and I was expecting another Demarcus Van Dyke or Josh Robinson where he had ok film but was being overhyped by the combine. Nope. Byron can ball. I’ve had him as a darkhorse for a few weeks.

    https://twitter.com/Astonia67/status/581626005279903744

  222. 222 Mitchell said at 10:23 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    And it depends on how much Chip values OL over cb or vice versa. Did he learn last year he needs to take secondary higher in the draft? Does he want a dominte force at RG because I see that potential in Clemmings.

  223. 223 Michael Winter Cho said at 10:44 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Over Hundley?

  224. 224 D3FB said at 7:40 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    That depends on how confident Chip is that Bradford is the guy. If there is any doubt you have to take a QB early this year.

  225. 225 PK_NZ said at 4:03 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Tommy seems to regulary ignore guys like Holliman, Prewitt and Eskridge… Are they such bad scheme fits or why havent we heard anything about them? They seem like solid 2/3 round prospects…

  226. 226 Anders said at 5:18 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Holliman can’t tackle like at all and Prewitt has super bad instincts

  227. 227 Insomniac said at 5:43 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Prewitt is a punk. He goes for the highlight hits when he can but he stays way back when he needs to make a tackle downhill. Holliman seems very lazy. Tested very poorly at his pro day and hasn’t learned how to tackle for years.

  228. 228 D3FB said at 6:24 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Apparently all 3 of the Louisville DB’s got “go back to school” grades (ie not top 3 rounds).

  229. 229 Insomniac said at 9:18 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I don’t disagree. All of them need some serious work.

  230. 230 Insomniac said at 5:30 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    They stink for one.

  231. 231 Mitchell said at 10:20 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I actually think Eskridge is super interesting. He’s a bit raw but he’s got great side. Like the others have said, Holliman is the most allergic to contact I have ever seen. In not sure how he made it in football this long. Not sure about Prewitt.

  232. 232 GEAGLE said at 4:12 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Hee Haw Hee Haw!!! SMH….

    ..

    Florida State CB P.J. Williams was arrested for DUI in Leon County, Fla. early Friday morning.

    Williams (6-foot, 194) has drawn comparisons to Bills CB Stephon Gilmore and was being talked about as a potential first-round pick. This arrest will likely knock him out of the Day 1 discussion. Williams already had off-field question marks after an October hit-and-run. He’s currently 59th on Josh Norris’ big board.


    anyone this stupid should go undrafted. you cant stay out of trouble with millions of dollars on the line what will you be like when you have 10mil in your bank account?

  233. 233 Anders said at 5:17 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    So he has a hit and run where he was drunk and now has a dui

  234. 234 Insomniac said at 5:32 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    PJ is going undrafted. The Florida/FSU CBs were so overrated these past 2 years that it’s saddening.

  235. 235 Anders said at 4:51 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Also Williams will now be in the NFL program for substance abuse and his next dui might cost him a game or two and his comment to the cops tells me everything wrong with Tallahassee police and fsu

  236. 236 Mitchell said at 10:18 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I thought he looked pretty good actually and he was a definite target for us I til I learned he had character issues. I’ll guess 3rd round for him.

  237. 237 GEAGLE said at 9:19 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    basically… like I said, Hee Haw, Hee Haw..

    whats ridiculuos is that some team will take a flier on his talent, and then when he gets in trouble 3 years from now, they will just cut him…. this doesnt help clean up the league… they need to put rules in place where if a team takes on a character jackass like this kid and he goes on to inevitably get in trouble, Team NEEDS to pay for THAT and be held accountable for bringing a jackass into the league

  238. 238 GEAGLE said at 4:21 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Kind of interesting that all the local Jersey stores are bugged out, afraid to order any jerseys to sell because they have no idea who will still be here in a few weeks… Thats gotta suck for local businessmen

  239. 239 Greg Richards said at 5:04 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Just order a ton of Will Murphy jerseys.

  240. 240 wee2424 said at 10:57 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Rumor has it that Jeff Maehl may be the safest bet.

  241. 241 Javi Echie said at 5:12 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I just got my Barwin jersey and ordered a Pope jersey. I figure the Barwin should be good for at least 2 more years and Pope’s jersey should be good for 3 years. I want to get a Fletcher Cox jersey but I will wait until they lock him long term to get that one.

  242. 242 Avery Greene said at 6:53 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    They can’t let Cox go, he’s a monster on the line.

  243. 243 Javi Echie said at 7:07 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I agree that they can’t let him go, but I’d rather wait till ink hits paper and I know he is here for the long run. Chip is to unpredictable so that’s my reasoning behind waiting to get the jersey.

  244. 244 GEAGLE said at 9:32 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    there isnt much that could break the hold the eagles have on me…. lose Cox, thats unforgivable. I wont root for any coach who gets rid of a disruptive young talent like him,… get rid of cox and i wont watch an eagle game until a new coach is hired….
    ..
    Cox is what makes all our front 7 players so successful, doubt chip is crazy enough to lose him..
    ..
    i wouldnt even trade Cox for a highly regarded Gerald McCoy. Id take Cox over him all day every day, and not even have to think about it… unless we are getting JJ WATT, i dont want to hear a word about not paying Cox
    ..
    Cox is my generations Jerome Brown! i sat thru enough false prophets, corey Simon, Mike Patt, Bunkley, to finally get it right with
    ..
    scary that Cox probably isnt even in his prime yet, I assume he will be even better this year then last year when he was dominant! kid is still a baby

  245. 245 GEAGLE said at 9:28 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    safe bets for sure…
    ..
    I think the jersey stores are getting a little carried away. Think this notion that chip is signing players who he will trade away before the season is absurdity at its finest. The players chip is adding this offseason, will be here in September…. The only NEW players the jersey stores have to wait to purchase, are guys like Brad Jones or Mile Austin that can be cut if they dont perform in training camp… i think the notion that we would trade a sam bradford or Demarco Murray is Philadelphia absurdity at its finest..and i doubt anyone will ever buy an austin or Brad Jones jersey..
    ..
    everyone keeps thinking Chip has 1 more Big Move up his sleeve… I think THAT BIG MOVE is that he is dead serious about weaponizing Sam Bradfords talents and unleashing them on the NFL… whether he can keep him on the field, that remains to be seen….
    ..
    Jersey stores should be worried more about ordering guys like Boykin who have been here but werent chip kelly additions, instead of waiting to order Sam Bradford, Byron Maxwell, Demarco Murray, walter Thurmond Jerseys… iof course Walter and Sam are on one year deals, so a fan has to be pretty ballsy to buy one of their jerseys,,,
    ,,
    guys like Barwin who chip handed free money too, and the Pope who he adores are safe Jersey purchases for sure

  246. 246 botto said at 5:39 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    just get a KELLY jersey.

  247. 247 wee2424 said at 10:55 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Is it to late to get a Roseman jersey?

  248. 248 Bert's Bells said at 11:52 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    You spelled PARKEY wrong.

  249. 249 ICDogg said at 4:45 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Marcus Mariota evaluation by Daniel Jeremiah (podcast)

    http://www.nfl.com/podcasts?id=f963f32f7c659437923affa48bd1b936

  250. 250 OregonDucker said at 6:00 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Thanks. The David Shaw comments were right on.

  251. 251 ICDogg said at 5:03 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    NFL hiring Sarah Thomas as its first permanent female official, sources say http://fw.to/kmkITDm

  252. 252 MattE said at 6:36 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    shes kinda hot.

  253. 253 NinjaP said at 3:30 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Only way for it to work is for her to be attractive.

  254. 254 GermanEagle said at 6:59 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Why?

  255. 255 Javi Echie said at 9:55 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Why not?

  256. 256 GermanEagle said at 10:24 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Because NinjaP’s comment had a very discriminating ring to it, that’s why..

  257. 257 Javi Echie said at 10:29 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I didn’t see anything wrong with it, I’m all for having a female referee but it would make it better if she was attractive

  258. 258 GermanEagle said at 10:40 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    That’s why I kindly asked him to elaborate what he actually meant.

  259. 259 Michael Winter Cho said at 10:43 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I know, huh? I also like it when OL are handsome.

  260. 260 Javi Echie said at 10:51 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Congratulations

  261. 261 NinjaP said at 6:58 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Because this is America and sex sells bro.

  262. 262 GermanEagle said at 7:04 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Ok…bro…

  263. 263 wee2424 said at 10:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Well I guess you can say she passes the eye test.

  264. 264 Bert's Bells said at 11:46 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Talking dog would be effin’ awesome!

  265. 265 Joe Minx said at 6:42 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Miles Austin one-yr Eagles deal: $2.3M, $1.5M base ($500K gtd) $18,750 per game roster bonus, $500K sign bonus $700K incentive catches, yds— Aaron Wilson (@RavensInsider) April 3, 2015

  266. 266 Greg Richards said at 6:48 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    Can’t say I would personally give him that much or any guaranteed. I can see their possible line of thinking though. If you’re bringing him in for veteran leadership and to mentor some of the younger guys, giving him guaranteed money gives him a little more clout in the locker room. Players will assume he’s going to be on the roster.

  267. 267 wee2424 said at 10:45 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I think me and you spoke about this before. Lol I’m probably wrong though. I think we need to change our views on contracts slightly due to the fact of the cap expanding. Every year you see a few big name players get big contracts. This year more then ever you see the big names and the average to below average players get bigger contracts then what we are accustomed to seeing. The agents and players are taking advantage of a quickly expanding cap. We all talked about how the owners killed the players in the new CBA. You are now starting to see one of the players victories coming through.

  268. 268 Greg Richards said at 7:39 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Players are getting bigger contracts but we’re far enough into the offseason that almost all the players signing elsewhere right now are getting deals for the minimum.

  269. 269 Weapon Y said at 10:31 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    The Eagles do not have good options in the draft or free agency. Perhaps a trade. What safety could we get for Kendricks, Curry, and/or Boykin?

  270. 270 wee2424 said at 10:34 PM on April 3rd, 2015:

    I guess whatever safety is on the trading block. Since Gholston is gone im not aware of any. I don’t think that’s an answer that anyone could really answer with any type of accuracy. Next to QB it seems as though a good safety is one of the hardest positions to obtain in the NFL nowadays. Teams usually aren’t that willing to part with them nowadays unless your Tampa apparently. Add to the fact we are very specific as to what we look for in a safety and that makes it even less likely.

  271. 271 Greg Richards said at 7:39 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Kenny Vacarro.

  272. 272 D3FB said at 7:54 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Vaccaro is literally the perfect player for this scheme too.

  273. 273 Sean Stott said at 1:52 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    There is adequate depth at Safety. You don’t need to take anyone in round 1 or 2.

    There is not adequate depth at OLB. BG and CB. That’s it. Let’s hope MSII develops into something, but he seems soft to me.

    There is not adequate depth at WR. I’m thinking this is the position they target in round #1 assuming good prospects are on the board.

    CB is also fine. It won’t be spectacular but it should be good enough. If an elite CB is on the board, they absolutely take one. Doesn’t sound likely though.

    G/T warrants a first round pick. Jason Peters, Evan Mathis, and the departed Herremans all need to be replaced, at least in the long term. Obviously Peters is the starter now until it is no longer physically possible for him to be a left tackle.

    tl;dr, Eagles are going to take WR, CB, or T/G

    ****BONUS CAVEAT****

    if Gurley or Gordon are available at #20 I think that’s a probably choice.

  274. 274 NinjaP said at 3:29 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Both Gurley and Gordon will be there at 20 and the eagles will pass on both without thinking twice.

  275. 275 Mitchell said at 10:34 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    It’s Chip Kelly, at this point, I wouldn’t rule anything out. Lol

  276. 276 GEAGLE said at 9:15 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    doubt the eagles have their draft strategy mapped out by position… i assume they go into the draft with a flexible plan to get as many of the players chip really loves, positions be damned…

  277. 277 truehaynes said at 2:04 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Sometimes I wonder why teams even use two safeties. Especially when they don’t have two adequet safeties. I mean who wants to be a safety when you can make so much more as a cb. The best defensive talents are going to want to be CBS so they can maximize there value, leaving a dearth of quality safety prospects. Well why not use boykin in base as a 3rd cb with Jenkins as the only safety. Or Byron Jones or Eric Rowe if we draft them. I can’t see Jenkins as a far superior tackler to boykin so it shouldn’t really matter. Only issue with boykin is height. The point I’m trying to make is that way not use a 3rd cb in general instead of “converting” them to safety. Why doe our scheme really need 2 safeties if there most important skill is man to man coverage. Fuck it why not just use kiko Kendricks and meco(if healthy/anthony or thompson if not healthy)as 3 ilbs in base and only have one safety. I want any of them on the field instead of earl Wolff, even matched up on slot receivers.

  278. 278 BreakinAnklez said at 7:51 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    If you want help over the top…you need someone faster than Jenkins…

  279. 279 truehaynes said at 2:54 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Is that player on our team or in the draft?

  280. 280 GEAGLE said at 9:41 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Meco wont be able to play much this year..just go watch his first year back from his last achilles injury. anyone who thinks he will be ready to play major snaps 10 months after getting injured is insane…i dont even think Chip expects him to be ready to play
    ..
    we wanted ILB depth, so enjoy it, instead of being one of the dumb Eagle fans that are now crying about too much ILB depth.,.. we lowered Meco’s cap, to make it easier to keep all 3, now we have Kiko and Kendricks both being paid chump change, Meco taking a paycut, and people assume Kendricks is gone…. i really dont get it… all because of some stupid bullshit rumor some media member thought up and threw out there in a scenario to get Mariota? I dont get this AT ALL
    ..
    I assume Kendrick/Kiko will play the majority of snaps this year…but I guess we will find out for sure in the nexy 30 days…

  281. 281 truehaynes said at 2:52 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I don’t think meco will play until playoff time. And I don’t want to lose Kendricks. I don’t think I said that anywhere. My point was why not play a 3rd cb or ilb instead of a second safety to maximize our talent on the field. Especially if we draft a young ilb like anthony McKinney or baby kendricks

  282. 282 Mitchell said at 4:33 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I think you have a valid point. My answer would be, if you have 3 cbs you lose your run support because the cb will be smaller and more easily blocked. If you go with 3 ilbs you lose your ability to cover as well as if you had 2 safeties. However, like you said, if you can’t find them you have something similar to the Seahawks with Chancellor as a hybrid lb/s.

  283. 283 GEAGLE said at 5:16 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    dont you worry about getting run on? we did something like that with our Dime package, when instead of going with 2 nickel LBs, we make one of the LBs an Extra corner when we go to dime(nolan carrol last year)… Other teams like the Cardinals do it different. when they go to dime they play two safeties, a nickel CB, and instead of using a CB as the Dime LB, they bring in Deonee Buchanon a 3rd safety…
    ..
    the Eagles basically are looking for Converted CB’s strong and physical enough to play safety anyway.. so an Eagles safety, and the 5th CB on our roster probably wont be very different two years from now when we really transform our stable of safeties with more malcolm Jenkin types like we tried to do with Devin McCourty.
    ..
    Jaylen Watkins is a CB who could end up being our safety…

  284. 284 D3FB said at 7:52 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Because if you play nickel all day I’m going 2 TEs and running down your throat.

    And if you swap Boykin for an LB I’m flexing my TEs out and throwing on you.

  285. 285 truehaynes said at 2:08 AM on April 6th, 2015:

    I’m saying swap boykin for our second safety. If it hurts our run defense a little so be it. I trust our front seven. Boykin can cover the slot we or te(hopefully) better than Amy second safety were going to find. And you keep all your lbs and DL on the field to stop the run. Isn’t the whole point of 2 gapping to not have to rely on your safeties for run support?

  286. 286 Frencheaglesfan said at 7:58 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    In a dream scenario we get an extra 2nd for boykin + kendricks (I don’t want to get rid of them but it seems chip does) we get 1) Byron Jones 2) bednarik mc kinney 2) Nelson Agholor 3) Ali Mappet

  287. 287 GEAGLE said at 11:15 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    your DREAM scenario is to lose Boykin and Kendrick? funny, my DREAM is to extend them,….

  288. 288 NinjaP said at 11:39 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    I think McKinney would be really bad in a 3-4. Think he is a 4-3 SAM or not a player in the NFL.

  289. 289 Nick C said at 12:36 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Only getting a 2nd for Boykin and kendricks is my nightmare… If it’s super high, I’ll deal with it– but kendricks is worth a potential first alone. Yeah, I may be “overvaluing our players,” but I’m tired of people overvaluing the draft pick side. Kendricks is a pro-bowl caliber young ILB. And I’d say over 60-70% of 1st round picks don’t even live up to their value. That’s probably a conservative number.

    Now for Boykin– we invested a 4th– ok I can deal with losing him. However remember the guy was ranked by PFF as the 2nd rated CB two years ago. Last year he was playing injured, blah blah. No matter what you think of PFF, 2nd rated CB with the amount of interceptions he had in limited snaps is pretty darn impressive. And to beat the recieving corps of the NFC East and teams like the Packers, you need a great slot corner. He also may get a shot on the outside this year. So why do we wish to create more holes for ourselves by trading established players for draft picks when so many of them flame out. How many of you will be pissed when we trade Kendricks for a “Danny Watkins?” And I know the jury is still out on Marcus smith right now, but would that trade look real good either.

    Bottom line is: smart FO’s extend their talented young players or get GREAT value in return. You don’t sell low. Period.

  290. 290 D3FB said at 7:52 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Fact: No GM on the planet would give you a first round for Kendricks. You’re probably looking at something in the very late second or in the third round.

    Fact: PFF historically overrates the shit out of part time players. According to them Brandon Graham is like the bestest pass rusher to ever live.

    Fact: Smart teams don’t continually force square pegs into round holes.

    Fact: Neither of these players are in the long term future of the team.

    Fact: Good teams get a return on declining assets.

  291. 291 Brian Pillion said at 12:56 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    My DREAM scenario is Tommy takes a page from Sheil & Tim’s playbook, and this board suddenly finds itself a lot less cluttered. Later in the DREAM, after getting both a 2nd a 3rd for Boykin, Eric Rowe joins your draft haul, and I find myself quite content.

  292. 292 RobNE said at 3:40 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    What do you want done to IB? I don’t understand. Where is the clutter?

  293. 293 Brian Pillion said at 4:37 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I was referring to an obnoxious comment posting clutter that for some reason doesn’t exist over in the Birds 24/7 comment section…

  294. 294 Insomniac said at 5:13 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. You can always ignore that person’s comments.

  295. 295 Mitchell said at 10:33 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    If we were to select Collins who is a “SS” and change our scheme to fit a rookies talent, we would still have to find another safety who is capable of being a centerfielder all the time, correct? Is Jenkins that guy? So we would have to 1. Take a safety in the first round from Alabama none the less which is a terrible allocation of resources. 2. Tweak our scheme to fit a rookie. 3. Not only draft a safety in the first round but then get another safety who can be a centerfielder. And 4. He’s not even worth a first, There are better safeties in the first place imo.

  296. 296 GEAGLE said at 10:37 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    not going to happen… they arent going to change all the checks, and rules this defensive scheme is built on for the NEXT DB that cant cover from Alabama.. come on?.. people neeed to realize our defense is built on rules, require “keys to read”.. when an offense lines up in a certain way, we read it, and adjust to it using the rules our defense is built on… no one is chganging that after we finally have two seasons of continuity and our players understand it for landon friggin Collins…

  297. 297 What'sHeBuildingInThereAllDay said at 10:50 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    “Since Traitor McCourty turned his back on the innocent children of
    Philadelphia, who dreamed of having a star FS for the first time since
    2008, the Eagles are now faced with the task of figuring out what to do
    at Safety. Malcolm Jenkins is a good player, but the spot opposite of
    him is more open than DeSean Jackson being covered by Bradley Fletcher.”

    This is writing! clap,clap,clap

  298. 298 GEAGLE said at 11:09 AM on April 4th, 2015:

    Wonder who chip and Malcolm jenkins would go with if today they had to pick which of our young players has the best chance of starting at safety in september,… I assume Wolff or Jaylen would be the lead candidates, but I wonder who they are more impressed with….

  299. 299 dislikedisqus said at 1:57 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    The Reuben Frank link also talks about Geremy Davis UConn WR, 6’2″, 215 so he has the size; 4.36 in the 40(!) and great hands per Gil Btandt. I think he may well be on Chip’s radar.

  300. 300 GEAGLE said at 2:33 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    NJ.com’s Eliot Shorr-Parks believes the Eagles will select USC WR Nelson Agholor with the No. 20 overall pick.
    This is merely speculation, but it is clear the Eagles are interested in Agholor. They brought Agholor in for a visit, and coach Chip Kelly visited him in Tampa Bay for a private workout. Agholor is also a need fit, as Philadelphia could use help at receiver after losing Jeremy Maclin in free agency. With 4.42 speed at 6-foot, 198, Agholor profiles similarly to Maclin from a measurables standpoint. Maclin ran 4.48 at 6-foot, 198 coming out of Mizzou….roto
    ..
    yesterday Mr. Shorr Parks was talking about having to go with Earl Wolff if we happen to miss out on the “great” Landon Collins.. LOL
    ..
    isnt he just a wealth of draft knowledge this year..

  301. 301 eagleyankfan said at 3:19 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    He’s an idiot… Because he’s similar size to Macklin than Chip must want him? What a hack….

  302. 302 GermanEagle said at 5:33 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    No, because the Eagles had him in for a visit plus Kelly worked him privately out…

  303. 303 Anders said at 4:41 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    I understand we have interest but I think there is as few guys we want before him

  304. 304 GEAGLE said at 5:23 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    thats probably safe statement… like Marquis Lee who was last years “lock” according to media, im sure Agholor is somewhere on the wish list, just not at the very top

  305. 305 Anders said at 3:42 PM on April 5th, 2015:

    I think Agholor is the perfect trade up target in the 2nd, but I would hate taking him in the 1st over a few other guys

  306. 306 BobSmith77 said at 3:19 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    2 year ago it was understandable why this secondary struggled. Almost entirely new personnel (and mediocre ones at that) in a new scheme. Last year it cost them time and time again and besides turnovers was the reason they were home in Jan.

    Now this offseason they paid top dollar for Maxwell but have 2 other large questions marks. Tend to agree with Kempski that the secondary for the 3rd straight year is going to be the biggest deficiency on this team & that in the end B. Davis is going to end up being the scape goat next offseason because of it.

  307. 307 OregonDucker said at 3:51 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    My belief is that the secondary coach was part of the problem. Now that he has been replaced maybe Watkins and Wolff can step up.

    Personally, I think CB is the toughest job on the D. We may have improvement there with not only Maxwell but on the other side as well. Color me cautiously optimistic.

  308. 308 BobSmith77 said at 3:59 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Also hoping Boykin has a bounce back year too. He didn’t play poorly last year but didn’t have the impact (picks) or pay as well in coverage.

    I admit I don’t know if Maxwell is a playmaker capable of at least 4-5 picks next year but they desperately need at least 3-4 picks this year from Boykin again.

    Jenkins had a few surprise picks early on but displayed his stone hands after the first couple of games. I’m not counting the other options at S or CB to come up with their share of INTs/FF either.

  309. 309 GEAGLE said at 4:47 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    thrilled with our secondary going into next season.. very excited

  310. 310 OregonDucker said at 7:50 PM on April 4th, 2015:

    Agree GEagle. The outcomes are predictable, like the Chip abacus.