Sam Speaks
Posted: May 17th, 2016 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 155 Comments »Sam Bradford finally had to face the media. He was hammered with all the expected questions about fear of competition, his relationship with Carson Wentz, trying to be a leader on the team he wanted out of and why he demanded the trade.
All in all, I thought Bradford handled himself well. He was contrite, within reason. He was honest enough that his comments could be taken seriously. It would have been fun to see Bradford go full on Jake Blues.
LOCUSTS!!!
But alas, Bradford kept things within reason and played it safe. He did blame agent Tom Condon for being the brains behind the request for the trade. I doubt any reasonable person fully buys that.
Maybe the most interesting thing to me was when Bradford talked about A.J. Feeley. Bradford was asked whether he would help out Carson Wentz. He then told the story of Feeley being the veteran starter when he was drafted and how helpful Feeley was to him, despite the fact Bradford was there to steal his job.
I believe Bradford when he says he will help Wentz. Veteran players usually do help younger guys. That’s a football tradition. And the help Bradford gives Wentz isn’t likely to make much of a difference right away. The hints and tips are probably more about development than playing well immediately.
Bradford gave a smart answer when asked about the fans anger at him. He said he understood and that there’s nothing he can say to change that. He talked about the key being his actions from here on out. And he’s right. If Bradford plays well, all will be forgiven. If he struggles, fans will be relentless.
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Doug Pederson also spoke to the media. He reiterated that Bradford is the starter. Pederson said he understood the situation and had already moved on. He didn’t want Bradford looking over his shoulder, but rather focusing on the game in front of him.
That’s about all Pederson can say. There’s no point to ripping his QB publicly. Pederson wants to win games and the QB who gives him the best chance to do that right now is Bradford.
Pederson said that Allen Barbre is the LG for now. Based on what I’ve heard, that is very much written in pencil. The Eagles need better LG play this year. If Barbre can do that, fine. If not, someone else will get a chance to play.
Pederson also talked about players and injuries. Nolan Carroll was limited as he works his way through rehab. Jordan Hicks is dealing with some leg issues, but the team doesn’t seem concerned.
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Eagles now list Dillon Gordon as a guard. He played tight end at LSU. Gordon is 6-4, 322 pounds.
— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) May 17, 2016
Gordon’s blocking needs a lot of work. A lot. Eagles obviously like something they saw on tape.
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#Eagles sign TE M.J. McFarland and LB Ty Powell. QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson and OL Brett Boyko were released.
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) May 17, 2016
Ty Powell is a great athlete coming off a knee injury. He could challenge for a backup spot at SAM or MLB.
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#Eagles received calls of trade interest for RB Darren Sproles mid-draft, sources said. He's staying away from OTAs until its sorted out
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 17, 2016
This isn't a situation filled with frustration for Darren Sproles. But he's away from the #Eagles, with his family on the West Coast now
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 17, 2016
Pederson said he’s stayed in contact with Sproles and that he expects him back soon.
As good as Sproles is, I wouldn’t mind if the Eagles dealt him. All you are getting is a late round pick, but you also create a roster spot and playing time for young players. If I thought the Eagles could compete for a title, I’d say keeping Sproles is absolutely worth it. I don’t see the Eagles being on that level this year. I wouldn’t blame them for making a deal so they can get a look at Kenjon Barner, Wendell Smallwood and Byron Marshall.
Sproles won’t be here for ever so auditioning his replacements does make some sense. It wouldn’t improve the 2016 Eagles, but could help down the line.
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CB Brandon Boykin got cut by Carolina. Still no idea what’s going on with him. He was an outstanding nickelback in 2013-14. Boykin was frustrated by his lack of an opportunity to play outside. The Eagles dealt him and now Boykin is struggling to keep any job. Weird.
The Eagles don’t have anyone locked into the slot spot right now. I doubt they go for Boykin, but you never know.
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[…] Tommy Lawlor Sam Bradford finally had to face the media. He was hammered with all the expected questions about […]
I really, really like Sproles, but I wouldn’t mind if he was cut/traded earlier this year.
Even Celek, but I know it is important to keep this kind of guys around.
This is not a rebuild, but some things needed to change.
And about Boykin, I’m very surprised. He was one of the best nickelbacks between 2012 and 2014. Don’t know what is going on wih him.
Always seems to be a hard work guy.
But with the Steelers he looks like a bad practice-good game guy, even with spending more time on the bench.
PFF graded him well.
Celek signed a new deal this offseason; he’s here this year and next.
Agreed on Boykin. Unless he is flat out refusing to play nickel, it seems odd that he is having trouble finding a job. And to be cut this time of year… really odd. That means the team likes UDFAs better already.
I would be happy to see Boykin back. The CB position is one of the bigger worries on the team.
Although I would like to see JaCorey Shepherd get some reps there when he is healthy. He looked like a great acquisition before getting injured last year.
Yeah, and other guy I’m curious to see on the field is Travis Long, even if he seems to be a better fit for a 3-4 OLB.
Travis Long, he’s been around since like what 2005? My God let’s just cut the crap and bring back Jack Knott…
I wouldn’t want long taking a roster spot from MS2 or McCalister whos upside I really like, amd Im afraid to expose,him to the practice squad.
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Can’t even trust Long to stay healthy, I’d hate to lose McCalister or MS2 and then see Long get hurt again
Marcus Smith? cmon dude, his upside ir not that high.
McCalister ok, but he has only one move in his pass rush tecnique, lets see how they go, but with BG getting closer to 30 and probably Barwin not staying around next year, we need other DE for sure.
Yeah ok… Just watch the year he has under Schwartzy… This is the last offseason he will be viewed as a complete bust.
I wanted to MS to be good, I reaaly did, but great players stand out despite some problems.
I see him playing more and better with Schwartz, but not great.
I said before that I don’t have high expectations about him, because I can’t see playing like a 1st round player.
Rushing the passer is his strenght, and since the DE positions will have a lot of rotation this year, he can see a good amount of snaps. Let’s see how it goes.
We’ll see…
Smith has more upside then Long and less of an injury concern. This new D fits his skills far more then the old I believe. Greatly simplifies the game for him and lets him use his speed and athleticism to get around the edge.
What would we do with boykin? Nolan, Leodis and Rowe probably aren’t getting benched, and we have plenty yoûng CBs that can compete for the dime spot… i have no interest in bringing him back at this point.
Right now the price for Boykin is looking like something near the vet minimum around $700k. So, why not? The cost is next to nothing. If it works out, he goes back to being the best NB and gunner in the league. If not, he literally cost you next to nothing.
If anyone gets hurt (McKelvin or Carroll especially) I’d rather have Boykin in the slot instead of Ron Brooks or Denzel Rice or Shepherd. If McKelvin ends up starting next to Rowe, I like Boykin in the slot more than Carroll who would become the best Dime CB in the league. If things work out like I expect and Carroll and Rowe are starting with Mckelvin in the slot, I think Boykin would be great young depth behind McKelvin and an excellent addition to STs. I’m not so excited by our young depth players at CB that I’m scared to lose one of them to give Boykin a chance to get his career back on track on a vet minimum contract.
They don’t really have room for him. They have so many DBs in camp already.
I think Howie and crew would bring him in if they thought he had a real chance of making the team, but why would they think that? He’s small and has no upside.
Well, if we carry 5 CBs you gotta assume that Rowe, Carroll and McKelvin are locks. After that we’re talking about him needing to beat out 2 of the following guys Ron Brooks, Denzel Rice and Jacorey Shepherd. I think there’s plenty of room for someone whose upside is potentially being one of the leagues best young NBs and one of, if not the, best ST gunners in the league.
Brooks is a lock to make this roster
I like the collection of young corners we have competimg and im not interested in having Boykin take one of tbeir spots.
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We know that Nolan, Leodis, Rowe and Brooks are making the roster. That’s 4 cormers already…. Say we keep 6, probably more likely 5, we have JaCorey, Mills, Rice already competimg for two, maybe one spot….
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Don’t think its in our best interest to have Boykin take a roster spot from our promising young corners….but I guess it comes down to individual opinions of our young corners. If you don’t like JaCorey. rice or Mills, then you will probably be more likely to be ok with adding Boykin, than someone who thinks those kids are promising
“I like the collection of young corners we have competimg and im [sic] not interested in having Boykin take one of tbeir spots”
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Not even if Boykin were thought, by the coaches, to be an upgrade?
Don’t understand that line of thinking at all.
And who are all these “promising” young corners?
Besides Rowe?
White Paur!
White power !!!
He performed at a very high level for us. It would be a large gain minimal risk scenario by bringing him in. If our CBs look good through TC and Shepherd in particular looks good then just cut him. Or keep him around for the year in case of injury if he shows he can play.
Yeah, I wouldn’t mind seeing him back either. With the way things are going for him right now he would definitely be cheap. Sign him to a cheap deal in which he is easy to cut if Shepherd looks the part this off season. Or maybe keep him around anyway for depth purposes in case of injury.
Weird situation with him. I bet the issue or issues are something that will leak at some point down the line.
Was reported earlier today that could be something about Sproles wanted a new contract.
If is that, is better trade/cut him. Some contenders should have interest.
Sixers land #1 overall and Hinkie isn’t around to see his work come to fruition. The fact that Coangelo hired his son is just… ugh. If I was a bigger Sixers fan I’d be really pissed at how it’s all sorted out with the FO.
Last night was the dream scenario, we got the #1 pick, while not getting the Lakers pick so we now have a chance to get that pick in next years stacked special draft class loaded with Franchise PG talent
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Scoop up Ingram now, get another top wing with Our pick next year(josh jackson/Tatum) and use the Lakers pick to have our choice of the 6 elite PG prospects next year (Lonzo Ball, markel Fultz are probably my favorites, but I can live with Dennis Smith, the kid going to Duke, and the French PG, tho I don’t LOVE kentuckys D’arron Fox(too much like Elfyd peyton)
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lonzo Ball (2017 Lakers pick)
josh Jackson or Jayson Tatum (2017 Sixers pick)
brandon Ingram (#1 pick in 2016)
saric
EMBIID
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NERLENS or Okafor off the bench, trade the other one. Don’t have to rush a trade, wait TIL the right compensation comes along
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Bembry with the Heat pick
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Last Night was the perfect outcome for SIXERS fans, getting the Lakers pick in This draft would have sucked, Lakers won’t be able to improve enough this offseason to hurt our pick next year, and even if they did, #7 next year is probably better than #4 in this draft
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Thankfully I don’t have to worry about us making a moronic mistaje overvaluing kids like Buddy Heild and Kris Dunn…apparently people still can’t grasp the concept of Great College player sometimes not equating to a great pro. Buddy is a role player, who will be a solid #8th man for a team, which is nice, but not something you spend a top 10 pick on, and Kris Dunn is the most over rated player in this draft, even more overrated than garbage Dangelo Russell
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Let the Lakers have ben Simmons… I expect more out of the #1 pick tnat a kid who can get a defensive rebound and push the ball, as if both Saric and Ingram aremt capable of that… Simmons ISNT half the scorer or defender that Ingram is… Why over rate Simmons ball handling and passing when we are a year away from a STACKED PG draft? No interest in a 6’10 PG who can’t shoot, and his personality Bothers the heck out off me.
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Last night was literally the perfect outcome for SIXERS fans. great night!
My fear is that they’re going to draft Simmons over Ingram because that’s what was slotted earlier this year.
That scares me too, I despise the Colangelo’s but im hoping their tight relationship with Coach K gives Ingram the nod.. Ingram also doesn’t have any of the personality and shooting red flags Associated with Simmons.
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Also banking on Colangelo being impatient enough to care about “Fit”, in which case Ingram is a much more natural fit. Right now, we probably have to already trade one of our top Bigmen prospects of the last couple years. drafting Simmons could mean having to trade away two of them… Not sure that’s worth it when there is a kid like Ingram who is just as talented and is a much more natural fit for us than Simmons..
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If next years Draft Wasnt loaded with premier PG talent, I may be a little more interested in Simmons, but picking this high, give me The “Closer” who can carry a scoring load and defend multiple positions instead of a 6’10 kid who cant shoot and wants to play Pg
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Simmons makes other players better, when he isn’t sulking and quitting on his team that is, but Ingram and EMBIID could form our 1-2 scoring punch for years to come. Ingram/Saric give us a lot of what Simmons brings to the table, yet Simmons can’t give us what we would get from Ingram
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Really hope they go with Ingram, but it’s not like I think Simmons is a complete fraud. Ingram is clearly my preference but drafting Simmons wouldn’t be the end of the world….. I think Ingram has a chance to be an elite scorer, “Batman” type, where as Simmons can be a very good “Robin” like a Draymond green, Lamar Odom type
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The only annoying part is Simmons will be a better rookie, but eventually I like Ingram to pass him.. Ingram is a Full year younger, if Ingram stayed in school and played next year at the age Simmons played at this year, he would DOMINATE college ball and dwarf the season Simmons had this year
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Really left a bad taste in my mouth that Simmons quit, DIDNT seem to care about competing… What really turns me off is LSU turning down an invitation to the NIT, you know if Simmons wanted to play in it, they would have never turned it down.
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We still have a lot of losing to do in our immediate future, worry about Simmons being disinterested when the losses pile up and there are 50 regular season games left to play.. The #1 pick needs to be a leader, tone setter, and Simmons scares me in that regard. I say let the Lakers have him
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Duke has had a lot of great players, Ingram is literally the first kid who has ever been able to turn me into a Duke fan. I just love the kid, crazy athleyicism, length, shooting, rebounds and fascilitated better than he gets credit for… I also don’t think Ingram is done growing. Thinking he will max out around 6″11, 7 ft
I hope they go Simmons. In my opinion, he has both a higher floor and a higher ceiling than Ingram. He’s got an NBA ready body, now. He rebounds, he passes, he blocks shots.
Hopefully Simmons and his camp help try to steer him to LA, refusing to work out with us… Although the Colangelos may be a little to respected to see an agent do that to them
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Hopefully Simmons is Adament about wanting to join his highschool teammate D’angelo Russell in LA.
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But if it turns out that we take Simmons, it’s not the end of the world. At least he isn’t a fraud that has no business being a top 3 pick like Anthony Bennett, Jabari Parker and D’angelo Russell.
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Fortunately I think it’s closer bêtween Ingram/Simmons than people think, and because Ingram is a full year younger, a much better fit for our roster. And adds shooting which is extremely valuable in TODAYS NBA, while also being something EMBIID, OKafor desperately need to be successful. The spacing his shooting provides is probably more important to us than Simmons passing…so Ingram may not have to be better than Simmons, just being close enough to Simmons should hopefully give him the nod as the SIXERS pick..
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I’d kind of be surprised if they pass up on Ingram, but it’s not something to be upset about,.. We are in a fantastic position, either way we are getting a blue chip young Talent wprthy of our Tank.
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Pair Ingrams scoring, with EMBIID or Okafors scoring, and we are set with a future Elite 1-2 scoring punch to carry the scoring load for the next Decade for us. Finding your #1 and #2 scoring option is Everything, once we have our scoring tandem in place, building the rest of the team is easy, especially when we will be in a great position to get our Floor General next year, Lonzo Ball… Think Jason Kidd type floor General, even taller than Kidd (6’6), who can dunk on your head and drain 3’s…. The best part is the top 3 picks will be GIles, Jackson and Tatum, a center and two wings so we only have to get to #4 in next years draft to get our floor general, and that won’t be hard to do with our pick, the lakers pick and the Kings swap…and if something crazy happens and we miss out on ball, there are like 4 or other PG prospects that Dwarf Kris Dunn in Talent..
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Not only would EMBIID/Ingram have the potential to be a dominant scoring Tandem, both are going to be pretty damn good defensively,. Ingram is like Jerami Grants Defense with a BIGTIME offensive game.
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The NBA would have never given them the #1 pick if they hadn’t agreed to bring in Colangelo and check Hinkie’s power.
find it a real coincidence that this is the year they get no. 1.
If someone held a gun to my head, threatened my firstborn, my right thumb, and my left testicle, I would have bet it all that the title of today’s article would be “Sam Speaks.” I have spent entirely too much of my life reading Sir Lawlor. Here’s to maintaining the status quo!
Side note, I had a short correspondence with Mark Saltveit on Reddit today… So I got that going for me… Which is nice.
Ahhh….total consciousness
Was he Salty? Because that’s become his calling card.
No, in fact he said he’s still an Eagles fan. He’s excited about Wentz and nervous about Pederson. The only thing we disagreed on was letting DJax go, which I think has proven to be a mistake, and he thinks it was a good call.
That’s pretty cool. I’m glad to hear it because I’ve really enjoyed Mark in the past, but the Chip apologist got pretty intense, so I stopped reading his stuff. Maybe I’ll give him another chance.
No he’s just determined that Vernon Adams is a better QB than Jared Goff.
I was wondering whether Condon would bit the bullet from the Bradford fiasco. Sometimes that’s one of the roles of the agent.
To be honest, there isn’t too much blame needing to be passed around. Bradford can’t blame the Eagles for drafting a potential stud QB. He wasn’t good enough last year to make the position his own. We can’t blame him for preferring to play for the former champions than for a team that was about to take a QB with a 2nd pick in the draft.
The situation could definitely have been handled better. Condon is a pro, I would have thought he would have scripted thing better. Some of things they said were surprisingly bizarre.
At least at this point most people are acknowledging that it was the Bradford/Condon end that was mishandled. Sleevie B all but confirmed that in his PC. And he blamed it all on Condon. Sam is a bum, although I hope he is a successful bum in 2016-17.
Even though Bradford throws a paddy and spits his dummy out of his pram at the first sign of competition, a challenge for his starting spot is arguably the best thing for him.
OK, the Jake Blues reference killed me. Well done, sir
I’ll always root for the Eagles QB, and before Bradford showed his colors I was excited about having him start. Now, not so much. We’re stuck with each other for now and at this point I want him to do well, but on the other hand I can’t wait until he’s on the hench and Carson is starting.
I supported the idea when CK traded for him. Even backed him after bad play and even more injuries. Now I’m counting down days until he’s off this roster and/or his next injury.
Agreed 100% on Sproles. Long term not needed. If Sproles was 25 it would be a different story. Short term though – can’t trust RB’s with injury history. Can’t trust rookies. Need that presence for some stability. Would like to enjoy 1 more year of him(getting more playing time than last year) would be fun…he’s one of my favorite players.
Yeah 1 more year for SPROLES is what im hoping for… Once we draft a RB in round 2 or 3 next year, we can move on.,… No idea why we would want to get rid of him when all we have is smallwood, Barner and some practice squad Duck
or Smallwood and 2 practice squad Ducks, depending upon your opinion of Barner.
Smallwood, Barner and BM aren’t enough to make me want to trade Sproles especially since we wouldn’t get very much in return for trading him, and we would be left with Ryan Mathews who can’t stay healthy for 16 games….. If I really liked the 3 Young RBs, Id probably feel different, but smallwood can get touches without trading SPROLES, I don’t care about Barner, and the BM kid is practice squad material. it’s not like SPROLES is blocking two second round picks from playing. I don’t even think SPROLES will get many carries next year, thinking doug uses him almost exclusively in the passing game.
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Keeping sproles isn’t just about the touches. He’s a highly respected vet who can help bring along the young guys on offense and st. He’s had an unlikely career for someone his size and draft position. It’s more important to keep him in the locker room than gain a later pick.
This exactly. Sproles is a pro. I want him on my team and in my locker room.
Absolutely… Sprolesy is known as one of the best practice playërs, it’s valuable to have him set an example for our puppies, and classy veterans like him are always good to have when a new coaching staff comes to town.. Whether he is mentoring kids, or just setting an example with his work ethic, there is real value in holding on to him
“I listened to Sam Bradford again. I just almost threw up,” Bennett said. “I can’t believe Sam Bradford is complaining about making $40 million in the next two years, and because he actually has to compete for a position. This guy, this guy right here definitely sets a bad tone of what a player should be.
“If I was his teammate … How can you play with a guy that doesn’t want to compete at a high level and feels like his position should be solidified without even putting up the stats or the wins to back that up?”
“There’s some mediocre quarterbacks in the NFL that make a lot of money,” Bennett said last August. “You take a guy like Sam Bradford – he’s never played really in the last three years, but he’s made more money than most guys in the NFL.”
Lucky for all of us, the Seahawks host the Eagles in Week 11.
we might need popcorn for week 11.
Bennett has either a big mouth or is outspoken, depending on your take. Regardless, it’s rare for a player to call out another guy like this. I hope it puts a chip on Sam’s shoulder and he plays like he has something to prove.
You mean you hope his reaction is exactly the one he didn’t have when the eagles traded up to draft a QB?
Yes, exactly that one.
Bradford hasn’t really played in the last 3 years? Has Bennett been asleep?
Hopefully, the Bradford “story” can fade away now, everyone can STFU and we can focus on the team.
I’m waiting for the Sproles cannot handle competition or is selfish “story” shortly though. Seems like we need some type of scandal or drama to keeps us engaged which is sad.
once they drafted smallwood he knew the writing was on the wall
🙂
Everyone loves Sproles. I don’t think anyone, not even Cataldi, would attack him.
Maybe Bennett only watches highlights.
Yeah, by week 11 there is a chance that Bradford sharpens the edge of his clipboard and cuts Bennett wide open.
Yeah… not looking forward to watching this team go against the 12th man.
It’s too bad our teams lie down at home. They hate playing here. I read a recent report that the Eagles actually have a disadvantage at home, based on their performance over the last few seasons.
Maybe they should play in an empty Linc, like the Orioles when their city was taken over by thugs.
The atmosphere at the linc has been atrocious for quite a few years now. I was a season ticket holder all the way back to the 80’s. I literally have stopped going (mostly because I moved away from Philly) because it has stopped being fun. What used to be a stadium full of die hard Eagles fans that were the majority season ticket holders, most of whom had been coming for decades, who knew everyone in their section and basically had a second “football sunday” family at the stadium, who came to every game and carried on the tradition of being intense fans has now become a stadium full of young drunk kids and small apathetic families that buy a single game ticket off stubhub because it would be a fun thing to do once in a while. They aren’t fans, there’s no feeling of family in the stands, every week it’s a different group getting as drunk as possible and treating it like a concert or a family who’s taking their teenage daughters to a game they could care less about.
I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve literally been told to sit down when I stood up and cheered during a defensive 3rd down play because a 16 year old girl on her phone behind me couldn’t be bothered to do the same. Or, been chastised by a father or mother because I had the audacity to say something like “oh that’s bullshit” at a bad call. The moment the team struggles for even a second hoards of fans start flocking to the exits as early as the third quarter once they realize it’s not going to be an Eagles blowout. Really disappointing atmosphere in recent years.
coprification of american sports
sorry…what does coprification mean?
corpification – buy on stubhub it can cost you 1000 to get a family of 4 good tickets to a game. Only time i go to sporting events now is through work, or someone else’s work — think that hurts the atmosphere when half the people are going just b/c — experience watching football is almost better at home factoring in $ + crowd atmosphere
Yea I totally agree. People can’t afford to go to every game, even season tickets have gotten super expensive. And, you end up with a bunch of people that don’t have their hearts in it who are just going for one game because it’s something to do.
I thought at first you meant to coin a neologism using the root copro-, which is “feces”. A coprolite is a fossilized piece of $hit, whereas a coprophage is something that eats feces. My dog is a coprophage. So, I interpreted your initial statement as meaning something like “the shittification of american sports”.
I think the problem is that they make it so easy to resell tickets now that people are not letting go of their season tickets when they don’t go to the games anymore. People can resell all their tickets and break even in a bad year or make a few dollars in a good year.
All around me in the stadium the faces change almost every week.
Yea same here. I miss the family atmosphere and the group of people that had the same seats and were at the same tailgates every week. You only saw them 8-10 times a year, but you really did grow close to them and have a camaraderie with them that was built up over the years. That’s pretty much completely gone these days.
Couldn’t agree more and the Linc itself has almost zero architectural or aesthetic appeal. Sterile environment filled with a lot of random people from home game to home game.
I will be at the game in Seattle. Could get ugly quick as my GF’s entire family has season tickets in Seattle and are already talking trash about the game.
Remind them this is what happens to people from Seattle with big mouths when they step to Philly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkY7IiQPAE8
I’m sure Bradford will be happy to help out the rookie…in a Leon kind of way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb9sm3WRJRM
That’d be messed up if Sam fed him a bunch of BS then starting laughing when he gets all jacked up in drills…
“Sometimes you stare down your receiver…he ends up being wide open because you tricked the safety into thinking you were looking him off.”
I think one of the most important and overlooked parts of this overall QB plan is to trade Bradford next season to recoup some of the draft capital spent moving up for Wentz. The dead giveaway, besides it being kind of obvious, is the structure of his contract. It’s essentially just a one year deal. Both sides and everyone that’s looked at that contract are aware that it is just a one year deal. Even before we moved up to 2 and drafted Wentz, everyone knew Bradford would never play out that second season. He’d either be resigned long term, traded or cut at that time. So why include the second season at all? The answer is so that we can still control his rights. But, why would we want to control Bradford’s rights in 2017 when the plan is to have Wentz starting at that point? And, the answer to that question is clearly to be able to trade him.
Due to the structure of the contract, the receiving team would only be on the hook for either $13M or $17M depending on when in the year the trade occurred, none of which would be guaranteed, which is a pretty reasonable contract to assume for a starting QB. If Bradford goes out there this year, stays healthy and plays like he did down the stretch, there will be more than a few teams that would be interested in obtaining him. If we’re able to get anything from a 3rd rounder to a 2nd round pick to two 2nd rounds, or even a first round pick in return for him that substantially offsets the cost of getting Wentz.
For sake of argument, let’s say Bradford gets us a 2nd rounder in return. That would mean that in order to move up from 13 to 2 to select our next franchise QB, we’d only essentially have given up an extra 1st (2017) and a 3rd (in 2016, a year in which we already had 2 third rounders). That’s nowhere close to the future crippling trades that are normally required to move up that high for a franchise QB. If Bradford plays REALLY well and nets us a first, the move up essentially would end up costing us next to nothing. We’d have moved two overpriced players that we didn’t even want anymore, and traded away a 2016 3rd rounder and a 2018 second rounder. Sure, he could totally suck this year and not get us much of anything at all, but I think the reasonable assumption is that as a middle of the road QB he’d be worth at the absolute least a 3rd rounder to some team. And, even that is a decent return on the investment while also giving us our best chance to compete this year.
When you look at it that way, in addition to everything Howie said about the rare opportunity to be within striking distance of a top 2 pick for a QB, and the even rarer opportunity to be able to do so with a QB under a trade friendly contract for the next two years that could end up significantly offsetting the cost of moving up, it would be insane not to give Bradford the best chance possible to increase his trade value. It would be truly rare for a franchise to be able to pull off such a move and end up giving up so little in net trade value.
What indication is there they thought they could move up to get one of the premium QBs? Looks to me like it more or less fell into their laps. And that was used as a defense for them by the hatahs.
I think it would be a tough sell to trade a QB on a one-year deal. They would have no guarantee he would re-sign. And he’s injury prone as it is, and not cheap.
I would truly enjoy the irony if Sam picked this year to finally be the good QB most people have given him credit for being since he was drafted #1.
Well certainly they didn’t know for sure that they could move up for a top QB, but that was clearly their plan. It was methodical, but they slowly climbed the board with the ultimate goal getting a QB. If it didn’t work out they obviously had Bradford as a contingency, but I think it’s silly to assume they didn’t plan to make this move, even if it ultimately working out took some additional luck.
Trading a QB on a one year deal won’t be that much of a hinderance. We literally just traded away a second rounder and Nick Foles for Sam Bradford just last year while he was on a one year deal. Ideally the team would work out an extension as part of the trade. And, Sam would seem to be amenable to landing a starting gig on a team that wants to commit long term to him so I don’t really see the issue there. Worst case they can technically control his rights for an additional two years on a franchise tag worst comes to worst.
Interesting you feel they were aiming at getting a top spot the whole time, that is not my interpretation at all. Signing Bradford to this deal, moving half-way up with the trades, then giving up the draft picks for the final move, does not add up to a typical road to #2 IMO. Obviously they did not inform Bradford of their plans (if indeed they had any).
But Wentz wasn’t a known thing when this was signed. The 2nd year is there b/c only an idiot takes a QB on a one year deal (Hi Chip!). If Bradford played well, you have a problem if the contract expires. I just think the Eagles would have been idiots to sign up another one year deal.
True but I firmly believe that they knew from the get go and planned accordingly that if the opportunity presented itself they would make a move for a top QB. And if that happened Bradford would be a great trade asset to audition while they got the raw rookie up to speed. If it didn’t they’d get a chance to see if Bradford was worth committing long term to and if not he could be a very attractive trade piece again in 2017 to help them get the rookie QB they wanted and Daniels could then play the role of place holder for that rookie in 2017. Covers all their bases. Obviously they didn’t know exactly how it would play out or if they’d be able to land their guy, but to think they didn’t have a plan/contingency in place for this scenario I think is selling them short. And, I think that having Bradford on an easily tradeable contract made the cost of moving up for Wentz so much more palatable. Without Bradford they’d be banking quite a few premium draft picks on one QB from NDSU. With him the price becomes (potentially) A LOT lower. And now the cost to move all the way to the top of the draft isn’t so crippling. So yea…let’s lock Sam up before the draft. If we can manage to trade up for one of the top QBs signing him to that contract will end up offsetting the substantial cost to do so, if we can’t we get a chance to see if Bradford finally puts it all together or we again have a nice trade piece to move up for a QB or get extra draft picks to move up with.
So, I just think that the idea that Sam could potentially be a huge trade asset played a role in the contract we gave him. And, their insistence on keeping him this year has more to do with just wanting to compete in 2016 while simultaneously grooming Wentz on the sidelines. It’s about wanting to drive up his value to make the move up for Wentz that much less costly.
They’ve been talking about franchise QB for years now.
I’m not sure why people are always so eager to move good players like Sproles. I understand that he’s going to be 33 years old and clearly is not going to be in the teams future plans beyond this year. Most likely he either retires or moves on to another team that feels like it’s an immediate contender for another year or two. But, however unlikely, it’s also possible that he signs a short (say 2 year) extension to finish out his career in Philly playing the Brian Mitchell role as a punt returner and occasional 3rd down weapon which he has shown no signs of slowing down at despite his age.
Either way, no team is likely to give up anything more than a 5th round pick for a 32 going on 33 year old scat back/punt returner. So, even if he’s only here for just one more year, what’s the point? The chance of getting any type of meaningful future production from a 5th round pick is under 20%. Sure, I’d trade him in a heart beat if we were offered a 3rd rounder or better. But, no one’s going to be offering that. I’d much rather get to enjoy a few more electric returns and see how effective he can be in the passing game in an offensive system that will use him properly than miss out on that for a measly 5th round pick.
Just because the Eagles aren’t Super Bowl contenders next year doesn’t mean it makes sense to rid the team of some of it’s best but aging playmakers/players for whatever we can get. I’m still going to dedicate an enormous amount of time to watching the 2016 Eagles even if they’re a long shot to make any noise in the playoffs, let alone win the Super Bowl. I still want 2016 to be as entertaining as possible. Otherwise, why not just trade Bradford for a 4th rounder, move Peters for a 6th, trade Celek for a 7th, dump Barwin for a 4th rounder, and see if we can’t turn Jenkins into a 3rd rounder or even more. There’s a good chance none of those players will still be playing for the team when it finally becomes a contender so might as well get whatever we can from them, right? Absolutely not in my eyes! I’m only depleting the current teams talent unless I’m getting significant future assets back. Otherwise, let’s give 2016 the best shot that we can. Every year there’s a surprise team that wasn’t supposed to be a contender that comes out of nowhere. No reason to assume before a single snap has been played that we know for certain that it can’t be the Eagles in 2016.
4.5m
That is a great point. His price tag is very high. And, if I was worried for a second that we wouldn’t be able to resign someone important or we wouldn’t be able to get a desired FA because of that $4.5M I’d be a lot more inclined to have him be a cap casuality. But, the reality is that with Peters’ contract coming off the books next year along with Bradfords’ and the dead money from Maxwell and Murray being gone next year plus the imminent release/trade of Mathews next season, we are going to have plenty of money to do whatever it is we want. On offense, we have very little invested in WRs, Ertz’s cap hit is only $3.3M and Mathews’ is only $4M. So when it comes to skill players on offense we have very little invested this year and we have a lack of true playmakers in the passing game, so I think it’s reasonable to pay the man $4.5M (only $3.5M of which would be saved if he were traded) as he’s the most electric playmaker we have in the passing game and a true difference maker on special teams.
It’s because the Eagles are kind of in a mushy place where some think they can make the playoffs and others consider them rebuilding, fueled by the rather contradictory efforts of the FO. But I am pretty conservative with proven players. They are not easy to replace.
I think the FO did an excellent job of filling out the roster with good players and upgrades at many positions so that there are no glaring holes. Certainly it’s not a complete and/or perfect roster that’s ready to be considered amongst the NFLs elite. But, there’s a reasonable starter at every single position (except for maybe LG and at least there there’s plenty of options). And, we have a bunch of young guys with talent that are primed to improve. If last years dysfunctional squad could pull off a .500 season, I don’t understand why people are convinced that we will be even worse this year. In fact, I think the team has been decently improved. So we’re in the 8-10 wins range if you ask me. I doubt we win less than 7 and I’d be shocked if we won more than 11.
That’s a team that’s got a shot to compete every Sunday, has a good shot at winning a shitty division, and could conceivably turn the corner to an elite roster with the addition of 1 or 2 stud difference makers in the next couple of offseasons.
Wow, you would shade this roster at winning over half their games, with a rook head coach, an injury-prone mediocrity at QB, bad WRs, an injury-prone RB, and uncertainty at secondary and LB? The Redskins were a significantly better team than us and guaranteed the Cowboys will be good if Romo stays upright. Nor am I counting on NY to keep sucking forever. I doubt this division will be any sort of cakewalk.
Well last year we had an overmatched coach running some of the worst offensive and defensive schemes I’ve ever seen, massive questions/atrocious answers to those questions all along the Oline, we had a mediocre injury prone QB who was rusty to boot, we had huge questions/Riley Cooper and Miles Austin at WR, we had questions at CB and safety and we were right around .500. This year I see predictable improvement in some key players, a solidified Oline, and better WRs as well as much better schemes on both sides of the ball. So I don’t see is being worse than last year.
you think Pederson is a better offensive mind than CK, or is he going to benefit from having a “new” scheme.
I think last years scheme was down right atrocious. One of the worst schemes I’ve ever seen in the NFL.
The difference between an optimist and a pessimist? Well, with Igglesblitz and the ensuing debates, we do know it will never be boring.
I hope this “Trade Sproles Talk” will die as quickly as the “Trade Barwin Talk”.
depends on the offer. I think if you can get a 4th rounder or better then you need to pull the trigger, since realistically he is not a long term piece and are we really contending in 2016?
But then with that logic i would have let Bradford walk in free agency so who knows what they Eagles are thinking.
I’m all for getting draft assets for an aging pricey player that’s only here for one more year, but if I’m going to weaken the team in 2016, I’m only doing so if I’m getting back something worthwhile. I doubt anyone is really interested in renting an albeit excellent returnman for one year for a 4th round pick. More likely you’re looking at a 5th. And, if that’s the case I think Sproles is more valuable (even if it’s just for 2016) than a measly 5th would be for the foreseeable future.
And, why let Bradford walk for nothing in FA, when you can spend some of Lurie’s cash to control his rights and potentially get significant return for him in a trade? I don’t think that it’s unreasonable to expect a 2nd rounder back in a trade for a 29 year old starting QB if he stays healthy and plays like he did down the stretch as a reasonable middle of the road QB. If Alex Smith is worth the 34th overall pick (#2 in round 2) and a conditional 4th, what’s a healthy Sam Bradford worth after a semi-decent year in 2016?
Nobody will give the Eagles a 4th rounder. A conditional 5 would be the maximum and for that price I rather enjoy him returning another one or 2 punts for touchdowns this season.
I agree. If the plan is for Bradford to have a good enough year to bring in real value in a trade, how is that plan helped by getting rid of his most accomplished and dangerous playmaker? Get a 5th rounder for Sproles today and maybe it costs much more in value next year when it’s time to move Sam.
Very good point.
Excellent point. Even just an above average year from Bradford could net us a 2nd round pick. A really good to great year could net us significantly more. We should be trying to give Bradford the best possible chance to succeed. That’ll give us the best possible chance to get something significant in return.
I don’t like any talk about “not competing in 2016”. It’s crazy talk. This team should be doing everything it can to win as many 2016 games as possible. There’s no incentive for anything else. Give the fans a decent football product on the field, which we haven’t had since…. 2013 and a few games in 2014.
pats game? probably biggest win the team’s had in 7 years
Biggest?
Or just the most surprising? Or satisfying?
I ask because the game didn’t translate into more wins — the way, for some teams, a big road win over a quality opponent can put a team on a playoff path.
big fish in a small pond
that’s for sure.
and the pond kept shrinking.
If only I hadn’t practiced my serve so earnestly that game, so many Eagles fans would have been saved future disillusioning.
You owed it to the team to play tennis every sunday!
I hate the mentality that so many fans seem to have that if we’re not legitimate Super Bowl contenders, or if we don’t win a Super Bowl in any given year that the entire season is thus meaningless. The Eagles have never won a Super Bowl in my lifetime, but it hasn’t stopped me from dedicating an obscene amount of time and money to watching them every year. And, despite not ever winning the Super Bowl, I have a ton of great memories and exciting moments that I’d never trade away from all those years. Are all those great memories meaningless because they never ended in a Super Bowl victory? I don’t think so. I want to have the best most exciting team possible to watch next year and that includes Darren Sproles. Getting $3.5M in cap space and a 5th round pick instead doesn’t excite me nearly as much as the possibility of watching more of his electric returns or seeing what he can do in the passing game of a system that uses him properly, even if it’s just for next year.
I see it both ways. I want them to compete this year and build for the future. In this case, I would not sacrifice a player like Sproles for a draft pick that most likely turns out to never even make the team.
Sure, offer us a 3rd round pick and I’d say sacrifice Sproles’ contribution this year for the future, but I don’t think they should just give him away.
agree entirely
2014 and 2015 sproles were different players, 2015 and 2016 sproles might be different players as well.
Very true and also very likely. I still think if the cost of keeping him is essentially $3.5M in extra cap space this year and a potential 5th round pick next year, I’d rather keep him and find out than take the extra cap space and the 5th.
If someone wants Sproles they can give us a pick in next years draft that we can use during next years draft… Not interested in trading him now that the draft is over so a team can have sproles for this year but not have to pay for him TIL a pick in next years draft…. no thanks…
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If someone is crazy enough to give up a late 3rd, early 4th, maybe we consider it. But for a 5th round pick, weakening our RBs which aren’t great to begin with doesmt interest me much.
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There is no reason why we have to give up Sproles or Ryan to get Smallwood some touches, and I don’t care about Barner, and the kid from Oregon belongs on the practice squad as far as I’m concerned
No team will wait until *after* 2016 to trade for Sproles.
Sproles is a Free Agent after this season.
I think Doug and Howie will keep him around. They need to win games to keep their jobs. There’s no way they trade a guy who can instantly turn the tide of the game for a future late-round lottery ticket.
The only way I can see them trading Sproles is if, a) they get a great offer, like a 3rd, which ain’t happening, or b) the cap they free up is enough to put them over the top on a Cox deal, and it nets some future value in the draft.
Yea…I highly doubt though that an extra $3.5M puts them over the top on Cox’s contract which will end up being in the $100M total value range. Especially when we’re looking at gaining anywhere from $20-$30M in space next offseason with some of our biggest contracts coming off the books.
Well said..
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We also won’t go from Bad to Super Bowl contender over night… We are at a time in our franchise where we are entering a “change of the Guard”, ushering in a new age of young players… It would be Fantastic and extremely valuable to get kids like Jordan Mathews, Rowe, Hicks, Ertz, Lane, McLeod some playoff experience… Heck just having to fight thru the DECEMBER wars to win the division is valuable to the development of our puppies.
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We could see a division where no one wins more than 9 games, no reason we should go into this season feeling like we shouldn’t win this division. If we don’t win it, it’s not the end of the world, but winning the division would be great experiemce for a young team with a new coaching staff
Losing never gets you anything in the NFL. Winning breeds winning. Losing breeds losing. The Browns lose every year and always have top draft picks. What’s that gotten them. Best thing a new regime can do is win. Best thing for developing a young core is winning.
the season is never meaningless if there are the Giants Cowboys and Skins on the schedule.
i’m with you!
Damn right!
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Cowboys are considered the top team, and I don’t believe Romo’s body can take the pounding any more. I don’t believe It, he is going to have to show me,
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I don’t even think you have to hit him hard, looks like he reached,that point that Vick got to late in his career where his body can’t hold up to the weight of guys just falling on top of him… They want to run the ball to try and protect him, yet the have a joke of a defense that will probably suck them into a shootout each week, exposing Romo.
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I think the Giants are going to completely crash and burn and that team will never matter again until they Chamge their GM… All the money and draft picks they used to add talemt, and they did Nothing to even try to fix their OL? How could I take them serious?
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Skins are the only team in our division that I actually respect and think they are on the right track, but they have a ways ago Til that roster becomes good enough to pull away from the rest of the pack..
Exactly!! Don’t let the Browns get a GREAT pick with our #1 we surrendered either! Make it #32!!!
I could understand if we were the Browns playing in ne a division with much better teams like the steelers and Bengals, but our crappy division is ripe for the taking, and those who seem to think teams like the Cowboys and Giants are a level above us are sorely mistaken.
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I wouldn’t say we are the favorites to win our division, but it shouldn’t surprise anyone if we do win it…. Say what you want about our roster, but at least we don’t have serious holes at some of the most important areas like the Giants OL mess of the Cowboys non existent pass rush
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When you look at where we are compared to our rivals, anything less than winning the division should be considered a failure. There is no reason we should waive the white flag and go into the season thinking its a wasted yeàr with no shot at winning the division
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This isn’t the NBA, you don’t have to be horrible to Imporve..
Not only that, but we have players that it would be reasonable to expect decent improvement (in some case substantial improvement).
Bradford should be better than last year.
Agholar should be much better in year two.
Huff, Randle, Givens should be better than what we got out of Austin, Cooper and Huff the year before.
Ertz should finally break out.
The Oline should be in much better shape than last year.
Losing Murray was addition by subtraction.
The entire Dline should be even better as they are more suited to a 1 gapping system. Cox, Logan and Curry should all thrive in the new system.
Rowe should improve in year 2. Going from Maxwell to Carroll/McKelvin is a wash. And, our safeties should be excellent with the addition of McLeod.
The only areas of concern as far as there being a potential drop in production from last year are JP breaking down and injuries at LB giving us issues.
Short of that we should expect to be better at most positions than we were last year as a .500 team baring a rash of injuries.
Can any of the other teams in the division say that?
Absolutely!
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I expect big things out of $ammy Dollaz this year.
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I expect the OL to be significantly improved…. The OL/and scheme changes should mean an improved run game.
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Givens/Randle are a clear upgrade to Austin/Cooper, while I expect Jordan, Agholar ad Huff to be better than they were last year.
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Pedersons offense should be huge for ERTZ.
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The defense should show some real growth, with Schwartz, a scheme that always fit our personnel better than a 3 man front.
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Seeing Jordan Hicks Sophmore season for me is one off he more exciting aspects of next season that im hype about
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For the first time since DAWKINS, we should boast one of the very elite safety tandems in the game that can give Kam/Earl a run for their money
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Rowe and nolan should be better after they both got a year under their belt playing outside, and Leodis could prove to be the most underrated addition of our Offaeason
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The defense doesn’t have to fight against Chip Kelly’s tempo any more.
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I expect Brandon Brooks and Mcleod to prove to be two of the very best free agent signings of this offseason.
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There is a lot to really be excited about for eagle fans. We should see some signifcant growth in a division THATS very winnable… We probably won’t be a 12 win team, but I struggle to understand why there isn’t more excitement about this upcoming season
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Just the fact that we get to see what Bradford can do given some Continuoty and an offseason to train, while also being in a position where if Bradford gets hurt, it’s not the end of the world for us
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Shit, look around at the division, if we aren’t the #1 defense in our division, than something is seriously wrong
Exactly. Did *anyone* think Washington was going to win the division last year? More importantly, did anyone think Carolina was going to threaten an undefeated record, then march through the NFC playoffs? The same Carolina team that we pasted on MNF in 2014?
nobody thought Hicks would send Romo to the sidelines or CK would tear the team apart. How can anyone think Wash would win anything based on a series of unfortunate events?
you can not like the talk but it is what it is. It’s a rebuilding. Can they compete? Sure. Can they win the division? Why not? Can Sam have a good year? Absolutely. Can they win the SB? No. After all those “yes” answers — why a No? Because this team is not a finished product. This team doesn’t have the talent(or, doesn’t have the players at a talent level yet) to be SB contenders.
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Nobody likes to hear their child is ugly and its understandable. Eagles just spent major resources to get Wentz. The future of this team is Wentz. Wentz will be given the reigns sooner or later(max 2 years). Can he suck and lose those reigns? Of course. If that happens, Bradford still won’t be here. If that happens, Pederson and HR might not be here.
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To me — “competing” isn’t beating on a Dallas team that has Romo on the sidelines. Sure, it’s fun to watch. Competing(today) means looking at Arizona/Seattle etc in the eye and saying “know what, Eagles got this”. Eagles aren’t on their level — yet.
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Give it time, it takes time to rebuild. You can ignore the words ‘rebuilding’ all you want. But it’s brutally tough to ‘rebuild’ and go very deep in the playoffs. Giving the short time here(and in charge) HR and Pederson has done some wonderful things. Successful season doesn’t have to be wins/loses. Successful can mean Pederson has this ship pointed in the right direction …
This team has been upgraded from the team that went 7-9 last season.
This ain’t a 3-13 see you later Ray Rhodes type squad.
i didn’t feel that way about last year’s squad until sanchez came in.
They can be Bradford goes down early and Daniel starts most of the games this year.
I still don’t see that. The drop from Bradford to Daniel isn’t so huge to put us into the 3-13 zone. The D will be significantly improved with Schwartz here. I’m not calling us a playoff team at all, but I think we’re going to be highly competitive each week.
Tend to agree even if Schwartz as the d coordinator seems to be getting really overhyped. This strikes me as a team that brought in a lot of players but it is hard to say they really upgraded the team either except on the ol depth.
I just see a 6-7 win team right. Not terrible but one that is going to struggle to score points and whose defense is going into a new scheme with a new cordinator.
I think they’re a tad better than 6 to 7 wins, but still a middling squad.
The thing with Schwartz it two-fold
1) Every time he takes over a D, it improves
2) The switch to a 4-3 fits the existing talent on the roster much better than the force fed 3-4 farce we sat through over the last 3 years.
Well, the Eagles did not do everything possible to compete in 2016. They do not give up players, high picks and #2 slot cap space to get Wentz if 2016 was their focus nor do they let guys go like Ryans and Thornton either.
The reality is the good teams have a balanced focus on the present and future at the same time. Any team that goes all in on the present to the detriment of the future had better be very close to a SB lock. Likewise, any team that only focuses on the future always never gets there. The Eagles pursued a balanced present and future approach this off-season which was wise IMO. We’ll see if it works out.
Bills placed RB Dri Archer on the reserve/did not report list.
He’s 5’8″ – 175; maybe they didn’t see him.
The New York Daily News’ Manish Mehta thinks “there’s a very good chance” Darrelle Revis moves to safety in “the next couple years.”
In the first year of a five-year, $70 million deal, Revis started showing signs of decline, grading out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 39 cover corner after annually finishing in the top three. He was susceptible to the deep ball, allowing over 14.6 YPR to opposing receivers. Revis could take the Charles Woodson route and move to safety. It’s unclear if he’d be willing to do it, though.
Laughable giving all that $ to a maybe safety. Good for Revis.
He was stealing money in the choke loss to the Bills at the end of last year………..and Watkins was only playing on one foot.
if only watkins could stay healthy. It’s a shame we had 2 years of super deep WR drafts and we have matthews, ags and huff.
Bleacher Report’s Jason Cole reports Dolphins first-round OT Laremy Tunsil has a “pre-arthritic” ankle condition that contributed to his draft-day fall.
Do the red flags ever stop with this kid?
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And to think, no one would even spend a 7th round pick last year on La’el Collins, and he didn’t even do anything wrong…
What the hell is pre-arthritic?
Philly has been swamped with Excitement over the trade for Wentz, and the Sixers getting the #1 pick..
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But the most exciting news from yesterday is kind of flying under the Radar…. SIXERS got the results of Embiid’s recent scan yesterday and everything in his foot is looking really good 😉 EMBIID still has the highest superstar potential of all philly athletes
I just feel a little bittersweet about things b/c Hinkie was stabbed in the back. I would have trusted Hinkie way more with the upcoming trades to shape the team. It’s just a shame.
Letting him go 2.9 years into his 3 year plan seems kind of stupid. If the team was willing to let him do his thing that long why stop right at the end?
Hinkie died for our sins
What is dead may never die…. We paid the iron price for this pick.
technically he resigned.
Who you telling… I couldn’t be any more petrified about putting 3 years of hellish Sacrafice into a 50yr old man who still can’t get a job without his daddy. Brain Colangelo scares the bejesus out of me… He is capable of signing Rudy Gay or something absurd.
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One thing we could count on with Hinkie, is he may build slower than Colangelo, but HINKIE wouldn’t make a crucial mistake that was ever going to set us back years… Im so afraid that Colangelo is going to rush to improve as fast as he can and make mistakes that crush us… I also know that turning the SIXERS into a 50win team wouldn’t be considered a success by HInkie, where as Colangelo will view that as a great job…. I have no interest in seeing us build an elite regular season team like the Raptors that has NO SHOT of ever winning a championship… That simply doesn’t interest me. The Raptors team is like a little better than the decade worth of SIXERS teams that were eliminated after a round of two in the playoffs and always picked #17 so could never improve enough to get out of quicksand.
Im scared that Colangelo is going to be in a rush to trade away some of our best players, where as even if HINKie knew that he had to trade Noel and OKafor, he would hold on to them as long as it took to get the type of compensation he wanted in return… Im so afraid Colangelo is going to devalue our assets because he will be in a rush to turn this around.. Which is Mornic, because no matter how much we improve the roster, we won’t win more 30 games next year, we will be too young, and too many new pieces. The Real improvement won’t come Til the 2017 season, even tho the roster will be significantly better this year
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I hate what they did to Hinkie, Colangelo is like the last guy I would have hired to replace him. But this is the hand we are dealt, nothing to do but hope “Junior” finally learned something, and doesn’t rush us into mistakes.
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I don’t want him to go crazy in free agency. Try to get something like Kent Bazemore and/or Crabb, and a backup PG like Grevias Vasquez to stop gap us Til we get our franchise PG in next years draft… Good PGs are too common, I’ll be pised if he dumps assets into a good but not great PG like Shroeder or Teague, because I know when we get to next years draft, they will want to draft over him anyway because of the insane amount of PG talent in next years draft..rather forsee this issue, have enough patiemce to go with a backup PG type veteran, until we get our franchise Floor general next year with our pick or the Lakers…. And don’t be in a rush to trade Noel or Jah… Hold them as long as it takes to get legit value in return… Ideally try and get someone like Devin Booker or Rodney Hood in a package involving Noel.
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I am not comfortable pulling the trigger on an OKafor trade unless EMBIID gets thru two seasons without injuring that foot, we aren’t winning a title in two years, don’t see the rush in trading Jah
What’s the over/under on games started by Hicks this year? Kendricks too.
I say 10.5 and 11.5 respectively.
The level of accuracy here is sickening. They both need a cranberry juice.
http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lelcv9jmly1qzun17o1_500.png
I’d be interested to see how YOU’D hold up playing LB over an NFL season.
Darren Sproles Trade Rumors: Eagles running back wants a new contract #stability
Lol really? I wouldn’t extend him… Actually, I could live with giving him a new deal that adds an extra year after this season, as long as it’s a contract that we can get out of after this year if he goes into a rapid decline… As long as we can get out of it after this year, extending his deal a year could allow us to trade him for some value in next years draft…. May not be a horrible idea, depending on exactly what type of deal he has in mind..
He’s welcome to come play really well this year and earn a new contract.