Time To Step Up

Posted: May 19th, 2016 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 219 Comments »

DeSean Jackson had a monster year in 2013. Jeremy Maclin had a career year in 2014. Things did not go so well in 2015. WR play was disappointing. A big part of that was Nelson Agholor struggling as a rookie.

Many people thought Agholor would flourish last year. Some even predicted he would be the rookie of the year. That didn’t happen. Not even close. Agholor started 12 games, but only finished 23-283-1.

While Agholor was disappointing, he wasn’t Marcus Smith, Pt. 2. Agholor did have some really good moments and showed serious potential.

Agholor had his moments. The question isn’t whether he can play, but rather whether he can be an impact receiver. He has the right combination of size, skill and speed, but things just didn’t work last year. Injuries hurt him. Adjusting to Chip Kelly’s system hurt him. Adjusting to life in the NFL hurt him.

This year Agholor is improved and more confident. That’s great, but it won’t mean a whole lot until he proves himself on the field. You can say and do all the right things in the offseason, but your play will be the only thing people really listen to.

In this interview with Dave Spadaro, Agholor sure says all the right things. He comes across as a very hungry young man, out to prove that 2015 was a rookie fluke and won’t happen again.

The Eagles are willing to bet Agholor will take a serious step forward. The team knew it didn’t have an ideal WR situation, but rather than panicking, they decided to give Agholor and Josh Huff another chance to show what they can do. The Eagles hedged their bet a little by signing free agents Chris Givens, Rueben Randle and T.J. Graham. They didn’t add any receivers in the draft, but did sign key UDFA Cayleb Jones.

Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports offered his thoughts on Agholor, and some other rookies that must step up in 2016.

Despite the hope that he’d be an immediate cog in the Eagles’ offense last season, Agholor had physical and mental hurdles that hampered his adjustment to the NFL. In some ways, the difficulties were fairly garden variety for wide receivers – adjusting to the tougher nature and speed of the NFL and absorbing a new offense. Confidence was a factor, too. All in all, the NFL was a much bigger stage and adjustment than Agholor anticipated. Ultimately, he had to go back to the drawing board this offseason when it came to aspects like diet, study and workout habits. That sounds like a lot, but the Eagles feel like it was the more typical shock/adjustment issues that face NFL rookie receivers. There won’t be a lot of patience in Year 2. The Eagles have a significant need for a consistent playmaker next to Jordan Matthews, and they’ll be looking at Agholor to take the biggest stride in the wide receiver group.

There is risk in the Eagles relying so much on Agholor and Huff, but it seems like the right way to go at this point. You need to find out if they can play. If not, receiver becomes an area of critical need in 2017.

Think about the WR situation for a minute.

2015

Jordan Matthews (2nd year)
Riley Cooper
Josh Huff (2nd year)
Nelson Agholor (rookie)
Miles Austin
Seyi Ajirotutu

2016

Jordan Matthews (3rd year)
Josh Huff (3rd year)
Nelson Agholor (2nd year)
Chris Givens
Rueben Randle
T.J. Graham
Cayleb Jones (rookie UDFA)

I don’t know about you, but I’ll take the 2016 group for sure. You get rid of Cooper and Austin, while adding Givens, Randle and Graham. Each of those young players has issues and that’s why they were available, but Cooper was a mess and Austin was an older guy on the decline.

The younger receivers may not pan out, but at least there is some upside with them. If they do play as hoped, they could really help the offense. It was hard to envision Cooper or Austin doing that last year.

The Eagles are going to do everything they can to get the best out of Agholor. In the interview with Spadaro, Agholor said a lot of good things about new receivers coach Greg Lewis. Let’s hope G-Lew can prove to be an underrated offseason addition. If he’s able to get Agholor or Huff to really play up to their potential, the offense will get a serious boost.

_


219 Comments on “Time To Step Up”

  1. 1 Time To Step Up - said at 11:30 PM on May 19th, 2016:

    […] Tommy Lawlor DeSean Jackson had a monster year in 2013. Jeremy Maclin had a career year in 2014. Things did not […]

  2. 2 daveH said at 11:41 PM on May 19th, 2016:

    Corvette just drove past me. Still one of the most exciting cars on the road. Not to mention it’s dollar for dollar excitement outweighs all those kookie exotic carsfor 3 4 or 5 times the price.. Goodnight

  3. 3 John Galt said at 12:10 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Dude – posting on a blog while driving is dangerous, you should really wait until you are at home or something.

  4. 4 eagleyankfan said at 7:43 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Maybe he was home and the vette drove passed his house…

  5. 5 daveH said at 11:01 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Alas i was at a bus stop .. ugh

  6. 6 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:59 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Hate corvettes.. Don’t like their super tight steering wheel…. Drive a Fiorano, and you will understand Quickily why a corvette is 6 times cheaper. But to each his own…

  7. 7 Stephen E. said at 2:36 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    The fact that you’re comparing the Corvette to a Ferrari model discontinued 3 years ago tells me that you haven’t driven a current Corvette, either. The C7 came out for 2014. The C6 you probably drove was a bit long in the tooth.

  8. 8 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:32 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    No… I haven’t driven a corvette since like 2009… But I drive a Fiorano every summer (2011)

    🙂

  9. 9 daveH said at 7:33 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Now i understand the Gian.
    Not reasonable to compare a 90k auto with a 400K car.. is that how much it is .. but you did so that carries some credibility.
    Bet a few lucky ppl have both because they drive different yet still perform.

  10. 10 Forthebirds said at 10:11 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    The engine is a marvelous combining speed and economy

  11. 11 daveH said at 7:24 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Love the look more than ever

  12. 12 Koy: The Legend of Neckbeard said at 11:48 PM on May 19th, 2016:

    We’ll be waiting for Huff to fulfill his potential until the Chelsea Clinton presidency.

  13. 13 Media Mike said at 5:02 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    She can run against Reggie Bush in 2024 as Hillary’s 2nd term is ending to see if we’ll get a 3rd Clinton or a 3rd Bush first.

  14. 14 Jamie Parker said at 4:13 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    The biggest issue with the WR’s is just catching the ball. And being a rookie is no excuse. It’s still a football, just catch it.

  15. 15 Media Mike said at 5:01 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think Agholor can have an improved year. The guy was a decent talent when they drafted him, but being ready to produce a lot as a rookie is a tough go.

    This WR group not having anybody marquee doesn’t really concern me. NFL DBs aren’t allowed to sneeze on a WR without it being a flag; these guys can be functional enough to win.

  16. 16 Tumtum said at 8:08 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think this group can be Marquee. I know I’m in the minority, but I have faith!

  17. 17 Rob Jarratt said at 7:05 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Normally, you are as thorough as it gets, Tommy, but not once did you mention his high ankle sprain, which according to most experts, is painful and endures a long time. Think about being a rookie in an up-tempo offense with all the expectations of the world on your shoulders and you’re dealing with such an injury. Could that have at least been in the conversation about last year’s “disappointment”? I am also going out on a limb and predicting that the drops are minimized this year….all around. I think it became a mental thing that became contagious.

  18. 18 bdbd20 said at 7:38 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I wonder if the injury was related to his preparation, diet, weight training, etc.

  19. 19 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 7:39 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    It looked like he just caught the edge of his spike while running a route

  20. 20 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:30 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Struggle to see how that would cause ankle injuries?
    .
    Nice to hear that Agholar is setting personal records in the weight room so far this offseason. Hopefully the muscle gain doesnt screw with his speed

  21. 21 Tumtum said at 8:07 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    He mentioned injury setting him back, didn’t he?

  22. 22 D3FB said at 8:10 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I forget who but someone did a film breaddown and he clearly was struggling to get vertical. He did a much better job with underneath stuff because his route running was crisp enough to overcome the bum wheel. Of course Chip basically just used him to run posts and verts….

  23. 23 Stephen E. said at 2:39 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Just like he ran Murray on sweeps and Sproles inside?

  24. 24 wee2424 said at 8:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I was of the opinion that he was drastically misused last year.

    It blows my mind how bad he mismanaged the strengths of players just because he wanted to run his exact scheme. Even more mind blowing that he chose the players.

    I do think Agholor can turn into a good outside receiver that has the ability to occasionally make a big play. With that said I think he would be even more effective in the slot.

  25. 25 eagleyankfan said at 7:46 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    WR is of course one of the question marks.
    ….
    Weren’t the prep, diet, weight training etc. the same thing JMat endured his rookie season? Each player is different I guess. Hoping a break out year for Aggie. We’ve talked about the difficulty of CK’s offense vs. KC’s offense. I still feel there’s a sense of stability in Pederson’s that’s less complicated than CK’s. We’ll see. We also need to see how Pederson’s offense caters to WR’s. Wasn’t very TD friendly in KC. Exciting year getting to know the new coach/new offense/new defense.

  26. 26 Tumtum said at 8:06 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’m glad the Eagles stood pat at WR (relatively speaking). At some point when you invest draft resources at a position, you eventually have to let them sink or swim. Even if that means sinking position group in the process. I don’t see that happening with Ags and Huff. I think we will be pleased with the flanker and slot this year.

  27. 27 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:27 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Absolutely. Foolish to draft over talented yoûng kids after only giving them a year or two to grow into NFL players.
    ..
    No idea if Huff will ever be the player we need him to be, but it would be dysfunctional to draft over him after only two years
    ..
    Assuming ERTZ has his best year playing in an offense that made travis Kelce a beast, and that SPROLES comes back to run the passing plays KC used to have Jamaal Charles carry their passing attack, our passing offense should be fine with the 3 WR additions and our three young Wr being a year older.
    ..
    it would go along way helping our passing attack if the OL upgrades significantly improve our run game from last season
    ..

  28. 28 eagleyankfan said at 8:34 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Would love a break out year from Ertz….

  29. 29 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:29 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    His historic last 4 games of the season sure seemed promising.
    .
    ERTZ is in year 4, he has the ability to be a real playmaker. The next step for him is to become consistent. That’s what im looking for out of him this year. consistent production as one of our top weapons

  30. 30 OakBrigade said at 8:25 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I like a lot uor WR-trio (Matthews, Huff, Agholor), and I hope the new scheme bring the best out oh them.
    The only concern is not that big, but the Chiefs WR’s stats in the past years is something to keep a eye on.

  31. 31 Forthebirds said at 10:23 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I have a lot more faith in Ags having a breakout season than in Huff. I think the guys we picked up in free agency are better back ups than Austin and Cooper, but that bar is six inches above ground., If one of these guys has a good year , say Candle proving 6-7 hundred yards, we will be okay,

  32. 32 wee2424 said at 9:15 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    More like Mathews, Agholor, Randle. Randle has put up good numbers in this league, do you think he is going to let Huff beat him out?

  33. 33 OakBrigade said at 9:01 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    I don’t. Like a lot when we sign Randle, he is reliable and I think he will play the majority os the snaps on slot.
    But I like physicality that Huff brings, I thinking he will cut the dumb mistakes at least.

  34. 34 wee2424 said at 5:25 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Huff just doesnt seem to be a natural WR in the NFL, esspecially on the outside. I see him more as a KR maybe PR/offensive weapon/possible slot receiver.

    He isnt someone that will line up on the outside and put up any type of consistent numbers. He isnt going to make any plays deep or out catch a CB. To best use him he needs to be schemed open or work on shallow routes.

  35. 35 OakBrigade said at 5:59 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Randle and Huff can play only on the slot, that’s why I compared both.
    Only Chip viewed Huff outside.

  36. 36 wee2424 said at 9:47 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Randle has played on the outside and has done so effectively. At this point and probably indefinitely he is a much better WR then Huff. Totally different type of player. He does not have to play slot to be effective.

  37. 37 Aaron said at 8:28 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    1st

  38. 38 eagleyankfan said at 8:29 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Only because this was a pretty big discussion here —

    “The results of this poll are consistent with previous polls showing that most Native Americans aren’t bothered by the team’s name, nor do they consider it an important issue facing their community.

    http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/05/19/poll-finds-large-majority-of-native-americans-are-ok-with-redskins/
    It appears most of the people offended were those who thought Native American “should be” offended. Sometimes minding your own business is an option. As argued last year, didn’t care about your opinion about the ‘offensiveness’ unless you were Native American. Hopefully this puts this subject to rest. Glad the owner of the Redskins didn’t give in…

  39. 39 myartz04 said at 8:36 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    It’s just crazy to me that for 75 years no one had a problem. Then, like a light switch, it’s offensive. Oddly enough, as you point out, most people who are offended by it are white.

  40. 40 eagleyankfan said at 8:40 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Agreed — but I didn’t point out most who are offended by it are white…..

  41. 41 myartz04 said at 8:54 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I just think there is a difference between truly feeling offended by something and simply choosing to be offended. I think a lot of people are choosing to be offended on this issue.

  42. 42 Tumtum said at 11:01 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Yeah, I’m not a fan of the white hipsters feigning offense. Still think it is probably better to just go ahead to change the name. It seems there are those that the term characterizes that take offense. Why even have that dark cloud hovering over your franchise?

    I’m happy to say that I think Lurie would have changed the name long before it ever became a social issue.

  43. 43 Fufina said at 9:08 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    No there were plenty of people who had a problem with it. They just had no voice, no representation and no impact in shaping American thoughts.

  44. 44 myartz04 said at 9:25 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    This wasn’t an issue 5 years ago. I get your point as a long time ago people didn’t have a voice. But let’s squeeze this into the last 10 years…what’s changed to make this such an issue?

  45. 45 D3FB said at 9:26 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    The word “Negro” is still used on the fucking census forms.

  46. 46 Stephen E. said at 2:43 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    It’s also still the second word in the UNCF.

  47. 47 Spooonius said at 12:25 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    I honestly wasn’t aware that Negro was considered offensive. I don’t really hear it used and I don’t get easily offended anyway. Unless it’s a safety issue, I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes this kind of thing can be hilarious. My wife’s father refers to black people as ‘afro americans’. Even after 15 years, every time he says that, I die laughing.

  48. 48 Stephen E. said at 2:42 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Because Native Americans are not allowed to vote, write letters, send emails, appear on radio or TV, or write blogs. They certainly are never actors, journalists, lobbyists, politicians, or law enforcement. No opportunity to speak and totally disenfranchised.

  49. 49 Spooonius said at 12:26 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Have you ever spent time on a reservation?

  50. 50 Spooonius said at 12:19 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    I had a problem. My wife had a problem. My friends had a problem. A lot of these debates had by white people on both sides of social justice issues seem condescending to me. I’m not one of those that thinks that white people shouldn’t discuss minority issues, but if you’re going to, you have to recognize that it is difficult and takes more listening that talking. Often when people advocate for a group that they do not belong to, they over simplify things by only considering views that support whatever narrative that they already believe. Like this poll.

  51. 51 Gian GEAGLE said at 8:54 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    No idea why anyone would be offended to begin with.
    ..
    The nickname of a sports team is a term of endearment, it’s a tip of the hat to Native American warriors.
    ..
    No owner would name their team The “washington scumbags” or the “Washngton child molestors” or anything thats negative or an insult
    ..
    Words shouldnt be that big of a deal, it’s just a certain arrangment of letters. The Intent behind the words should be what matters, and clearly teams arent using it in a negative contortion. ITs meant to be a tip of the hat to Native American warrior culture. If it was meant to be a derogatory insult, no team would call itself that.. It’s no different than teams calling themselves Spartans or Roman Gladiators…. I would hope that Native Americans take it for what it is, respect for their warrior heritage. If it’s not meant as an insult, they shouldn’t take it as such..
    ..
    Ultimately how Native Americans feel about this should be up to them, it shouldn’t be up to outsiders to decide whether they should be offended or honored by it…. If native Americans are really offended by this, they should change it… It’s ok to refer to me as a white man. It’s ok to refer to african americans as a Black man, so I don’t see why the Term redskin should be so offensive that people should be hurt by it even tho it’s not meant to be an insult to that group of people. You name your team something that you respect.
    ..
    Yuck, now I feel dirty having defended the skins.

  52. 52 Fufina said at 9:07 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Redskin is not like ‘white’ or ‘black’ in terms of being commonly used to refer to a skin color. Have you ever seen a person with ‘red’ skin who is not some pasty white guy after a day on the shore without any sunscreen?

    It was used in the same way ‘N***r’ was used – and the fact that most of modern America and even some native Americans do not realize this is just an example of the scale of their cultural marginalization.

  53. 53 Gian GEAGLE said at 9:09 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Please…. If it was the same as the N word, every single Native american would be 100% against it and there would be NO DEBATE , which clearly has not been the case… I have never met a black man who wouldn’t feel strongly offended if a team named itself the Washington N words… Redskin just points to not being white, or not being Black..
    ..
    Where does this stop? Should I be offended by Mario brothers cartoon that depicts Italians as pizza cooking, chubby men with mustaches? Should I be upset that the only time Italians are depicted in movies is as Mafia criminals?
    ..

  54. 54 Fufina said at 9:26 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    It was, go look at historical documents from the 18th and 19th century and the exactly the same normative pressures were being used as with the N word – savages, unable to manage themselves, naturally violent, ethnically inferior etc.

    What has happened in the last 100 years is that the native American population is so diminished, so marginalized that for many people especially in urban environments have lost its original context. But let us be clear in places where there are bigger and centralised native American populations, then it is still used in a racist and negative context.

  55. 55 Gian GEAGLE said at 9:29 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I am 100% for respecting how native Americans feel about this… But I couldn’t give two shits about how you think they should feel about it

  56. 56 Fufina said at 9:38 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I am not telling people how to think, i am just informing people who do not know about the history or the issue. There really is no actual debate on the issue with native American scholars – it was a racist term historically and it is still being used in some area’s of America actively as a racist term.

  57. 57 Spooonius said at 12:28 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    The first line of your post is spot on. You should be ok with not knowing why people would be offended. You can’t really decide what offends people for them.

  58. 58 Fufina said at 9:01 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Think this misses the point entirely. The term is racial slur, was used that way in the past, when the team was named redskins 1930’s the term was being used mainly as a racially negative one, and was chosen as an edgy exotic curiosity to try and add some spice to a rebranded team.

    What has happened in the last century is that the ‘native american’ population has been so utterly marginalized and ignored both in media, education and in most Americans thoughts, limiting the native American population building a common narrative or social identity due to them being spread out across the nation in sparse populations, or just being forced by isolation into integrating in the white dominant hegemony (which has aided by governmental programs of forced resettlements, forced adoption, removing young native americans from their families to ‘civilize’ them ect)

    Because of that Redskins is now for many people a term related to a football team not a racial term, especially for those who have forcibly integrated culturally.

    However there are many ‘native americans’ who fully realize the negative dehumanising nature of the term, the ideology that went with it allowing the reduction of the native American population by over 90% and there mass disenfranchisement of land and culture and are angered by the continued whitewashing of native Americans from modern culture, discourse and history. And for those people the continuing existence of the ‘redskin’ brand is a spit in the face and would be a part of the process of America coming to terms with its racial past, which still taints our society.

  59. 59 eagleyankfan said at 12:04 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Well said. And I’m not here to argue with you about everything you said. Just wondering where you’re getting the information.
    ……
    The evolution of America is what you posted and as it continues to evolve. What happened in 1500’s, 1800’s become less of an issue in the minds of people today. That’s my opinion. I’m certainly not responsible for how Native Americans were treated back then, nor I am responsible for any slavery to any race back then. I certainly don’t agree with happened and I can have empathy for who was affected.
    …..
    What I’m saying is — I can’t walk up to a descendant of an American Native and be pissed off because his/her ancestors scalp someone or was part of the French/Indian war. I don’t hold him/her responsible. I respect who they are today. By that definition I don’t consider Redskins brand to be a spit in the face to any Native American. In fact, to me, it’s just the opposite. Being a Native American(or part of) should be a tremendous proud feeling. That’s the feeling I’m guessing you or I can’t understand. I think of being a Redskin of being something proud of..
    …..
    It taints our society because that’s your belief..(assuming you weren’t quoting someone)…

  60. 60 Gian GEAGLE said at 9:07 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think it’s a bigger issue for college teams that use the name of a specific tribe like the Seminols. If you are going to go with a specific tribe, you should respect it enough to depict that tribe as accurately as possible. If you are going to go with a specific tribe, respect them enough to accurately depict them. Disrespectful to use the name Seminole and than go depict the mascot with some Cherokee tribe head dress… Colleges should put in the time and effort to represent the tribes accurately in how they dressed and their rituals…..instead of using a tribe name and then using some Native American generalization as the mascot

  61. 61 xmbk said at 9:20 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    I suppose ignoring just 10-25% of the NA population is an improvement. 😉

  62. 62 D3FB said at 9:24 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    So so so so many reasons to not declare this as some overwhelming no big deal nothing to see here.

    For one the question asked was do you find the name explicitly offensive. Not a sliding scale of “nope love it, don’t care, it’s kinda messed up, I wanna punch Daniel Snyder in his face”. Over 20% still found the name to be disrespectful.

    Second “nor do they consider it an important issue facing their community” no shit. The Native American communities in this country have pretty large actual issues ranging from poverty, substance abuse, utilities, and access to health care. So of course it’s relatively low on the list. Also most native Americans don’t live on the east coast.

    Third the poll itself isn’t great. It’s better than the Annenberg one, but sampled only 503 out of a population of 5.4 million, and relied on self identification. Also had a margin of error of 5.5 percent (that’s hilariously high).

    I think a good way to determine for oneself if something is offensive would be to ask yourself would I walk up to a person of whatever minority group and in a jeering tone say “gross (insert potential slur here)” and expect a 1. Confused look or 2. A punch in the mouth.

    You wouldn’t go on a reservation in the dakotas walk up to somebody and say fuck you redskin without getting your ass whooped.

  63. 63 anon said at 9:30 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    look at the power of an education

  64. 64 Fufina said at 9:32 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    That is a great standard to be used for judging these things. Problem with any ‘native american’ survey is there is a distinct difference between the those native Americans that have assimilated into urban American lifestyles and those who have not.

    conduct this survey on a reservation in Dakota exclusively (to take your example) with a differently worded question and you would get a profoundly different result.

  65. 65 Ark87 said at 10:03 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Also just about every other white guy thinks they are a quarter Cherokee.

  66. 66 eagleyankfan said at 12:33 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I don’t know about that…

  67. 67 Stephen E. said at 2:45 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    And a few white leftists, like Elizabeth Warren.

    Where was she on this issue 10 years ago?

  68. 68 D3FB said at 4:11 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    In fairness just about every kid in Oklahoma is told they have a great great grandparent who is native american. One of those weird cultural things.

  69. 69 Ark87 said at 7:10 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    It’s the “I have friends who are black” of nativism, in the sense:
    “cut the immigrants some slack, we are all decedents of immigrants”
    “pff, I’m quarter Apache, so…”
    Yeah, your mother’s father’s mother’s mother’s father’s sister married someone with darker skin so now you are distantly related to some folks who are 1/32 native American. Tell me more about your Heritage!

  70. 70 RogerPodacter said at 11:20 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    that also brings up the point that the way that the question is worded also leads to some bias in the results.
    “do you think this is offensive” vs “is this phrase personally offensive to you” will get you two grossly different results.

  71. 71 Forthebirds said at 11:22 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Many white people understand that Black people can use the N word because it has an entirely different connotation than when White people use it, Native Americans or First Americans, as far as I know, never call themselves Redskins. In fact, they had no concept of race until white people introduced it, and white people didn”t either until the introduction of slavery, The fact is there aren’t different races, just groups with some superficial variations. To me any discussion of race misses the point that it is a term used to divide people that was created by Europeans to justify their exploitation of “others.” As far as the use of Redskins goes, I find it offensive because it was used to justify the near extermination of Native Americans. Being Jewish, and given the history of anti-Semitism, I think Daniel Snyder should be more sensitive to the offensiveness of the term. If most Native Americans are not offended by the term, it only shows how embedded racism is in our culture. Fufina is right to put some historical perspective into the discussion. It is not about being PC.

  72. 72 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 12:20 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Well spoken. People need to stop confusing decency and political correctness.

  73. 73 Bert's Bells said at 2:00 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Nice.

  74. 74 eagleyankfan said at 12:13 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Exactly. Why hasn’t this been done?

  75. 75 Fufina said at 1:19 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Err it has for academic studies. Read a really interesting study in south Dakota 2-3 years ago looking at racism and the perceptions of it in the state, found extensive usage of ‘redskin’ as a racial negative term in common usage in white communities near native American reservations, and native Americans spoken to felt they had extensive experiences of racism and were very hostile to the term.

  76. 76 Stephen E. said at 2:45 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Time for the White Sox to change their name.

  77. 77 Tumtum said at 10:12 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    “Fuck you Redskin”. The “fuck you” part is prooooobably the biggest agitator there.

    I do mostly think this country is waaaaay to PC and it is actually ruining the country far more than just stunting child growth by making it impossible for them to cope with losing.

    In any sensitive issues like this I always try to use personal bullshit meter. For example (to make this a little about football), if a prostitute claims sexual assualt against an NFL star, after accepting payment for services received (she just wants to settle out of court.. BS). Here there is a very motivated group of notable Native Americans dedicating a lot of time into this name change campaign What is the personal gain involved for the leaders of that group? I’m not seeing any. This gives their cause merit in my eyes.

    If you were naming a team after a group that settled the area and survived against horrible odds you wouldn’t name it “White English”. You would call them something like “Frontiers Men”. So if you want to honor the Native Americans local to DC, call them something like “The Washington Warriors”. If that name offends anyone they can kick rocks.

  78. 78 D3FB said at 10:20 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    But if you said fuck you giblygeblywoblewomp you would receive option one: a strange look. Also why I used the term “gross” instead of a profane invective.

    It’s obviously not the same thing as the N-word. It’s not surprising it doesn’t poll off the charts high. Neither would polling Italian-Americans if they were offended by the name WOP or Irish by the term Micks. Doesn’t mean they aren’t derogatory racial slurs with a messed up history.

  79. 79 Tumtum said at 10:55 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Yeah man I agreed with ya just giving ya a bit of shit.

  80. 80 eagleyankfan said at 12:17 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I get what you’re saying — I do — but those terms were used a lot more recent history than Redskins. Never have I ever heard the word Redskins used in such a manor. It’s not because I’m on the east coast. I know families that are 1/4 Native American.

    Can you recall it ever happening?

  81. 81 Bert's Bells said at 2:00 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Probably because the Natives were summarily slaughtered or marched West to starve to death in concentration camps. Not as much opportunity to trash talk a Cherokee as there is with Tony D’Angelo from Passyunk Ave.

  82. 82 D3FB said at 4:00 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I grew up in Minnesota and yes.

  83. 83 D3FB said at 4:09 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    “More recent history” by like a generation.

  84. 84 eagleyankfan said at 12:21 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    “I do mostly think this country is waaaaay to PC ” perfect example of the Devil Rays having to drop the “Devil” from their names…

  85. 85 Tumtum said at 12:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Then they asked any reporter who botched it on air and used the term devil ray to make some donation to a charity fund. For real people???

  86. 86 D3FB said at 4:06 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’m pretty sure that push came from the religious right and not a “PC” crowd.

  87. 87 RogerPodacter said at 11:19 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    “Third the poll itself isn’t great. It’s better than the Annenberg one, but sampled only 503 out of a population of 5.4 million, and relied on self identification.”

    that worries me. i don’t think it is beyond Snyder to pay someone $20 to participant in the poll and just say you are native american.

  88. 88 bill said at 12:04 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    You honestly don’t even need to go that far. I can name several blond haired, blue eyed guys who claim native american ancestry. Not saying they’re lying, but they obviously have a completely different experience of being native American than someone who grew up on a reservation. If the poll relied on self-identification, there’s all sorts of reasons to question the conclusions.

    I know I sound like a broken record, but real science is hard. People like to assign numbers to BS, then do some statistical manipulations, and call it objective. It’s just not that easy. It makes for good headlines, but poor science.

  89. 89 Call Me Carlos the Dwarf said at 1:12 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Yup, I know a blond-haired, blue-eyed kid who’s like 1/32 Cherokee. He’s got the cheekbones for it, so I don’t doubt him, but he could have responded to that poll.

  90. 90 Bert's Bells said at 1:55 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    My freshman roommate was one of those bro’s. But he had knife collection, so was like a full blood Comanche.

  91. 91 eagleyankfan said at 12:11 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think if I walked up to you(or anybody in the street) and said fuck you — I’d imagine you’d punch me. That has nothing to do with our skin color or your family history. It’s a little far fetch asking me to walk up to someone in that tone and not expect a retaliation.
    …….
    Can’t I simply walk up to them and ask them if a Redskin is indeed a slur?

  92. 92 bill said at 12:15 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Would you walk up to a person of the Jewish faith and ask them if it was okay to joke about the Holocaust? Some would say “yes,” undoubtedly. Would that make such jokes ok? Even if the “noes” were a minority?

  93. 93 eagleyankfan said at 12:19 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I don’t understand the connection of — asking a Native American if Redskin is a slur compares to asking someone else if it’s ok to joke about the holocaust…this is a stretch of trying to combine the two…can’t I ask someone of the Jewish faith if “jew” is a slur?

  94. 94 bill said at 12:25 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Because the term at issue is intimately connected to a genocide that occurred. If it’s being “overly sensitive” to be offended by that term, it seems like you should also think it is being “overly sensitive” to object to Holocaust jokes. See if this article helps:

    http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2012/01/israeli-bill-would-ban-calling-someone-a-nazi-/1#.Vz86Bk1wVok

  95. 95 eagleyankfan said at 12:35 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Thank you….this is on the heals with helping my son with a project about WWII and Germany. Can bring tears to your eyes what happened back then….

  96. 96 Bert's Bells said at 1:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    And of course it’s not just “back then”. The Rwandan genocide was in the 1990s. 800,000 slaughtered in a fraction of the time of the Nazi killings.

  97. 97 anon said at 2:10 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    unfortunately no shortage of people getting massacred.

  98. 98 ChoTime said at 1:08 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Jesus, could you be any dumber? You don’t think the extermination and relocation of the natives here was a holocaust for them?

  99. 99 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:37 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’d be surprised if there are even ten Native Americans alive today, walking on this planet, that have EVER in their Life time experience being called a “Redskin”

  100. 100 D3FB said at 4:47 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Of all the ignorant baseless throwing shit at a wall nonsense you spew on an hourly baseless.

    This takes the cake as the dumbest thing you’ve ever said.

  101. 101 Spooonius said at 12:42 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Not that it matters, but I wouldn’t automatically assume that the original intent wasn’t racist. I don’t have proof that it is, and you don’t have proof that it isn’t. And considering the questionable history of that franchise, I would not be surprised at all. Check this out from NPR
    http://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/09/09/220654611/are-you-ready-for-some-controversy-the-history-of-redskin

  102. 102 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:55 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    You could envision an owner naming his team the Washington N words?

  103. 103 Spooonius said at 5:46 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Probably not today, but I’m not sure of your point.

  104. 104 suthrneagle said at 12:46 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    the major offense in that statement is`fuck you` not redskin’.

    try `hey redskin,what`s up?` see what happens

  105. 105 D3FB said at 4:03 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    “Fuck you call me?”

  106. 106 Spooonius said at 12:32 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Bravo.

  107. 107 Bacon & Iggles said at 12:33 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Damn you make me feel un-smart a lot sometimes, Tyler. Yeesh. :~)

  108. 108 D3FB said at 10:01 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Article could also be accurately titled “Approximately 1.5 million Native Americans (or roughly the population of Philadelphia) find name of Washington Redskins to be offensive”.

  109. 109 eagleyankfan said at 11:45 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Article said 90%(I think) . are you saying 1.5 mil were the 10%?

  110. 110 D3FB said at 4:02 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Headline said 10%. Actual article said 20-23%, with a margin of 5.5%. And a population of 5.4 million.

  111. 111 Spooonius said at 12:12 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Interesting take. I am a black man, married to a native american woman with whom I have 2 kids. I have to say that I find this discussion extremely interesting and I can see both sides. While the movement to protect us all from insensitive racist language can be tiresome, I have to admit that I have to work hard not to be offended a lot of the time. When I was born I was a negro, then I became black and then african american. I can understand the confusion of mainstream society most of the time, but what get lost is that we didn’t do this to ourselves. I know that nobody alive now is directly responsible but the problems of previous generations are baked into our society. As for the D.C team, the term redskins is offensive to me, without question (and not just because I’m from Philly!). But, when I first met my mother-in-law, I quickly found out that she was a skins fan. To me, it seems like marginalized people who want to be included will sometimes take what they can get. I don’t care what percentage thinks it’s ok; if someone calls my wife or kids a redskin, we’re going to have a problem.

  112. 112 P_P_K said at 9:56 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    Looking at the list of the 2016 receivers, “Time To Step Up” applies down the line.

  113. 113 unhinged said at 10:20 AM on May 20th, 2016:

    The disappointing season from Agholor, and even Huff to a certain extent has to be seen in context, I think. Chip had peed on Lurie’s shoes, his repeated neglect to address OL personnel, other than cutting a starting left guard, his total reliance on a QB that probably had very little confidence, given his history in the league, and a defense that never acquired all of the pieces to excel in the scheme that Kelly insisted upon. All of the shuffling of players cannot have left the tone of the locker room unchanged. Even gritty veterans Celek and Sproles were most likely looking around themselves and asking questions.
    Given the perceived ineptitude from the top, asking a rookie WR to ignore all of that, and just “do your job” sounds kind of herculean. I am not exonerating dropped passes and mental lapses, they can be seen as personal flaws and they can be seen as symptoms of something bigger.

  114. 114 Will:Howie is Nino Brown said at 12:25 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Really excited to see what Nelson can do this year. I hope he surprised a lot of people. H e can really open our offense up

  115. 115 myartz04 said at 1:02 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Let’s continue this redskin debate here. Here’s a question…and this doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with race as much as it is for being offended and catering to those offended. So, let’s say we have 100 people and we ask all 100 people the same question. “Does the color red offend you?” Let’s say, for fun, that 90 people say “yes”. Considering the findings I think it would be safe to say that the color red would be deemed so offensive that it would be removed from language all together. So my question is, at what point is something so offensive it needs changed? If we slide the scale back from 90 offended people to 65. Would we be looking to change? Slide it back to 30 out of 100…worth changing? 20? 10? What if only 1 person was offended by the color red? Let’s circle this back to the Redskins. At what point in this scale is action warranted? If 20% of all native Americans find it offensive is that worth changing? At some point you have to stop with all this nonsense of being offended unless the majority of people feel the same way. Otherwise, you end up catering to a small fraction of the people involved. Its a slippery slope, I know.

  116. 116 xmbk said at 1:16 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    So, let’s say we have 100 people and we ask all 100 people the same question. “If we put all Japanese people in Internment Camps, would you take up arms against America?”. Let’s say, for fun, that 90 people say no. Considering the findings I think it would be safe to say that Japanese people would be put in Internment Camps.

    Your hypothetical missed key points to the debate. 90% of the people were once ok with the term “Negroes”, then “Colored”. There were many people clueless as to the inappropriateness of those terms, just as there are now people clueless as to the inappropriateness of using formerly racial terminology about an oppressed people who were subjected to genocide and still suffer the adverse effects. But hey, it’s all good as long as your tailgate means no harm.

  117. 117 myartz04 said at 1:27 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Wouldn’t it be more pertinent to take action to help these people who are suffering from these adverse side effects than to worry about what an NFL team calls itself? Nope. That sounds like hard work. It’s much easier to be outraged and offended from behind a computer screen.

  118. 118 Bert's Bells said at 1:47 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Because these two things are mutually exclusive. You have to pick one or the other and stick with it.

  119. 119 xmbk said at 1:50 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Man, you are inventing situations and then arguing against them. Wrong is wrong.

  120. 120 Sean Stott said at 1:24 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    What you’re describing is called Tyranny of the Majority. By that logic, we should ask the country to vote to give all of the money Blacks, Mexicans, and Asians make to white people. Majority rules.

  121. 121 myartz04 said at 1:29 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    #donaldtrump

  122. 122 ChoTime said at 1:06 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Damn, it’s nice to see another educated person.
    Your example would probably appeal more to the masses if you remind them whites will be a minority, fairly soon.

  123. 123 Bert's Bells said at 1:44 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Isn’t that how we got all their awesome land in the first place?

  124. 124 Tumtum said at 2:35 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Word in your example carries no context. This problem doesn’t work in a vacuum. Unfortunately in real life there is always context.

    You also vaguely describe the action against the color red as “needs changed”. Required by law? Forced by the league? By the fan base? What actually equals “needs changed?”

    In the case of the Redskins they should never be forced by law/government to change the name. If someone is offended they are welcome to boycott the team or the entire league. A sports organization’s name doesn’t infringe upon anyone’s rights, unless of course there was some sort of copyright or intellectual property involved.

    The question then in my mind, is when you should morally change it. Sometimes a baseline for morality fluctuates greatly between cultures and even individuals. If you offend a sizable, though smaller than majority portion of an entire race with your team’s name, it’s my opinion you should change that name. This is where context becomes so important. Speaking of context; considering Snyder is Jewish, I would think he would be much more receptive to the calls for change.

  125. 125 Media Mike said at 6:07 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    You’re missing a key point of the discussion. Washington, and their fans especially, suck at life. Having their team name subject to ridicule and banishment would be most excellent.

  126. 126 myartz04 said at 6:49 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I am NOT offended by this post.

  127. 127 Spooonius said at 12:46 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    My favorite post in this thread.

  128. 128 Call Me Carlos the Dwarf said at 1:09 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I remember early last year, someone (Sheil?) doing a film breakdown of the first few games where he showed Agholor was getting open 15 yards downfield like 5 times a game…only for Bradford to dump it off to Sproles for 3 yards.

  129. 129 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:25 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Revis sounded impressed by Agholar for a young player, even tho nelson DIDNT have a big game against the Jets.
    ..
    But we don’t need Revis to tell us that. The young man has all sorts of talent and untapped potential for Greg Lewis to mold

  130. 130 anon said at 4:48 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    just need to find a way to get the ball from badfords hands to ags hands w/out a drop. I think they can work on chemistry since they actually have an offseason

  131. 131 ChoTime said at 1:04 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    You could do write that sentence with about any receiver Bradford’s played with.

  132. 132 GermanEagle said at 1:24 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Happy Friday!

  133. 133 P_P_K said at 2:52 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Does Mrs. Eagle know what you’re up to?
    P.S. Can’t wait for your Happy Saturday.

  134. 134 GermanEagle said at 5:04 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Pssssssd… 😉 But she knows I’ve been having a man crush on her ever since i saw Morena in Deadpool.

  135. 135 P_P_K said at 5:33 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Here’s a story I heard about Billy Martin, the basbeball guy. He was Manager of the Yankees, I believe, at the time of this event. He got in some kind of trouble, a fight or something, outside of a strip club. A reporter asked his wife how she felt about her husband hanging out out at such a place. Her reply, “I don’t care where he reads the menu as long as he comes home for his meals.”

  136. 136 GermanEagle said at 7:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Yes!!!

  137. 137 ChoTime said at 1:03 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    is that morena baccawowow or whatever?

  138. 138 GermanEagle said at 3:25 PM on May 22nd, 2016:

    Yes, that’s Morena Baccarin.

  139. 139 Sean Stott said at 1:30 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’ve been attached and bothered by this simple stat on Agholor – he averages less than 2 catches per game played. That is just straight up garbage. He looks the part but hasn’t played up to it, not remotely. Also, a broken clock is right twice a day – if you put an athletic freak on the football field and give them enough snaps, they will eventually make a play that makes your jaw drop.

  140. 140 myartz04 said at 1:32 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    He went through long stretches with no targets. One of the problems with Chip’s system was that you don’t really end up designing plays for certain players. So he was MIA for much of the season.

  141. 141 anon said at 1:52 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    1) chip made him play through a high ankly sprain most of the season
    2) scheme really focused on putting he ball in the middle of the field, or outside on short passes to RBs, or on screens
    3) he knew that if he had a monster year Chip would release him, but if he had a mediocre year there was a better chance he could stick around long term.

  142. 142 D3FB said at 4:17 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    4. Missed 3 games
    5. Only played 57% of the snaps

  143. 143 Birds4Life said at 1:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    He was a rookie last year. I think people forget after the great WR class of 2014 that most rookie WRs struggle when first coming into the league. Here is a link showing Agholor getting open against Revis: http://phillysportsnetwork.com/2016/04/10/nelson-agholor-can-be-the-deep-threat-the-eagles-need/
    Bradford wasn’t really throwing downfield much for the first half of the season as well. I think he will be fine. Just have to give him opportunities.

  144. 144 Insomniac said at 2:02 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Stud WRs usually make an impact within their first three years. Ags still has time to prove that, whether he does is a different matter.

    As for the Revis thing, Revis has lost that aura of being the best CB in the league years ago. He’s still good but he isn’t quite the same guy anymore after he lost a step.

  145. 145 Media Mike said at 6:04 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Revis was embarrassing last year given his salary. His putrid “coverage” of a guy playing on one foot in the Jets final game of the year vs. Buffalo was a significant factor in that choke loss.

  146. 146 Stephen E. said at 2:48 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Well, at least you admit he’s athletic.

  147. 147 Media Mike said at 6:03 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’d really encourage you to give him another year before you heap additional scorn on him. I’m not trying to hear any of this clandestine / after the fact “injury” excuses for his lack of production as a rookie, but I think he’ll be a lot better this year. He was a talent worthy of that pick and I think he’ll do much better this year.

  148. 148 Sean Stott said at 6:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Absolutely. Like I said, he looks the part, which was what made his on-field production so frustrating. Riley Cooper didn’t frustrate me, because you didn’t expect him to be a stud receiver. But with Agholor, I did. He has the right attitude and physical attributes. Hopefully he improves in his sophomore year as many WRs have in the past.

  149. 149 Spooonius said at 12:48 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    I don’t know. I’m kind of leaning towards giving everyone a pass on Chips last season.

  150. 150 ChoTime said at 1:03 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Eagles Episode LXXXIII: A New Hope

  151. 151 Bert's Bells said at 2:01 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    RE: Native Americans. FUCK THE TOMAHAWK CHOP!

  152. 152 Rob Jarratt said at 4:21 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I’m with you, BB. I cannot fathom why it is still “institutionalized” by the Braves, FSU and probably others sports entities.

  153. 153 ProbablyDrunk said at 4:03 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    probably because not all people are looking for new stupid reasons to be mad

  154. 154 BobSmith77 said at 2:19 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    The only reason I’d take this year’s WRs going into the season is that almost anything from Agholor is better than what they got last year when he played and Givens/Randle shouldn’t be the complete zeros that Austin/Cooper were.

    Huff to me is a lost cause at this point. Didinger said during one of the post-games last year that Huff simply didn’t have an intuitive feel for where he should be in coverage & has had trouble consistently grasping the playback.

    Hoping Agholor comes into camp stronger this year too. Seemed to have a lot of trouble separating himself from coverage when he got pressed.

  155. 155 anon said at 2:22 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Different scheme altogether, hopefully they give Huff some room in the slot and on screens, etc. Great guy to have in the middle of the field, was explosive the few times they got the ball in his hands — need better distribution. While i’d like to see Ertz get 100 balls lots of really talented guys on the team.

  156. 156 BobSmith77 said at 2:25 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Last year to me was Huff’s opportunity to grab a starting job on a team desperate for WR production. Just couldn’t do it even with a QB who almost consistently looks on the shorter routes that Huff tends to run too.

    Not exactly like Kelly’s offense was that complicated either for the WRs/TEs too.

    Maybe they’ll find a use for Huff as you slated. Likely isn’t a starting-caliber WR but can be productive if used more effectively.

  157. 157 the DONALD said at 2:46 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    chip was horrible last year.. give em all fresh starts in the new scheme ..

  158. 158 anon said at 3:16 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    and all the stickum they can use

  159. 159 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:23 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Even worse was Bicknell…. The WRs may be the worst coached position the past two years. NFL west coast offense routes. And a new NFL WR coach could work wonders for Mathews. nelson and Josh..
    ..
    I wish we could learn a little bit about what type of work ethic huff brings to the table… I trust jordan and Nelson to put in the work to grow into quality NFL WRs, but I have no idea about Huffs work ethic

  160. 160 anon said at 4:47 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Hard for me to question work ethic of anyone CK drafted.

  161. 161 Media Mike said at 6:01 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Bicknell should kill himself. His unprofessional fake tough guy act on the sideline attacking DeSean Jackson for no good reason was a massive drag on this team’s success.

  162. 162 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:21 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Two years of Recieving horrible coaching (Bicknell) is enough for you to conclude that Huff is a lost cause? Really? Im no josh Huff fan, but I do try to be realistic and respect the player development process..
    .
    Huff has some tools and ability. He is now Recieving real NFL coaching for the first time in his career… The Unknown is his work ethic. No idea what type of work ethic he brings to the table, but whether or not we love or hate a 3rd year player, I have a very hard time believing he is done improving and developing,,
    ..
    But to each his own… Fans thought Logan needed to be replaced after a very promising rookie seasons, so I probably should stop being surprisd everytime someone wants to quit on a kid after a year or two

  163. 163 BobSmith77 said at 2:22 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I really glad the Cooper is gone. He was one of my least favorite Eagles’ players of recent years.

    All of the racial baggage stuff aside, I always got the impression he thought he was a lot tougher and better than he actually was. For a guy who has his size, I was always a bit surprised he didn’t become more a weapon in the red zone. Struck me as a ‘Mr. Softee’ type who even if he had 3-4 inches and a decent weight advantage over a CB/S wouldn’t be able to come down with the ball against a physical defender.

  164. 164 Media Mike said at 5:59 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    What is his career highlight; standing there and watching a DB on an end zone pass from Vick on a 50/50 that would have won us a playoff game?

    He sucked.

  165. 165 wee2424 said at 5:32 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    The catch he had against TEN i beleive in 2010/2011 on the 1 yard line which should have been an INT thrown by Kolb would be a great highlight for any WR in the NFL.

    Thats the game Kenny Britt had like 250 yards against us.

    Sadly that was really his only highlight if you dont count his long balls from Foles in 2013.

  166. 166 A_T_G said at 6:29 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Your phrasing of “the Cooper” made me think of a barrel maker. That is kind of apt. Cooper was like those orange and White barrels that PennDOT puts out. You can’t just ignore them completely, but they don’t really slow down the opposition.

    What we need to do is sign a Fenstermacher – someone who can make windows into which our QB can throw.

  167. 167 ProbablyDrunk said at 4:01 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Cooper had a handful of really nice endzone catches. idk what happened, thought he could at least do that

  168. 168 anon said at 3:16 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Rams DT Dominique Easley’s one-year contract is worth $600,000 and contains no guaranteed money.

    Does Easley even play on that line?

  169. 169 D3FB said at 3:59 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    200 snaps.

  170. 170 Sean Stott said at 3:53 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Just noticed that tweet came from someone with surname Middlewood. We have a Smallwood. Is there a Largewood out there? That’s clearly the best last name, due to obvious implications.

  171. 171 A_T_G said at 5:22 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think Discus frowns on genital humor. When I try to upvotes this, it turns blue but stays zero.

  172. 172 DJH said at 11:25 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    He’d fit right in with Cox, Swartz, Johnson, and Dixon. Its a gd sausage fest haha

  173. 173 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:33 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I didn’t know that Ron Brooks and Jalen Mills are cousins… That’s pretty cool.. When was the last time we had family members on the Eagles?
    ..
    Very excited about Roseman doing a great job this offseason adding depth at some of our weaker positions which should make for a daily dog fight of a camp battle this year especially at CB and LG… Not only are their depth roster spots up for grabs, but its not like we have starting Corners and WRs etched in stone. Roseman was able to create a camp competition between Rowe, Leodis and Nolan competimg for the two starting outside CB spots, and we should see an absolute dog fight between young corners JaCorey, Mills, Countess, Randal Evans, Denzel Rice all fighting for one, maybe two roster spots… Even better is the fact that we also created some nice legit competitipn at WR. Rueban Randall and Givens should threaten our young WRs much more than Miles Austin ever could. Randle and Givens ARENT anything special, but they aren’t chumps either who dont need to be respected as legit competition for Jprdan, nelson and Huff.. Take a legit Camp competition at WR, and put it up against CBs who will be scratching and clawing for their Eagle lives all summer, and it should create a really competitive atmosphere where WRs and CBS really go at it every day this summer. Hopefully The WRs and CBS can push each other to grpw all summer, without getting out of control and leading to a lot of injuries… We know that Leodis, Nolan, Rowe, Brooks, Agholar, Jordan, Huff, givens and Randle will all make the roster, but the depth chart Heirarchy will be up for grabs, especially with a new coaching staff in town..after those 9 WRs/CBs, there is a handful of decent young talent battling for 2-3 roster spots at the bottom of the depth chart…. Heck, there should be some solid competition for practice squad spots at CB this year.
    ..
    The Guard competition should also be great for this team, we added an absolute Stud at RG who could form one of the better RT/RG tandems with lane.. We may not have a clear cut LG like we have on the right side, but we should be head and shoulders above where we were last year with Barbe, Tobin and Gardner who was lost week 1.
    We have veterans like Barbe and Wisnewski competing, along with rookie Seumalo and Vaitai may also start off as a Guard, Gardner is back from injury who i expected to be our best Guard last year… Add in young Bunche and our highest paid UNDRAFTED kid Darrell Greene…I’d like to think at least 1 quality starting Caliber LG will emerge from a competition with a ton of depth..the one thing I didn’t love was hearing Pederson proclaim Barbie is “his guy”.. I hope that was temporary talk from Pederson and that there will be a real competition for the starting LG spot, and not just a competition for the backüp guard spots… Barbie did NOT have a good season last year, and he damn sure doesn’t have the type of resume to warrant being gifted that starting spot. I’ll probably be surprised if he can even beat out Wisnewski
    ..
    Looking pretty good in terms of depth at maybe half of the positions. If Roseman can have another quality offseason next year, we could be close to building a roster Thats ready to compete with the big dogs… Next offseasn, our focus will have to shift to
    Franchise RB (round 2 or 3)
    More talent at Offensive and Defensive tackle
    Another young LB
    Safety depth
    ..
    It would be great if we can keep Wentz on the bench until we have a stacked roster around the QB position for him to step into, the way Rothlisberger, Russell Wilson and Tom Brady had when they became Starters.

  174. 174 RC5000 said at 9:03 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Well they were never both on active roster but Dallas Reynolds was on Eagles roster and Matt Reynolds his brother was on practice squad in 2012.

    Bros Ty and Koy Detmer were on Eagles in 1997 but Koy was on IR with fake injury.

    http://offtherecordsports.com/2014/11/12/eagles-had-koy-detmer-fake-injury-for-ir-in-1997/

  175. 175 FairOaks said at 9:18 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    The Andrews brothers?

  176. 176 Gian GEAGLE said at 3:52 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Forgot about Stacy Andrews…. He probably goes down as one of the top 5 theifs who flat out stole money in Eagle history…

  177. 177 Gian GEAGLE said at 5:20 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Coach Pederson looks like he is starting to get more and more comfortable with press confrences/dealing with the media… compare any of his press confrences from the past two weeks with his interactions with the media during the first month of his head coaching career, and it’s night and day difference already.

  178. 178 Media Mike said at 7:06 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Bob Kraft just came out in support of a move by the Raiders to Vegas.

    Sadly this wouldn’t be a road trip for the Eagles until 2021.

  179. 179 anon said at 7:31 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Booo -Raiders belong in oakland. It’s a bit annoying that as soon as teams get good they want to move out of oakland.

    Be interesting to see how many season tickets they’d sell – though i assume they’ve already figured out that it’d be profitable.

  180. 180 Media Mike said at 7:33 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I agree the Raiders belong in Oakland, but I have to admit having a team in Vegas would be a lot of fun. I figure the season tickets would be easy to see to most of the casinos who would sponsor a lot of travel packages to Vegas for fans of the visiting team.

  181. 181 A_T_G said at 7:58 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    …meaning they would have the lamest, least passionate fans in the league.

  182. 182 daveH said at 9:13 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Fickle maybe

  183. 183 A_T_G said at 10:57 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    If casinos are handing out tickets to guests, they won’t be locals that support the team, just tourists watching a game.

  184. 184 Media Mike said at 7:21 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Not “just tourists”; fans that fly in to see their team play in Vegas.

  185. 185 D3FB said at 9:54 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Mark Davis probably can’t afford to live in Oakland anymore.

  186. 186 Sean Stott said at 10:31 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    It’s insane how much property values have crept up in Oakland. Gentrification run amok, all spillover from Silicon Valley.

  187. 187 Tumtum said at 12:59 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Comforting to know that there are at least a couple places more expenaive to live than the DC area.

    Was amazed when a buddy took a job for rediculous pay and couldnt afford an efficency in SF. Of course he is beyond cheap but they did seem to be far more than I pay for my 3 bedroom mortgage in a nice area.

  188. 188 anon said at 7:51 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Oregon QB Vernon Adams will play for the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes this season.

    Adams went undrafted despite leading the nation in pass efficiency as a senior. He didn’t get any UDFA offers, and failed to sign with Seattle and Washington after attending their rookie minicamps. Adams will play 2016 in the CFL in an attempt to parlay it into an NFL career.

    Chip didn’t even want him….

  189. 189 Media Mike said at 7:51 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Sounds like a good spot for a guy of his level of talent.

  190. 190 BlindChow said at 1:20 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Perhaps it was Baalke who didn’t want him…

  191. 191 GermanEagle said at 8:49 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Tommy

    When I told my wife ‘time to step up’ she only looked at me and said: ‘whose house’?! So after trying for hours I’m still in the dog house. Thanks so much.

  192. 192 ChoTime said at 12:59 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Reminds me of a Sebastian Maniscalco bit I saw the other day. Guy is hilarious. Said his buddy brought him over and was showing him his “man-cave”. Things sure have changed. Said his dad also had a man-cave, it was called “the house”.

  193. 193 GermanEagle said at 8:50 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Can anybody tell me why Byron Marshall went undrafted??

  194. 194 wee2424 said at 8:55 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Size and because he is a RB.

  195. 195 D3FB said at 9:53 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    Injuries, no set position, trouble of similar profile guys coming from Oregon, and the league doesn’t really love offensive tweeners.

  196. 196 wee2424 said at 9:01 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    I think WR can be a pretty solid position for us this year as long as our WR’s are correctly utilized.

    Mathews will grab a 1000 yards for us again. He has a chance to be a real steal for us this off season.

    Randle has shown the ability to post good numbers.

    Givens is young and has produced good numbers in the past with Bradford. He will give us a few big plays this year.

    Agholor was horribly misused last year by Chip. His bad rookie season was part him, part injury, and part Chip. He has explosion to his game and is very deadly running underneath routes. Chip was sending him deep far to often and not utilizing his skills.

    Huff is the one I am the most down on. With that said he does has skill, and just like Agholor was misused last year. He needs to be used more like an offensive weapon then pure WR. Furthermore, if he is lining up at WR then it should be in the slot, not on the outside.

  197. 197 The original AG said at 10:14 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    This bodes well with an improved secondary too. Let’s just hope we have health at the LB position and we should be really good.

    https://twitter.com/PFF/status/733693430132510721

  198. 198 anon said at 10:59 PM on May 20th, 2016:

    must skew toward first half of the year.

  199. 199 wee2424 said at 12:12 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Scored really high in the beginning, but we fell off towards the end. If not we would have been top 3 maybe 2. This just goes to show that Davis’s biggest problem was his adjustments. Could come up with a good initial game plan and put up a good D to start the year, but as a game or year went on O’s would adapt to his D and outperform it.

    Schwartz has a lot of nice pieces to work with. The most exciting part about it is that those pieces will finally be used correctly.

    Really surprised MIA was second. Their pass rush and run stopping was horrible to begin the year despite Wake and the addition of Suh. I guess that DL turned it around more then I thought they did.

    Denver is obvious. Relentless pass rush. Ware was such a great signing for them. He still has so much left in the tank. Watching him and Miller fly around the edges is really fun to watch.

    St, Louis makes sense. Awesome DL.

    Seattle makes sense even though their D wasn’t as strong as years past. Will be interesting to see how they fare with adapting to a more pass oriented O and their D continuing to not be what it was in years past.

  200. 200 A Roy said at 5:53 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    A lot of it was they just wore down as the games and year went on from the sheer number of plays they were on the field.

  201. 201 Tumtum said at 12:55 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Dont forget the snap count and fact that it was a 2 gap defense put the Eagles at a disadvsntage in this area, especially as the season wore on and the offense continued to be ineffective.

  202. 202 wee2424 said at 11:34 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    You are correct, but I am going to play devils advocate here. A large increase in snaps does mean a large increase in the opportunities to get after the QB.

    I think Kempski did the math and came up with the fact that our D played 2.5 more games worth of snaps then then average NFL D. That is 2.5 more games worth of chances to pressure the QB.

  203. 203 Tumtum said at 9:53 PM on May 22nd, 2016:

    Of course it does, but I didn’t bother mentioning that because we didn’t really get play with any sort of lead. There was no pinning back the ears. It was full blow 2 gap with some blitz thrown in.

    Of course no one complained. I can only imagine how the locker room viewed C.W.

    Besides. Its not like that have some sort of internal fuel meter, or video game like power bar. They know their tired, but I’m sure they can’t tell the difference as drastically as if they did some sort of base line test and then did it during a game late in season. My base line test was level of play and the results were shocking.

  204. 204 Insomniac said at 5:06 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Rams will be higher on that list once Quinn comes back healthy.

  205. 205 The original AG said at 6:50 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Yeah, they have are really stout defense. If Goff is the real deal, that team will be tough to beat.

  206. 206 Media Mike said at 7:19 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    And this group will be getting to play for Schwartz now.

  207. 207 P_P_K said at 10:59 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    Truth.

  208. 208 Gian GEAGLE said at 6:11 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    We had some pretty good players on defense the past few years, but its so exciting to know that a lot of our quality defenders will be used in ways that should make a big difference taking their games to the next level. wonder how much not having the added pressure of complimenting chips offense will help the defense? Dealing with Chips tempo and an inability to get off the field on 3rd and long was Terrible combo a defense has to try to overcome. Signifcant improvement in both areas should make a big difference.. Getting more and more excited about the return of the wide 9 now that we have a coach who has mastered coordinating the LB’s and DB’s with his wide 9 front.
    ..
    Im sure all the guards in the NFC east aren’t very excited about seeing the “Man Dog” twice a year with Schwartzy pulling the strings. Fletcher Cox was an absolute monster last year who Flat out took over games like we saw against the Saints and Bills… To think of how disruptive he was last year even when he was two gapping, chucking his man, and then make the play, it’s going to be so much fun watching Cox next year line up on the outside shoûlder of the guard, and just stampede his way thru the gap and into the backfield to fuck up some opposing offense’s world…
    .
    Wonder who is most happy about the switch to schwartz 4-3, Cox? Curry? Kendricks? Barwin back at his normal position getting to attack every play? marcus Smith? Sure BG is thrilled to never have to move backwards again?
    ..
    Think that the media/analyst who do the power rankings and division projections are drastically underestimating not only the Talent level on our defense, but also how much of a positive effect switching to schwartz defense will have Taking some very talented defenders game to the next level
    ..
    Roseman 2012 draft looks pretty damn good… Gonna be exciting to see how much better knowing Cox is going to Reach elite top 10 Defender status. And schwartz listing Curry and kendricks as two players he thinks his scheme will “Take The handcuffs off of”
    ..
    Schwartz will become a rockstar in philly if he delivers an elite philly style defense that we have been lacking for far too long
    ..
    Bradford improving, the Defense improving, the OL improving, has me thinking that the media may be under rating this team in a big way putting us at the bottom of such a weak division in the rankings,,, and I LOVE IT. Let us fly under the radar while disrespecting our players. I’ll be thrilled if from now Til the end of August, our players have to see everyone talk about us as the worst team in the division…if we were 7-9 last year, it wouldn’t surprise me to see us go 9-7… My ONLY concern isn’t the talent level, it’s the transition to new schemes in year 1. the Defense will be fine. But the Offensive playrs have to learn a much bigger playbook will all its intricacies

  209. 209 Fufina said at 7:25 AM on May 21st, 2016:

    If we have a top 5 DL, and our linebackers stay healthy enough (only 1 at a time), combined with one of the best safety pairs in the NFL means our defense should be pretty damn good if we can get just average play out of our corners (something Rowe and Carrol i think can give).

    If you are projecting a top 10 defense, i think even mediocre offensive production should push us to win 8-9 games in a weak division and a not too tough schedule.

  210. 210 Tumtum said at 12:53 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    I really wouldnt hate it if the birds took a 1 year flier of AF. If he is healthy he probably goes to a contender, but I actually think this could he an appealing destination for him. Line could be solid. Pederson has done really well with all the RBs in KC.

    The guy might only give you 3 games, but he has shown they will be very good. Might be all we need to win the division.

  211. 211 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:48 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Patriots are sniffing around Foster… Not sure it makes much sense to go with a RB who is a durability concern when we already know that we can’t expect Ryan Mathews to play 16 games… Assuming SPROLES, Ryan and Smallwood make the roster, we won’t have room for Foster. RB is one of the main positions we have to get younger at and start to transition away from Ryan and Sprolesy after this season. we are probably done add RBs this offseason, but if they were going to add a RB, I have a soft spot for Chris Polk who Pederson would be able to use much better, than how Polk fit in Chips offense.
    .
    Shame Polk has had those Shoulder injuries, or I wouldn’t mind seeing him add a little more muscle and try his hand at transitioning to FB in a mike Tolbert sort of mold..Polk is solid in blitz pickup, he has the pass catching ability to be a FB in the west coast offense.. I would have liked to see Polk compete with Burton for the part time fullback role, but it’s probably a little too late in the offseason to ask him to get his body right for a transition to FB
    ..
    I would have liked to get Bruce Miller from the Niners. No idea how he feels about chip transitioning him to the “Move” TE since we know stubborn chip ain’t adding a FB to his offense any time soon.
    ..

  212. 212 Tumtum said at 9:54 PM on May 22nd, 2016:

    I would make room. I want to win.

  213. 213 ChoTime said at 2:31 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    You guys are going to love FO’s Four Downs eval. Sterling seems to see things differently than the fan(atic)s:

    “Biggest Post-Draft Weakness: Cornerback

    We listed cornerback as Philadelphia’s biggest weakness in our predraft guide, but the Eagles didn’t spend a pick on the position until Round 5. Of course, the Eagles were drafting with one hand tied behind their back after trading up for Carson Wentz. Howie Roseman chose to add a pair of offensive weapons around Wentz with his second and third picks, a perfectly defensible decision.

    In doing so, however, the Eagles have cast their lot with a cornerback corps full of misfit pieces”
    http://www.footballoutsiders.com/four-downs/2016/four-downs-nfc-east

  214. 214 anon said at 2:58 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    “Howie Roseman chose to add a pair of offensive weapons around Wentz with his second and third picks” backup OL are offensive weapons?

  215. 215 ChoTime said at 3:35 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    obviously, dude!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e59Y9nG9v3A

  216. 216 Gian GEAGLE said at 4:23 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    We have a lot of unknows at CB… Unknown ISNT Neccessarily a bad thing, but we can’t just assume we have a bunch of hidden Gems at CB either, so I think it’s fair to list it as one of our weaknesses right now especially compared to the rest of the starting defense.. Our Nasty safety tandem combine with the schwartz pass rush should help our corners out this year, where as a team like Dallas is no better than we are at CB, yet their CB’s are going to get hung out to try by a nonexistent pass rush and an average Safety support unless Byron Jones is ready to explode in his transition to safety… I assume that the skins will be our best competition for the best defense in our division….I have a feeling the media is really under rating the defense we will see under schwartz
    ..
    If We can keep the injuries to our starting defenders to a minimum, we should see a pretty good defense this year that should easily prove to be the top defense in our division.. I’d probably take Schwartz over the other DCs in the NFC East.
    ..
    Next offseason, areas that we need to add talent at:
    RB…
    Backüp DT unless we have some UDFA Gems at that position
    Outside CB
    Offensive Tackle
    ..
    We are lucky that we don’t have too many glaring weakness, think that Probably made it a little easier to give up what we did for Carson

  217. 217 Greg Richards said at 2:39 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    Man the offseason post-draft is so boring. The league really needs to bring back NFL Europe so we have something to watch and to fuel irrational hopes and expectations for the #88, #89, and #90 guys on the roster.

  218. 218 Gian GEAGLE said at 5:29 PM on May 21st, 2016:

    “Im not here to carry pads, im here to take someone’s job”-Dovantae Booker
    ..
    Love the kids talent, love the way he thinks, but im not sure how making comments like that to the media will play in a veteran Locker room like the Broncos, especially from a rookie who isn’t even healthy enough to practice yet. That is exactly how he should feel, but you can feel that way while still taking a more humble approach as a rookie especially when dealing with the media.
    .
    Veterans know the name of the game,but it’s probably easier for a veteran like Bradford to help our Rookie in his transition with Carson taking a confident yet Humble approach, rather than start spouting off at the mouth about how he is here to take Bradfords job.
    ..
    You DONT have to run your mouth to The media to be confident

  219. 219 E.A.G.L.E.S said at 7:55 AM on May 22nd, 2016:

    There are no set of receivers in the league with better hands than Matthews and Agholor on the jugs machine : /