End Game
Posted: March 15th, 2017 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 449 Comments »Connor Barwin is gone. The Eagles need to find some DE help to replace him and improve the pass rush. Rather than looking at free agents, the team is focusing on draft prospects.
Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com says the Eagles had DL coach Chris Wilson at the Kansas State Pro Day to check out DE Jordan Willis. He would seem to be an ideal Jim Schwartz DE. He’s got an excellent combination of size and athleticism. Willis is 6-4, 255 and he put on a show at the Combine. His game tape is also very impressive.
Jordan Willis is Top 50 player in this draft IMO.. Good first step and uses hands to win! Decent athlete and plays hard in both run/pass.. pic.twitter.com/3yPKJSwX5q
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) February 10, 2017
You can see he is used to getting down in that track stance and firing off the edge. He would be a natural fit in the Wide-9 front the Eagles like to use so much. The question is whether Willis is still on the board when the Eagles 2nd round pick comes up.
The Eagles are looking all over for DE help. Per Pauline, they sent assistant DL coach Phillip Daniels to Youngstown State to check on a couple of pass rushers.
Derek Rivers, who measured 6037/249 ponds and met with the Detroit Lions last night, re-ran the short shuttle and timed 4.39s, slightly better than his combine mark.
Kevin Green of the New York Jets ran most of Rivers’ drills and the defensive end/outside linebacker looked terrific not only rushing the passer but also dropping into space. He was smooth flipping his hips and effortlessly moved about the field. Much of this comes from the fact Rivers played tight end in high school and is comfortable moving in all directions on the football field.
If you followed our Senior Bowl practice page we mentioned how impressive Rivers looked throughout the week standing over tackle. I’m told Kevin Greene and the New York Jets came away impressed and this could be the second day pass rusher the team is looking for.
Avery Moss was also worked hard and looked good in all his drills. Throughout the day Moss, who had a solid week of Shrine practice, met with the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Tennessee Titans. Moss has set himself up as a solid middle round pick.
Rivers is the more highly regarded prospect. He could be a 2nd round pick. He did play at Youngstown State, a I-AA school, but Rivers was dominant. He had 14 sacks in 2016 and 37.5 for his career. He has serious potential.
DE Derek Rivers is a strong dude.. Uses a mix of speed/power moves (30 reps at a Combine) – this DL was aggressive! Every play race to QB.. pic.twitter.com/dlonZ8xm1d
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) March 13, 2017
Avery Moss isn't the darling of this Penguin rush duo….but this is nice work in his own right. pic.twitter.com/58SJS20DP7
— Kyle Crabbs (@NDTScouting) February 21, 2017
Moss goes 6-3, 264. He isn’t as athletic or explosive as his teammate. Still, he has NFL ability. Moss is more of a mid-round target.
The Eagles looked at another player.
Alabama LB Ryan Anderson visited the #Eagles Monday, per @mzenitz. Reminder: CB Marlon Humphrey arrives in Philly Tuesday.
— Chase Goodbread (@ChaseGoodbread) March 14, 2017
I found this to be really interesting. I figured Anderson is a player the Eagles wouldn’t have any interest in. He played LB at Alabama and is only 6-2, 253. Not everyone likes DEs that small. I’m not sure there is a perfect fit for Anderson in terms of position. I thought he would go to a 3-4 team with a creative coach and carve out a niche for himself.
He reminds me a bit of John Simon, who just left the Texans for the Colts. Simon was 6-1, 257 coming out of Ohio State and didn’t fit any real position. The Ravens (and Joe Douglas) loved Simon and drafted him. They couldn’t make it work with him, but Simon found a home with Houston for the past 3 years.
Anderson is more naturally gifted than Simon. Anderson is also a productive player. He had 19 TFLs (including 9 sacks) for Bama’s elite defense this past season. While Anderson lacks ideal size, he is a powerful rusher and would fit in well in the Wide-9.
EDGE Ryan Anderson (Alabama, 6'2", 253lbs). Speed, hands, power. I'd love to see him use a counter a little more often, but dang girl! pic.twitter.com/ErzXAQhkYw
— My Colts Account (@MyColtsAccount) January 12, 2017
Anderson knows how to rush. He uses his hands well. He can explode off the edge. He runs the arc naturally. And don’t be fooled by his size. He knows how to use power to get blockers off balance. He is the kind of smart, tough, physical, blue collar player that I could see scouts and coaches falling in love with.
Teams love Ryan Anderson's game and we're raving about him following the interview process. Will have a ton of interest by the draft
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) March 5, 2017
Interviewing well also helps. Anderson could be a 2nd round target.
I will mention that it is possible the Eagles like him as an OLB. That doesn’t make sense to me because he’s not a great athlete and I don’t see him replacing Nigel Bradham at SAM in the future. You could play him at WLB in the base and as a rusher in sub packages, but I’m just not sure Anderson has the cover skills to play LB in the 4-3.
*****
Per this article, the Eagles could have some interest in free agent CB Marcus Cromartie.
The 49ers are keeping their eye on some of their own free agents, including receiver Rod Streater and running backs DuJuan Harris and Shaun Draughn. Another player in that category – and one getting attention from other teams – is cornerback Marcus Cromartie, who visited the Lions over the weekend. He also has received interest from the Seahawks, Jets and Eagles.
Cromartie was slated to be an RFA, but the Niners are letting him go. They did not tender him. He’s hardly a proven player, but does have some potential. And he’s cheap, which is important for now.
Cromartie has played both cornerback and safety for the 49ers. He started one game in 2015 at cornerback, knocking away two passes, but did not see as much action last year after Jimmie Ward was moved to cornerback and the 49ers selected Rashard Robinson in the fourth round.
_
Wow, it looks like Willis could come in and be an effective starter day 1. Those move/counter-moves are impressive. I started watching a bit on Derek Barnett and I liked what I saw. Quick first step, generates a ton of qb pressure,seems to bend the edge fairly well, played in the SEC, made Cam Robinson make him a sandwich….. I’d let him eat crackers in my bed.
As always, I appreciate your work on the film end with these guys.
I’ll have to start looking for some of those names more often as I’m doing mocks.
Love Barnett- he uses his hands as good as anyone in the draft. Legit option at 14 for us.
Willis Reminds me of Daryl Tapp…but taller…
To be honest, I dont really remember Tapp at all
Get a life, you faggot.
Chances of the Eagles not drafting a CB with pick one are about equal to John Ross being available at 14.
Does this correlation imply causation?
So you are saying the Eagles are going to draft another position with the option of John Ross being one of them?
Jim Schwartz ruined Vinny Curry.
Are you sure it wasn’t getting paid?
I tried to watch him last season, because I was sort of confused by him not showing up on the stat sheet at all. He’s still the first one off the snap. He still plays hard, he can be pretty disruptive and moves his guy as much as anybody. He just has no finish. I don’t mean he gave up, he has a good motor, but if you see someone who consistently have high sack numbers, when they get close to a QB they seem to have one last burst to get the QB. He can look like the blocker will buy the QB enough time and the good pass rushers have that one more push and gets his man. Vinny doesn’t really have that in my eyes. He’s good enough to move a QB off his spot, but he doesn’t get sacks, like at all, unless there is a busted assignment.
http://cdn-wpmsa.defymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2015/01/please-gif-overrated.gif
“D” would be more effective, certainly less predictable, if Schwartz had more JJ in his scheme(s) and utilized indidual talents of players more often. Less rigidity would be good. HC, in his 2nd year, needs to coach both sides of the ball and put more of his stamp on the “D”.
The fact that DE is that big of an immediate need is absolutely disgraceful.
Marcus Smith, for a guy reached for at 26, has been a mega bust. I appreciate he’s tried so hard to contribute when asked, but being a value member of special teams and a DE4 isn’t anywhere good enough.
Vinny Curry took the money; and walked………very slowly. Somebody on here pointed out that he had the exact same production as Marcus Smith. And I’m not interested in his inflation adjusted, triple analytic, bad intention metric, whatevers; he got paid to sack the QB…. not get close.
the Smith and Ags first round picks (I think back to back years but to lazy to look up) is astoundingly bad. I really hope that was Chip.
Yeah, but with Ags you’re using hindsight. EVERYONE agreed he was a great prospect, “pro-ready”, and a great pick…
No.
Decent prospect with a decent chance of being a decent #2. That’s what the scouting reports said.
There was no idea that he was a slam dunk in any sense.
I saw Agholor as a solid pick where they took him. Shame his game tape at USC didn’t show his mental softness.
Just one more reason that The Chippa isn’t in Philly (or with any team!) anymore! I will say though, that until last year, the most people thought Graham was another bust. One year can make a huge difference. This may be the year he comes out and has a killer year (wait, am I talking about Smith or Ertz???). Not holding my breath, but it could happen.
Disagree all blame can go on Chip. Howie had final say and was deeply involved in every aspect of the football operations outside of 2015. It is one reason some fans are leery of Roseman as GM.
Graham also showed flashes under Reid and it was really injuries that derailed him early on. He has been healthier these last several years and his production has been better. Part of that is his hard work/growth as a player and part good talent development and patience by the Eagles.
Smith and Agholor have never really even flashed as players much less produced consistently. They appear to be total busts which is a killer for a NFL team. They were over-drafted, did not perform themselves and the team failed to develop them as well. Bad news all around.
Maybe Smith is a late bloomer – very, very late. There were some positive flashes.at times last year.
Which would be great for a 6th rounder.
So you are saying Curry played like a first round pick last year…
As we’ve set the bar; sadly.
So we’re looking at players from the pitiful 49ers to fill the void at CB?! Lol, I’d rather have the older Cromartie – father of 136 children – come out of retirement and play for us.
Happy Wentzday!
Or by now, perhaps one of his children.
I’ve really had a hard time finding spots to take DEs where I think the value matches the available guys. I’ll give it a shot now………..
Round 1 Pick 14: Corey Davis, WR, Western Michigan (A-)
Round 2 Pick 16 (MINN): TreDavious White, CB, LSU (A)
Round 3 Pick 10: Derek Rivers, DE, Youngstown State (B+)
Round 3 Pick 22 (MINN): Dalvin Tomlinson, DT, Alabama (B+)
Round 4 Pick 12: Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma (A)
Round 4 Pick 32 (COMP): Damontae Kazee, CB, San Diego State (C+)
Round 5 Pick 11: George Kittle, TE, Iowa (B)
Round 6 Pick 10: Donnel Pumphrey, RB, San Diego State (B)
Round 7 Pick 12: Javancy Jones, OLB, Jackson State (B)
Have you run an average of all your mocks ?
Seems you have corey davis top pick the most
Love Davis- wouldn’t be upset at all if that’s the direction we go.
I like the first 3 positions picked, then grab another cb in the 4th.
Seems more likely that White wont last to our pick in round 2
Agreed. He’s looking more and more like a trade back option in Round 1, but I don’t see him lasting outside of the top 30 picks.
If we can trade back and get another 2nd round pick or an early 3rd and then take a guy like White. I would like it.
Third seems more of a realistic option– some examples from the 2016.
Broncos gave up #31 and #94 for Seattle’s #26
Texans gave up #22 and a 2017 sixth round pick for Redskins #21
Bears gave up #11 and #106 for Buc’s #9
Titans gave up #15, #76 and 2017 2nd round pick for Brown’s #8 and #176
Examples from 2015 draft.
Broncos gave up #28, #143, 2016 5th round pick and Manny Ramirez for Lions #23
Chargers gave up #17, #117, and 2016 5th round pick for 49ers #15
I’m waiting for your first mock without Perine…
Or Tomlinson.
DT steal of the century………..
My thoughts on Perine is that I’m not a fan of who is available after him and don’t want to take the other guys earlier. The Marlon Mack = Bryce Brown stuff soured me on him as well.
If this ends up being the Eagles draft I’d be ecstatic. It’s hard to see Davis getting past AZ at 13, though.
Rebuilding shifts to defense. It’ll be interesting to see what happens. Will BPA be a CB when the Eagles pick? If not, do they take one to fill what appears to be the biggest hole on D?
At this point Im kinda wondering which CB would you take at 14. Im starting to lean towards DE or WR
I’ve been on the DE band wagon for a while now. You fix the pass rush, you can hide a lot of the problems (not all) at corner and with our safety tandem, we might be OK. It still makes me super uncomfortable to see that our starters are Mills and Smith, but I’m not sure either could be worse than Carroll.
Ron Brooks is probably a start over Smith right now. But judging starters in March seems silly to me.
Granted, my big wish is that we pull of a trade for Kyle Fuller.
But I’m truly ok with starting two rookie CBs even if they aren’t first or second rounders. We are going to play the Giants and Cowboys with tough WRs twice etc…. this aint the year to look for perfection.
With hopes that the 2 rookies of Sept have grown exponentially by Dec. If the Eagles have grown 2 competent starters at the end of the year, then this approach is a success. My sense is that DP is comfortable with this approach.
Think the Fuller trade may have already happened if the Bears were interested in Kendricks or Matthews.
Perhaps, but it’s the Bears organization -not exactly the best – and it’s mid March. I don’t think there’s any urgency at this point. So “would have already happened” to me seems weak.
I hope so. I’d hate to go into the draft needing to force an early corner or two because of the glaring hole we have.
Plenty of room on the OJ Howard train.
Could we be looking at Anderson at as a defensive end? I realize 250 is light for a DE, but can he add weight to his frame?
Anderson would be a DE here.
He would most likely be a defensive end here. He’s just kind of a weird fit. He’s Ahmad Brooks. He’s your LOLB in a 3-4.
What do you think of TJ Watt?
Haven’t done him yet. Another guy that from a distance looks best suited as a 34 OLB
I’m pretty sure that’s where Trent Cole weighed in when he was drafted. Just sayin’.
So the whole “Eagles offered Malcolm Jenkins to the Saints” post from PFT turned out to be #fakenews.
https://twitter.com/975Mornings/status/841976985387687939
So was the ‘reportedly’ strong interest of Eagles in Kenny Britt..
Not really fake news….more like Florio got it wrong (this is my shocked face).
The fake news hashtag was sarcasm.
Florio is now calling out Shefter and saying the Eagles did offer Jenkins. Unless Shefter or Florio were privy to the phone conversations between the Eagles and Saints, neither can say with 100% certainty that they are correct and the other is wrong. Florio has some thin skin.
To be fair its possible Florio was lied to regarding this. Think its entirely possible that the Saints said that Jenkins was offered that that was simply a lie or a misrepresentation of the facts. Florio tends to aggressively defend himself and his reporting even if they are not always entirely correct.
Probably something like
Saints: “we’ll do it for Jenkins and your first.”
Eagles: “fuck you, we’re not giving you more than Jenkins and a 7th because we want to keep him.”
Florio: “eagles offer to trade Jenkins!”
So would you guys have traded Jenkins for Cooks? Currently, I’d say no- but if we actually had another starting corner on the roster, I would have had to seriously consider it.
No. The answer is no.
Why. And why?
Straight up with no dead money for us? Yes, Jenkins will be declining soon and Cooks is in his prime.
The other options, no not at all.
That’s a big hang up- almost $6m of dead money if Jenkins was traded. Take into account the amount of money it would take to resign Cooks to a longer term deal, and our glaring deficiencies on defense- I’m glad Jenkins is still an Eagle.
yep and if we had someone like Cooks already I’d say no.
@Sb2bowl, wasn’t Jenkins for Cooks, it was supposed the Eagles offerering a 3rd & 4th with Jenkins for Cooks and they wanted a 2nd for Cooks. I just don’t see this happening with the dead money the eagles would have been on the hook for with Jenkins plus with no real replacement for him. I agree with above, fake news.
That’s why I went with that question- Jenkins for Cooks. No draft picks involved.
The dead money on Jenkins, plus the loss of his leadership, plus the big contract we would have to sign with Cooks made me sour on the deal. Yes, Cooks is 6 years younger. But Jenkins offers a lot of leadership, stability, and he’s versatile.
Mike Florio is awful
Especially for taking up for Brady during deflate gate.
I really want to know how and what they did, as i honestly have no idea how they could achieve what they suggested in the article.
The only 2 options i can think of to reduce the cap hit for the eagles and save more cash are either Chase agreed to reduce his guaranteed money to be released, or (more likely) they agreed to a small restructure where the Eagles gave something like a $1-2mil signing bonus, removing the guaranteed money and then cut Chase, allowing him to double dip and saving the Eagles cap space in 2017.
But the article does not suggest either of these approaches at all, and the tweets from Caplan saying it only gives 2018 cap credit relief, which is the case for offset language makes neither of these options seem as well.
Anyone who is a fellow contract/cap nerd know how they could have made this work?
Nobody knows. Howie is a wizard
I don’t know – same thing I tell my kids – if you make a mess it’s your job to clean it up.
Such a bad article and especially such a misleading headline by McManus who doesn’t offer any insight re the details of the contract restructure. Such a bad journalism…
that was my thought. Oh they did, can’t wait to read how….wait, there’s nothing here.
this. doesn’t offer a word about what happened. For all we know (and what was reported here), nothing was changed in the contract…
I am convinced that the general public including cap nerds and the major cap websites have far from 100% of the rules, system design, etc. I think you are wasting your time.
I think overthecap has like 95% of it right, but as contracts aint public small details will be missed
the cash is made public the NFLPA release detailed accounting of the cash flows but not the specific contract details and terms.
and those are the things that can change how much dead money or offset a deal has
Which is why outsider evaluations of the “the Process” are going to fall short. The GMs are privy to many things we are not, so the results are the closest thing we have to a decent metric for judging them.
Not having all the info is different than not having sufficient info to evaluate. The process worked. What inside info could make the Kings trade a bad one? The Lakers trade?
They’re 24-43. If that’s working, I don’t want to know what failing is. The Spurs are 52-15 and Tim Duncan retired and most of their players are 40 years old. Results over hype.
I would also never understand why none of those super heros reporters don’t ask Howie how much the Eagles are still under the cap!? It’s almost like the journalists do not want to hear the truth. lol
well the NFL will update the NFLPA in a little while and then the NFLPA will give an current cap situation updated to the correct cent, if memory serves me that normally happens again some time in April for the correct cap numbers as of April 1st.
Good info. thanks.
Do you know how reliable this site
https://www.nflpa.com/public-salary-cap-report
is?
I mean, they are the NFLPA, they should know, should they?
So… now we can potentially afford Nick Foles? Yay…
The more I look into our defense, the more I’m convinced we are going DLine with our first pick, and probably another by Round 4. Schwartz lives and dies by his defensive line, and everything revolves around his scheme.
From BleedingGreenNation — http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2016/1/21/10805666/jim-schwartz-defensive-coordinator-eagles-philadelphia-hire-coach-4-3-wide-nine
From BuffaloRumblings– http://www.buffalorumblings.com/bills-news-notes/2015/1/13/7536851/rex-ryan-jim-schwartz-buffalo-bills-defense-donnie-henderson
The Bills emerged as one of the league’s two or three best pass defenses under Schwartz because, aided by the league’s best four-man pass rush, Schwartz was able to mix up coverages, switching between man, zone, and man under on a whim, leaving zero safeties high on some plays and three on others. The team’s surge in quality linebacker play was a big reason for their success defending the pass, as well.
With NFL rushers (DL and DE) getting some impressive money overall, and the fact that we have 2 excellent safeties over the top of the defense- the Eagles may choose to ride with their young corners despite obvious growing pains. If they can create a symbiotic relationship between the DLine and Corners, we should be okay going forward. Especially considering by the time our younger draft picks/corners develop, we will be well on the way to drafting replacement linemen.
That’s my take. I’m excited for the draft and watching what they do in regards to a team building concept- but I’m not excited to watch (my perceived) difficulties as they grow together.
I’ve been saying the same thing for a couple of weeks now. We can get solid starting CBS in rounds 2-4. DEs go early.
I really like Takkarist McKinley. I think he could be special in Schwartz’s scheme. I really like Charles Harris too. He may never be a 14+ Sack guy, but he will be a real consistent player. Taco is a major boom or bust guy. I was really high on him, but he tested much poorer than I expected. He may fit better with a team like Atlanta that likes big DEs in that Michael Bennett role.
Finding a solid starting CB in rounds 3 and 4 is anything from a sure thing..always!
With the depth of this draft I disagree.
Juts a few of the guys that should be available in round 3:
Cordrea Tankersley
jourdan Lewis
cam Sutton
These guys are NFL starters (outside or Nickel)
“Should”
I like Taco’s measurables, but as D3 pointed out, it just doesn’t look like he knows how to play the game; he’s not stupid, but there seems to be a disconnect which shows up between studying and actual game play.
Drafting 3 secondary players may seem overkill, but I’m all for it. We need depth (as our 5 right tackles last year proved) and talent. Everywhere. Mills will be one starting corner, no matter how many times we bust on him for getting roasted. Schwartz will live with that, and that’s why they invested so heavily in Jenkins and Rodney. A good tandem of safeties can make up for CB deficiencies on a consistent basis.
At this point i want at least 4 picks on the defensive side of the ball out the first 5, and honestly would be over the moon with the first 5 picks being all defence.
We need 2 CB’s, a DT, DE and OLB, with i would argue the priorities being CB1>DE>CB2>OLB>DT.
CB need is obvious. DE we have 1 elite player in Graham, Curry who is a huge question mark and honestly better line up inside on 3rd and long, and a bunch of guys.
OLB is a sneaky longer term need with Bradham aging and being on the last year of his deal and lack of depth behind.
DT is a need to replace Bennie but i think in 2017 we can make it work with Beau playing inside early and then Curry sliding into DT in pure pass rush situations (but for this to happen we need an quality DE option.
Agreed- it all depends on the board, but I’m a fan of trading back to accrue more options and assets. We need a lot of help, and our defensive talent depth is very thin. Then again, if there is an impact player early, we have to take him.
We need both an OLB and a starting MLB- I believe that Schwartz would like to move Hicks to the WIL position so that he’s not taking on blockers constantly and he will be free to roam and make more plays in the passing game (think Lee from Dallas).
Bradham probably resigns with us for minimal investment, he seems to do well with Schwartz and that personality type. But we need depth there, as well as someone who can be versatile when injuries happen.
DT isn’t in optimum position, but Vinny rushing from the inside on 3rd downs makes me feel better- but that puts more value on top of our D-ends.
Derek Barnett is the most likely choice if we go DE
Hey guys, I’ve been thinking. Mock drafts are hella dumb and groan inducing. You have the vaguest concepts about the other 31 teams and what they want and know squat about the other 31 GM’s. Then someone will fall and trades will happen and your mock draft is useless by the second round.
I thought it would be more interesting if we try to guess the Eagle’s draft-board. Simple concept, you order the prospects not in how you think they will be drafted, but the order in which you think the Eagles rank them. Come draft day you cross players off as they get drafted, then when the Eagles come to pick, you have a list of players you think the Eagles with take, If one of your top 3 guys on your mock board isn’t picked, you take a shot, and we make fun of you.
Some of you guys are pretty knowledgeable, would love to see your mock Eagles draftboard
Golf clap.
I’ll try to put something together position by position with tiers and types.
yes, Howie has expressed some basic philosophies, like player tiers, Not in terms of rounds, but closer to our concept of “blue chip, red chip” players. What makes that interesting in making a mock draft board is: “I think the eagles consider this player a top-tier player in a tier of 5 guys, we’re on pick 10 and he’s still there, There’s a damn good chance Howie is making phone calls”
The other interesting part is that within those tiers, Needs may manifest. 3 guys left of the top tier available, 1 is a QB, another is a safety, another is a corner. Easy pick. Oh the last guy of a higher tier just went off the board. Expect Howie to trade out. It can just be an awesome resource to have handy on draft day as we follow along.
I probably won’t mingle positions but it will look something roughly like:
If you don’t get category 1 then you should get one from each of category 2 and 3 ideally
Potential Impact WR (Dynamic starters)
Williams
Davis
Ross
Taywan
Zay
Henderson
Godwin
Slots (NOT BIG SLOTS, BIG SLOTS ARE BAD)
Samuel
Switzer
Trent Taylor
Artavis Scott
Fred Ross
Day 3 Boom/Bust lottery ticket type
Shelton Gibson
Cannon
Robert Davis
Chad Williams
I pretty much have the same list but I would add Stacey Coley to the slot list.
I will miss the fun of 32 (ish) of us all replying to the same mock draft thread, but I’d love to see people’s boards.
Yeah, that’s unstoppable force that will steamroll anyone who tries to stop it, I just avert my eyes and think there is a more constructive use for all that knowledge. Hell, applied to a team and scheme and coaches and front office, that we all know well, there’s actually a chance that knowledge can be insightful.
Heck we can even apply rules, score hits and declare a winner on the end of day 3
I’d be well out of my depth on that, but really enjoy seeing what some other folks had to say
For me @14:
1) CB Marshon Lattimore
2) DE Derek Barnett
3) WR John Ross
4) LB Reuben Foster
5) DT Jonathan Allen
6) CB Marlon Humphrey
7) OT Cam Robinson
8) RB Leonard Fournette
I’d be ok with taking Derek Barnett at 14. If he’s not there, I really think we have to go CB. But with the Jones injury, I’m not sure there will be a CB there worthy of the pick. I really hope we trade down in that case to say 20 and pick up another 3rd. Then go CB in the first, a DE like Willis in the 2nd, and another and CB and a RB/WR with the two 3rds.
So ummmm, has Chase landed a starting gig yet? (I’m errrrr….asking for a friend!)
It takes time to sort through the offers and weigh the team quality versus the financial incentives.
He and Jeff George are hot commodities who’ll gobbled up any time now.
So everyone has their favorite DE as a potential target at 14 but how likely is it that Solomon Thomas is there? 5% chance? I think I’m gonna go with Taco Charlton as my guy. Big, long, bends well for a big guy. Pretty sure Schwartz was the coach that liked the longer DE’s. Taco is 6’6.
0.058% chance, matey.
If he lasts to pick 11 (Thomas) we should trade up and get him
There a 0.147% of this happening.
So you’re saying there’s a chance?
Think there is slightly more chance than that. Size wise he is somewhat of a tweener and that may make some teams look in a different direction. He is not really big enough to be a 3Tech or a 3-4 DE, and he is probably bigger than some teams would like as a purely rush DE – he is not twitchy and flexible enough to really beat Tackles around the edge.
If QB’s start going early and teams focus on offensive difference makers thinking they can get better defensive options in the 2nd and 3rd there is a chance he falls out of the top 10 and into range of the Eagles. Unlikely but it could be possible.
Athletically he tested like Justin Houston
Thomas would be an excellent addition as a starting DE
Maybe Goodell should hand the super bowl trophy to the Patriots already.
Nah man, they win it on the field, not with offseason moves.
Same difference…
15-1 my guess.
16-0.. according to Dave Spadaro!
Who is more likely to be a meaningful contributor next year to the Eagles?
Agholor
DGB
MS2
Vaitai
Other
MS2 or Vaitai
Vaitai: some folks projecting him to be our RT when JP retires. Nobody would dare project any of the other guys being starters. Agholor would be my second choice. He’s a headcase, getting out of the spotlight might help, and he has the talent. DGB doesn’t care about football, can’t fix that. MS2 will never be able to pick up the tricks to become a complete DE. He’s just not a natural football player, just an athlete. He’ll be the guy we are hoping to have the depth at DE to part ways with.
Ya but does Vaitai play if JP and Johnson are healthy?
God I hope not.
I think I read the question in a way the Bob didn’t intend now that I’m looking at it. When he said “next year”, I thought of 2018, not the upcoming season
Other.
I’m going with Other and writing in “Wentz”
Darn you beat me to it.
Vaitai and MS2 have shown much more potential than anyone else. I think MS2 could be decent next year. Vaitai has already shown he can be a starter he just needs to keep getting better.
DGB and Agholor have showed virtually nothing.
On this list, MS2. Agholor is buried on the depth chart. 4th guy for the RECEIVERS while buried even further if you’re talking receiving options. I’d imagine he’s below Jeffrey, Smith, Matthews, Sproles, AND Ertz (names not listed in any particular order).
Vaitai shouldn’t play much if Peters and Johnson are good to go.
DGB isn’t even making the roster (probably).
MS2 will get on the field just simply due to the rotation. This is, of course, with the roster as is. If we get a first round DE, MS2 might be shown the door as well.
MS2 because he’s already useful on special teams.
could Ags contribute on ST? wasn’t he a PR in college? not that it guarantees he’d be any good at it in the NFL, though…
if ags is going to be the 4th WR, i expect him to be playing a lot of STs. to be seen how much he contributes while there.
Bryan Smith comes out of retirement and becomes our new sackmaster.
Compared to these guys, I’ll take Nick Foles.
Other. Like Wentz.
Should have been End’ers Game 🙂
Beckett>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Card
Ravens traded Jeremy Zuttah to move up 12 spots in the 6th round. Guess we have a good idea of what Kelce’s value would be
The Ravens 7th?
In for a visit today: Me wants!
side note– He needs to stop leading with the helmet in the open field at the next level
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1mXBHGBLKE
Fill me in please.
Is Foster projected to be the second coming of a Ray Lewis or Kuechly?
His nickname is Ray Kuechly
More Kuechly than Lewis, but a little more athletic than either and has better range. He would be a perfect OLB in this scheme and with Hicks would give us one of the best LB pairs in the NFL.
Would be really happy if we could grab him even with his combine meltdown. Would give the Eagles and elite safety and LB pairing, and if we draft well in the secondary in rounds 2-4 that could be a top 3 in the NFL back 7.
Fosters been my Dream pick for us since the beginning of the offseason. LOVE hearing that he’s meeting with the Eagles, he was widely looked at as a top 5-10 prospect, would absolutely lose my mind if the combine stuff let him fall to us at # 14
More athletic than Kuechly?
both have great instincts and are very athletic…I noticed a scout say that Kuechly is slightly better in coverage and Fosters a Bigger Hitter..that sounds right
and he won’t put up with long wait times at the doctors!
Let’s just call it “Foster Care”
I know a kid who has that.
http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2017/3/15/14939230/howie-roseman-malcolm-jenkins-trade-rumors-saints-eagles-philadelphia-nfl-brandin-cooks-interview
Much ado about nothing with a heavy dose of media provocative bs.
Im just happy Roseman shut it down. Saints wanted it Eagles didnt want to give him up. Jenkins stays happy. Eagles come out looking like the good guys.
Agreed, but Florio is being his typical ego needy douche, and several beat guys around saying Howie didn’t deny it/he was hedging… It’s annoying.
Jeff McLaneVerified account @Jeff_McLane 2h2 hours ago
Howie Roseman, asked on WIP about report Malcolm Jenkins offered in Cooks trade, doesn’t directly deny inclusion. Said trade didn’t work.
Nah thats not how i read it. He said Saints wanted Jenkins. Eagles werent willing to give Jenkins up.
http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2017/3/15/14939230/howie-roseman-malcolm-jenkins-trade-rumors-saints-eagles-philadelphia-nfl-brandin-cooks-interview
Nah that’s not what he said. When reading between the lines Howie didn’t deny it. And he should have. Even if it would have been a lie.
Huh? Im reading it as Saints wanted him. Eagles werent willing to part ways with him. Am i missing something? Think people are reading too much into it.
Roseman didnt deny Jenkins was part of the trade talk. But he does say Saints wanted him not Eagles offered him. Thats enough for me to understand you want Jenkins sorry no deal.
Maybe it’s just me but his denial could have been more firm.
Poker faces are worthless. Always let negotiations be made in public. Fredo, you broke my heart.
But there is nothing to deny. To deny would be Jenkins wasnt part or brought up as a trade offer.
Roseman acknowledged yeah Jenkins was brought up but we didnt bring him up Saints did. We want to keep Jenkins. So no deal.
I still think Howie is a master at beating around the bushes…
BEATING AROUND THE BUSHES IS HIS JOB. Literally. I think that’s the part that you are missing. Denying it outright is amateur hour. It seems like you are accounting zero percent to the GM’s role of maintaining a level of secrecy about everything – specifically for strategic purposes. That’s literally part of doing the job well. Especially for a team that likes to trade and maneuver the cap creatively. But you are allowing yourself to get played by the media and think that guys like Howie should be transparent.
Do you not understand the technique here?
I do understand a lot of different techniques. Just ask my wife.
Exactly. This is part of keeping relationships that help with trades (by not burning NO) or creating leverage (by not burning a media source). Never burn one of those bridges unless you are absolutely forced.
We will trade you Jenkins, Agholor. Mathews & Smith for… .. hello, hello ??
Howie said they asked for Jenkins but he wouldn’t deal him. How is that not clear that they never offered him?
Please. Read. It. Again.
“And by the same token, people should be interested in Malcolm Jenkins. He is a heck of a player. And by the same token, we don’t want to give him up. Just because teams want guys or ask for guys, that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to give them up”
So he is flattered they asked for Jenkins, praises him and says “we dont want to give him up”.
That sounds like the Saints asked (as they should) and the Eagles refuses.
If he already talked to Jenkins about it why would he lie publicly?
Who’s guaranteeing you that Howie was telling Jenkins the truth?!
I am not sure that Malcolm would be happy if Howie told him that they were willing to part ways with him.
Look Malcolm, just wanted to let you know that your name was discussed during trade talks. It’s going to be out there in the media. Lot of names and scenarios get bandied about during prolonged trade talks. You’re a vet, you understand my job is to always be trying to improve the team and it’s just business. We love having you here.
Thanks,
XOXO
Howie
Love The hugs and kisses. Lol
It’s the family atmosphere Jeff is looking for
Let’s all hope Dougie P will never miss a Xmas party…!
The secretaries are there. He will be too.
Speaking Of the former. Would love to see how those look like. 🙂
I know he just got here, but Foles is way better trade bait should a starting QB go down again this season. I’m glad he’s on the roster….just sayin.
So much hope!
https://youtu.be/Tc1he-2C1NE
I feel like I just got rick rolled…
Ha ha, who will be the 2017 Nate Iloa Igglesblitz Commentariat Player of the Summer?
Who can forget the combine when Deion salivated over his ability to break out of his pedal instead of having to click and close.
Although I’m not a huge fan of Jalen Mills as a starting outside CB, I love that he earned $324K of NFL performance-based pay.
I am not sure where i stand with Mills as a long term CB. He has obvious speed limitations which means my gut instinct is he is a bridge player at best and needs to be upgraded from long term.
However there are plenty of CB’s in the league with his long speed who are successful, and he has good short area quickness and agility, and i wonder if i over emphasise long speed as a defining characteristic of an CB.
Looking at how the Eagles have made absolutely no effort to address the CB position yet in free agency, they must be comfortable to an extent with Mills playing starting minutes in case of the draft falling in a way so they miss on CB’s early in the draft, or a draft pick is not ready to take on starting CB minutes.
I am not sure i agree that no FA cb so far tells us squat about Mills. Very little cap room and historically deep cb draft are immensely confounding variables.
Brooks and Mills are the only CB’s on our roster with any starting experience in the NFL, and Brooks is a slot only CB honestly.
Eagles have to feel comfortable that either Mills or or CJ Smith/Gratz/Grymes can start if needed otherwise they would have spent some of the cap they have spent on the OL/QB/WR to get a player in.
Going into a draft needing 2 starting CB’s is hugely risky because it is a position rookies often hugely struggle, and you never know how injuries and the draft will work out. They have to be comfortable with one of their internal solutions to be an outside CB in 2017 even if they do not trust they are long term answers.
Gratz has starting experience. Early with the Jags.
I hear you you and barely disagree. But, if you’ll allow me, i would call this a “building season”. Not “rebuilding”, and not outright “contending”.
So i think comfortable at outside cb is relative…
If the offense clicks, we could be like Dallas was last year and put up some points. I could see a playoff berth, just not really contending once the post-season comes around.
IMO Mills > Carroll > McKelvin
What we don’t really know about Mills is whether or not he has any ball skills, as the receivers have been so far past him he really hasn’t had a chance to make a play for the ball. I’m hopeful Mills can learn how to not bite on underneath routes and defend the deep ball first.
Carroll more often than not seemed to be in good position. His horrendous lack of awareness of where the ball is in the air is his Achilles heel. McKelvin just sucked in general.
I would argue 2nd year Mills is a step up from both Carroll and McKelvin. With that being said, he seems like nothing more than a band-aid who may be thrust into a starting role.
They can still sign a CB. And there will be veterans available up until the preseason
We’re BPA 100%, as why.
That’s a lot of dough for #FingerWag.
Might try this at work tomorrow..
http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2017/03/former_um_football_player_jour.html
Another one bites the dust. The CB class is getting thinner.
Not sure its clear who the aggressor was or if Lewis even did anything. Were gonna need more details. It could just be an elevated argument, someone got mad and called the police.
I’m not giving it the benefit of the doubt. Supposedly Lewis and his girlfriend were really close. It wouldn’t make much sense to call the police if she didn’t feel threatened enough to do so. That’s assuming she’s a normal person though.
Not sure what to hope for, his tweet was kind of alarming. He may be an a-hole, any guy who hits a woman is. But… if his side is true it’s really sad because she is crazy and some people will never believe him. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that maybe he wanted to move on, knows he is about to be rich and doesn’t want to be tied down and she knows she can ruin all that with one phone call. Sad situation either way.
The Eagles can just draft him late.
http://www.phillyvoice.com/terrell-owens-reveals-origins-of-feud-with-donovan-mcnabb-or-at-least-his-side-of-it/
Anyone read this? Sure its been said countless times. Was a big fan and still am of McNabb. But have you listened or read some of McNabbs comments about the Eagles or players. Comes off as a hater. Listening to T.O it matches up too.
TO is a narcissist, McNabb is passive aggressive. Both have extremely thin skin. Not a good combination.
TO best Eagles receiver ever.
And Childress sucks and Andy is an ego maniac casting himself as a regular ol joe … toss all that together. ..
Let it go about Andy, he’s proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’s a top-shelf coach.
Him & fisher record setters
So you would rather have TO on your team than big Red?
TO ‘was selfish to play’ . .. imagine the idiocy .. what part(s) of Eagles management was complicit in that bs.
Based purely on Super Bowl performance who would you take ?
I’d take 4 NFC Championships games and numerous NFC East titles over a team cancer any day of the week..
Yep agreee. Of course.
Very interesting question however .. becuase it really shows that good coaches are underpaid. By slot. Belichek should be paid near equal to Brady
But if course we wud nevet be coachless .. but we never got close without TO .. the drop off … ahhh its just banter
Great players make way more than great coaches so the market always tells us to take the great player(s) if you can get em… and get them at their peak
He is universally beloved by every player that ever played for him, respected league wide, he had ’em all fooled, but daveH ain’t buying his bullshit. Keep fighting that phony, dave
I like TO, but there’s a bit of the con-man about him. What he says rings true, but the fact is he was around more trouble than 5 and in multiple places.
Right I know people that always seem to have work drama and get let go then same thing at different place but they are relationship people that don’t think they had any role in the drama.
Yep. Everything happens to him, nothing because of him. McNabb festering despite Owens’ manly attempts to put it behind him, Childress had preconceived notions, media misrepresented him, …
Can we add “emotional intelligence” to the spider charts? (and someway to incorporate negative numbers for guys like these two?
?On Wednesday morning, former Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens joined Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe on FS1 for a lengthy interview (debate?) on “Undisputed.” Read this first line and clicked back out of the article.
Thats AWESOME, I never wudve seen that. Thank you G
Little sad we still have to talk about either of these players – hopefully the Wentz / Jeffery era will help put this behind us. I’m on team TO for the record.
I heard TO tell this exact story about McNabb telling him to Shut the F up in the huddle and refusing to hear him out in the locker room afterwards when TO tried to talk to him, way back in 2005. You always wonder because TO is such a nut, but his story has stayed remarkably consistent.
http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2017/03/15/nfl-colin-kaepernick-robert-griffin-iii-free-agent-quarterbacks
Thank
God
We
Have
Carson
Wentz
So I saw a lame article this morning, which is not deserving of a link. It said we restructured Chase before the release, then said a bunch of stuff that wasn’t about restructuring, while mentioning three more times we restructured him. It said we could get more cap relief than just offset, but did not explain in any way. Then it said we paid him 11 million to throw one pass.
So, maybe we restructured him, or maybe this writer doesn’t know what his contract was.
That lame article was from yday. But agreed, absolutely shocking journalism and research there.
If it helped in any way in Carson’s development (which i think it did), totally worth it.
11 million for one pass. What a stupid way to think.
In this video, Carson and Zach travel to Arkansas for the spring snow goose conservation season. They spent 4 fun days hunting and hanging out with friends and family. This is definitely a trip they will not forget!
https://vimeo.com/207292495
. . . the spring snow goose conservation season . . .
. . . 4 fun days hunting . . .
_______________
Irony?
Orwellian?
_______________
More seriously, I understand that legal hunting of game is an important way — given the limited area in which they have to live — to prevent over-population and ultimately starvation.
Carson is a really great guy, a very intelligent young man
and
a redneck meat head
In context, probably. But not necessarily by dint of logic. I visited a family in Germany who had “hunting rights” in a tract of forest there. Went to their tract with them, and spent an awesome summer day going from blind to blind as they described the history of the individual animals we saw. The point of the hunting rights is to maintain (“conserve”) a certain balance on the tract. They would only kill an aging or sick animal that might cause overpopulation problems (or occasionally, with predators, an underpopulation problem).
I have no idea about the overall context of the conservation program at stake here. But certainly, given the ever dwindling amount of land we allow for wilderness, conservation can indeed involve “thinning of the herd” for the sake of maintaining current conditions (which is just as certainly something different from “naturalism.”)
That sounds like a cool day Bill. How far removed from Germany are you?
In time? 20 years.
In space? approximately 4,000 miles (Lehigh Valley).
Funnier if you don’t qualify it, but you are right 😉
While you were sleeping… #Vikings signed former #Raiders RB Latavius Murray. This signals Adrian Peterson likely playing for someone else
Now Howie R. has firmly denied that the Eagles “were never going to trade Jenkins”.
Malcom must have been not very happy after yesterday’s WIP interview..
Oh please. Malcolm is no child.
Please what. Why did Howie feel the need to reitaterate this fact today again?
Because a) You’re assuming causation based off of zero content or proof – not even “smoke”
b) you are fundamentally missing that Howie’s job is to not let the media dictate situations where he has to disclose info about negotiations – either way – no matter what.
It could be any number of reasons including what you think. I just don’t know why it matters?
Slow news day.
Bigger chance its for fans than Jenkins
The only untouchable player on the team right now is Wentz. I’m sure Jenkins took it just fine since he knows the league is a business.
Think Howie just didn’t like that the principle takeaway from his media availability was the question around was Jenkins in a deal for Cooks, rather than focusing on the free agent additions etc.
I imagine they spit balled a range of offers to see if anything stuck, and Jenkins name probably came up as they explored options, but it never got serious as probably the Saints viewed him as more of a throw in piece while the Eagles valued him significantly higher, meaning they quickly moved on to discussing other ways on constructing the trade.
Whole story is a non-story to me, every player outside of 5-6 QB’s is tradeable if the price is right. If the Saints offered their no.1 pick and Cooks for Jenkins he is long gone. That does not mean that the Eagles were looking to trade Jenkins or don’t value him.
I agree with this. Still find it amusing that some fans here vehemently find it even more amusing that some fans (including me) bring this non-story up even after Howie mentioned it twice in the last two days.
Ha, love you GE.
Jason Peters mic’d up. Very cool.
http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2017/3/15/14935270/jason-peters-micd-up-video-eagles-game-falcons-philadelphia-nfl-left-tackle-offensive-line-pay-cut
Yes, saw that.
Anyone who seriously suggests to release / trade JP because of cap savings shall be sent to one of the seven new planets…
Too bad they didn’t show him catching Mathews when he jumped into the end zone. Would have loved to have heard that conversation!
JP seems like a great teammate.
Best trade Reid ever made.
I remember thinking– “we gave up a first round pick from a guy in Buffalo? When did Jim Kelly come back? Oh, it’s a tackle, what the hell!?”
Yup, they got that one right.
Andy understood the value of O-linemen.
That was awesome! Which game was it? I might still have it on dvr.
I really don’t remember- might have been the Browns game. Near the end, 4th quarter
Vine has it, but miked up could have been amazing.
http://www.sbnation.com/2016/9/12/12887442/ryan-mathews-dive-touchdown-eagles-catch-jason-peters-nfl
That’s one of the most physically dominating video’s I’ve ever watched– Mathews is no slouch, goes about 225 and was running full speed into the end zone while diving over 2 defenders.
Peters has the awareness to see him, stick his arms out, catch our biggest running back who is flying through the air, and then puts him down like a father would his little child.
Peters really is a man among boys- that’s one big human being, and I’m glad he plays for us.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/952595858550a26d898267d5569e3ca5205f80643b09981f788e278ad1e00365.jpg
Nice, the rational side of me understands that it’s gonna take a couple of years before we’re a legitimate threat to go to the superbowl, but the emotional side of me wishes that we can get there this year or next year so Guys like JP and sproles can get that ring here
I feel the same about JP and Sproles. Connor Barwin, too.
Never thought he talked
Can we just clone him and do the Charles Xavier mind transplant into his new body? I feel like we should be getting there by now.
Free agent DT Johnathan Hankins has been holding firm that he wants a multi-year contract.
Hankins, 25 later this month, has surprisingly drawn zero interest in the 7-10 days free agency has been open. Easily one of the best players left on the market, Hankins wants to be a starter and seeks $8 million-plus per year. According to Dolphins ace beat writer Armando Salguero, Miami checked in on Hankins, but he isn’t willing to accept a one-year offer. Hankins went into this reportedly wanting a five-year deal at $45 million or more. That’s highly unlikely to happen at this stage of free agency. Whoever eventually lands Hankins could be getting a bargain.
I’d do 4yrs/34mil for Hankins with Howie’s contract magic.
Why? We aren’t bidding against anyone, and he’s still unsigned. The longer he goes into free agency, the lower his number is going to travel. We may be able to pick him up for 2 years and $12m with $8m guaranteed
The market has been set by Bennie.
That’s a 1 year deal for Bennie- but I’m not paying Hankins $8m/year for 3 years this far into free agency. We’re going to invest resources into our DLine, but at this point we’d have almost $25m locked into our starting tackles, without adding Vinny and BG to the equation.
In other words, if we were going to pay Hankins that much, why wouldn’t we just pay Bennie similar money? I don’t think we will go that direction from an asset allocation perspective.
Then you’re not going to get him. You’re not going to underpay the younger and more talented player compared to Bennie just because it’s later into FA.
I don’t agree. The longer it goes, the more his value will go down. If it gets to the draft and teams fill their needs that way (younger and cheaper) then his price is going to drop considerably.
We need a longer deal to squeeze him under the cap this year. 5 years $40m, with a $7.5mil SB, and minimum salary this year, and 8m guaranteed in 2018 which means his 2017 cap hit would be just under $2m and be a pretty fair contract for him.
Wouldn’t you want a good out after 3 years?
Not sure what you mean really. That proposed contract is effectively a 2 year $16m one with 3 team options at $8m a year. Cutting after 2 years would leave $4.5m i dead money, and a $5m saving on the 2019 salary which is very manageable. in 2020 after 3 years the dead money would be just $3mil and a total saving of $6.5m.
How do you know we aren’t bidding against anyone?
As of now, he’s not signed with anyone. In other words, teams aren’t willing to pay what he’s looking for at this stage
I went to my boss today and asked for a million dollar raise. He said no. So I have a choice- carry on with what he wants to pay me, or quit and find another job willing to pay me the salary I want.
When that doesn’t materialize, maybe I’ll come to my senses and take what the market is offering. In other words, he can want $8m a year, but he isn’t getting it. He may have to settle for $6m/year for 2 years and try again in a different market. Sometimes you win, and sometimes the house wins.
Your boss didn’t give you the million dollar raise? Mine didn’t, either. You and I work for a couple of fools!
Probably because I’m on IgglesBlitz while during work hours 🙂
You’d think your boss would at least give you a bonus for your hard work at staying informed.
I’m his source of Eagles info. Plus he’s a good dude, and I get done what needs to be accomplished.
Very cool.
I love it when ordinary Joes compare their lives to those of elite athletes who can do something 99.9999% of population cannot.
https://twitter.com/vinnieiyer/status/842376866065444864
So Mike Williams ran 4.49 and 4.50 at his pro day. So roughly a 4.55-4.6 official at the combine.
Its under 4.6, sounds good.
Williams’ 40 time about the same as Alshon Jeffrey’s pro-day performance — who may be a good comparator.
http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=89640&draftyear=2012&genpos=WR
Both players are about the same size —
But Jeffrey’s hands nearly a full inch longer.
http://www.nfl.com/draft/2017/profiles/mike-williams?id=2557966
http://www.nfl.com/combine/profiles/alshon-jeffery?id=2533039
It actually is a good comparison. Both guys are jumpball specialists and can get vertical.
I don’t know if it’s a trend or not but skill position guys (WRs/DBs) with 10″+ hands tend to have the best ball skills.
Guys in the NFL
Alshon Jeffrey – 10.25″
Larry Fitzgerald – 10.5″
Jarvis Landry – 10.25″
OBJ – 10″
Guys in the draft
Malik Hooker – 10.75″
Juju Smith-Schuster – 10.5″
Listening to Greb Cosell in the Ross Tucker Football Podcast, he seems to be very high on Juju, saying he will be a very good outside wr in the pro’s. He singled him out as a player he really liked out of that second tier. I wonder where he goes.
I posted this in response to Anders further down in this conversation, but I wanted to get the info out in case anyone is wondering.
Been thinking a lot about what are the potential benefits of a trade down in the first round- what kind of compensation can we expect. So, this list is from the last two years.
Note- I did not put the trades for QB’s into the list- Wentz, Goff, the Sammy Watkins trade (#4 for #9 plus a 2016 first), since that won’t be a factor in where and what we could possibly receive.
Have a look
Examples from the 2016 draft
Broncos gave up #31 and #94 for Seattle’s #26
Texans gave up #22 and a 2017 sixth round pick for Redskins #21
Bears gave up #11 and #106 for Buc’s #9
Titans gave up #15, #76 and 2017 2nd round pick for Brown’s #8 and #176
Examples from 2015 draft.
Broncos gave up #28, #143, 2016 5th round pick and Manny Ramirez for Lions #23
Chargers gave up #17, #117, and 2016 5th round pick for 49ers #15
In these examples, it looks like a drop of 4-5 spots in Round 1 could net us at least an additional 3, and potentially a 4 or 5 on top of it.
So it would look like this–
Eagles get #19, #84 and #125 or #162 (5th round) for #14 (Bucs)
Eagles get #18, #100 and #124 for #14 (Titans)
In relation I was thinking who could the Eagles pick at 14 or a bit later depending on trade. Charlton, Ross, Davis,Williams, Lattimore, Conley, Bennett, Wilson, Foster, Humphrey…. There are, in my opinion, a bushel of good players where the Eagles will be picking.
Agreed, and that’s why I’m a little more on board with sliding back a few spots.
Then again, if there’s a guy that falls into the 9-11 range of Round 1, we should seriously consider going up to get him.
Someone like Thomas from Stanford
Allen from Alabama
Barnett from Tennessee
If Allen is around pick 10 i really hope we trade up for him. De on Base downs abs then move inside on 3rd and long
Great work.
Nice work! Still I want top of the round impact players not more picks. We need impact players not warm bodies.
I posted in another thread that if the right prospect falls, we should go get them. Agreed, we need difference makers. If that person isn’t available and we have similar groupings/rankings, we should take what the market gives and collect more opportunities to add talent to our overall roster.
Taking Ark87’s challenge for CBs
What we know so far, Eagles have met with: Fabian Moreau, Chidobe Awuzie, Kevin King, Ahkello Witherspoon, Ashton Lampkin, Sidney Jones, Corn Elder, Rasul Douglas, Marlon Humphrey and Teez Tabor.
Day 1
Impact players (Loosely used since any new CB would make an impact for us)
Marshon Lattimore
Sidney Jones (pre-injury)
Gareon Conley
Fabian Moraeu
Chidobe Awuzie
Day 2
Starters
Marlon Humphrey
Tre’Davious White
Kevin King
Cordrea Tankersly
Jourdan Lewis
Quincy Wilson
Day 3
Potential Starters
Ahkelio Witherspoon
Shaquill Griffin
Sidney Jones (post-injury)
Rasul Douglas
Adoree Jackson
Slot CBs
Teez Tabor
Cameron Sutton
Corn Elder
Ashton Lampkin
Damontae Kazee
i have nothing to add here but a question – is “Corn Elder” really some kids name??? that belongs in the name of the year bracket for sure!
Yes he’s real.
http://www.nfl.com/draft/2017/profiles/corn-elder?id=2558171
Great list but what is the difference to you between the impact CBs and starting corners?
What about Howard Wilson and Marquez White and Jalen Myrick. Do they not make the cut?
Yes.
Impact player – someone who would come in and make the team better right away.
Starter – someone who would start but isn’t as good as the impact players. They can range from serviceable to eventual impact players.
Potential starters – guys that will start off as role players but can reach the next levels with coaching and etc.
I hope we end up with Lewis at some point
No way, no how Humphrey slides to Day 2. I’d probably be ok with half of those Day 2 guys at 14. Not sure what you see in Chidobe to draft him so high.
Eh I don’t like Awuzie as much where I listed him but this is the Eagles board and not mines. He’s the type of CB that Schwartz would love.
Humphrey is also a project. Depending on who you ask, you’ll get anything ranging from top 20 or top 50. He’s going to remind Schwartz way too much of Rowe in terms of play style. Although, I think he’s way more natural at CB and more fluid than Rowe. Not sure if he’ll like that.
He’s way more aggressive than Rowe. Plays with an attitude, which Schwartz seems to like. My brother in law and Schwartz were starting safeties together in HS, he still talks to him occasionally. Maybe I’ll have him ask what the Rowe thing was all about. 😉
Humphrey being raw is ok, given that he’s only 20. That’s a big deal. He basically checks every box except downfield ball awareness, which is admittedly a big deal, and not really something that can be taught. But there are certainly technique issues he can improve on, and he has the tools, pedigree, and attitude. If we got him in the second it’s an A+ draft just on that.
Oh man that’s awesome but I doubt Schwartz will ever tell anyone the story of Rowe during his tenure here. Howie probably has him by the balls so his lips are sealed on anything Rowe related.
Aggression is fine but in the end CBs are paid to cover. I don’t care if you take the WRs head off after he beats you for a 40+ yard gain on a crucial 3rd down. I’m ok with Humphrey being picked, I know he’ll get better than he is currently. He’s an investment but people are going to have to lower expectations for him .
Adoree is likely a slot/ ST guy, at least to start. Don’t think he’ll be around day 3, but maybe.
Adoree Jackson is a return specialist trying to play CB for the big money. No instincts, small, and only has athleticism. Ask the Bears and Devin Hester how that worked out for them..
I’m pretty sure Hester would go in the 2nd. 😉 You may be right, but more teams seem willing to draft Swiss army knives.
The Bears loved him for two years until they realized he couldn’t play CB.
Woah Awuzie rated high??
Falcons sign dontari poe for 1 year 8 million
ISNT it almost the same as the contract KC gave to Logan? I wouldn’t have thought that KC would prefer Logan to Poe given the price was almost the same
I know it was probably unrealistic but I was hoping Howie would surprise us with a Dontari Poe signing once it became apparent that he would have to settle for a one year deall
With Poe and Logan Taking one year deals, Hankins can forget about multi year deal he was hoping for. Hoping we can add a cheap veteran at DT and CB before the draft
Hankins can still get a multi year deal, its just that the annual $$ will be lower than he would probably like. I am sure half a dozen teams would sign him tomorrow to a 5 year $30mil deal no problem at all. Issue is he wants significantly more than that.
All these DTs haven’t realized that there’s two different financial tiers for pass rushing DTs and run stuffers. The top pass rushers are getting paid like QB at $15-20M/yr. They see that and think they should be just below that. Unfortunately, the drop off in cash from the top 5-7 pass rushing DTs to the next tier isn’t small it goes from $18M/yr to like $6-8M/yr. I think a lot of these second tier DTs are super disappointed after seeing the money dished out to the few guys at the top.
Oklahoma RB Joe Mixon is visiting the Broncos on Thursday, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.
Mixon previously visited the Bengals. The Broncos could be looking to upgrade their running back position with C.J. Anderson completing the guarantees on his contract and Devontae Booker failing to show much as a rookie. Mixon is arguably the most talented ball carrier in the class, but missed an entire season after punching a female in 2014. It is impossible to place his draft status. The decision will totally be up to the head coach, general manager and, most importantly, team owner.
I appreciate your posts but what does this have to do with the Eagles?Are you going to report every visit by a player to other NFL teams?
By your logic should I only post college players that visit Philly? Last I checked, there are numerous pieces of info on here contributed by alot that aren’t always regarding the Eagles. I posted it because Mixon has become a point of conversation for many on here, debating if they’d take him. Simply put, you can read it or ignore it since you want to be a jackass. I couldn’t care less. Times yours!!!
I’m going to start posting player visits to other teams.
SWEET!! Thanks for the update!!!
There will be a lot to post in the coming month.
Definitely see Cincinnati not giving a shit about his background.
They put bland chili on thick spaghetti noodles and call that “delicious.” That’s all you need to know about Cincinnati.
https://twitter.com/975TheFanatic/status/842356943024988160
Paging RC500……..
Yeah I will be posting many player visits to other teams.
That is an Eagles related Joe Mixon post.
Thanks! I’m gonna continue posting just as I have. No need for me to placate a board baby that can barely read anyway.
I can’t wait to waste my time reading more of your posts expecting the Eagles to be a part of it only to find out it was about another NFL team on an Eagles blog.
LMAO!! Somebody havin’ a bad day today?? YO BAD!
The sun will come out tomorrow!!!
Makes sense!! Again….thanks for the follow-up!!
How old are you? 12, 13 years old?
Please explain how I’m being immature (besides responding to your idiotic rants). I told you, you don’t have to read them. Nobody else has complained but you. I’m sure others have skipped, others have read. What’s the problem lil fella??
“It is impossible to place his draft status…” (…because the Cowboys took a RB just last year.)
Off
of
our
board
Dear Eagles fellas
I am on the way to my second canal root treatment. Last week we were rewarded with Jeffereyzzz after my first treatment.
Let’s hope we will end up with DT Hankinzzz today.
Sincerely
GE
F#lyEaglesFly
You realize that if it does you will have the rest of your teeth drilled in the coming weeks, right?
Home many free agents on the market! Lol…
Dream Team III – Never Stop Dreaming!
Save it for the 3 days of the draft!! We need some players, and your teeth will be the catalyst which propel us to multiple Super Bowl victories!
If there is a corollary between your pain and Eagles success, well, I don’t want to tell you what I am thinking.
Supersize the novocaine.
Let’s not. Anybody with an Ohio State / NYG background is of extremely suspect character.
I really hope we go true BPA with this first pick. I’d hate to have to force a CB if there’a some real studs available at other less needed positions. I don’t care what position gets drafted we just need a star from our first round pick.
Star OG in Lamp.
I can hear the boos from the Art Museum already.
So true.
Are you sure? The F-ing NFL is allowing 31 other trash fan bases to attend our draft.
As a lot of folks have mentioned, we aren’t really set anywhere, drafting by need and BPA would probably look pretty similar for the Eagles.
Tangentially, I’m starting to get this weird feeling that getting a pass rusher is as high a priority as CB. I could just see Schwartz tell Mills to play 10 yards off, get burned deep anyway, and Schwartz being pissed that his pass rush didn’t get home. Like he is comfortable with mediocrity in the secondary, but a studly pass rush is mandatory.
It’s gotta be something like that… Suffice it to say, I don’t get Schwartz, I don’t like the wide 9, and I get the feeling that his obsession with scheme would preclude him from maximizing the talent in front of him, regardless of who it was.
Agree x 1000000000
This team has very few true impact players on it. The player we select at 14 needs to be a decade long top tier talent………….if that is at TE or LB instead of CB, so be it.
Agreed, it’s just likely that a CB will be near the top of the teams board whenever they draft.
I’m totally fine with Foster slipping to 14, and living up to BPA.
I’m really not. We don’t need a LB. if he is such a good value teams should want to trade up for him.
I wouldn’t say we don’t need one but we don’t need one like Foster especially at where we draft right now.
I meant a MLB. With the needs we have it’s a bad use of resources.
Except Hicks would better at WIL, Cabana Boy is on the last year of his deal and missed too many tackles in the 2nd half of last year, and Kendricks is a sucky bastard who is about to be banished.
Foster would be a great addition.
I don’t think Hicks would be a better will. I think MLB is his best fit. I would rather re-sign Bradham next year as he is a good value. We can fill WLB fairly easily. It’s a position that doesn’t see much time anyway. We need 2-3 CBs, a DE, RB. Let’s put the resources where they are needed
Why bother setting a big Board if you want to pass on The top talent because you don’t like the position? Take the most special talent available at whatever position this draft class happens to provide.
That’s a valid way of looking at it, but I think my abversion to him is a combination of positional value and need. We just don’t seem to value LB the way some teams do.
While OT, S, or DE may not be 2017 needs, I would be much happier going in that direction over Foster. Those positions are premium NFL positions where acquiring top talent is both vital and difficult.
I feel about LB the way many do about RB. You can find productive guys after round 1 so there is no reason to burn a first on that position. When our needs or future needs align so well with the strengths in this draft I feel Foster would overall provide poor value vs. those that could be available.
Foster would be the WILL, you’re not going to put a 229 pound LB at MIKE.
He and Hicks could be nasty in the Nickel, our primary D. Both can hit, cover, and are instinctual. That’s not overlap, it’s having 2 dominant 3-down backers. Yes, DL and CB are more important this year. But he could compensate for having a couple starters drafted one round later. Long term, it’s about getting the best players. He’d be fun to watch, and give the D some desperately needed attitude.
I would rather just have Jarrad Davis later on and a CB in the first round. Bonus points if we trade down for said CB.
Hell yeah that kid is a Beast. Bradham, Foster, Hicks would be so nasty, and eventually Move on from Bradham and be left with Hicks/Foster which would be as good a nickel LB talent as there is.
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If Foster is available at #14, I assume he would easily be the highest rated player available, and we would be foolish to pass up on the best talent at any position with the exception of QB, Safety and Center
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I also wouldn’t mind adding a beast LB like Foster to counter the cowboy return of Jaylon Smith. If that kid is even close to the player he was before his injury, Jaylon and Sean lee will be a Problem!
Rueban Foster/Jordan Hicks vs Jaylon Smith/Sean Lee
..
If we were to draft Foster we would always have the option to trade Bradham later during the draft. He had some legal issues but he put a pretty darn good year on film so I don’t think it would be hard to find a trade partner, but if Kemdicks isn’t going to be on the 2017 roster, I’d keep Bradham and Foster. And once a young LB like Joe Walker or someone emerges, then we can move on from Bradham
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Maybe I’m wrong here, but I seem to remember that Jaylon Smith’s career was basically over?!
Maybe, maybe not. Gruesome injury, I seen reports of him working out at Dallas facility since the end of the season. Sounds like he will at least try to make a comeback
You’re correct.
JSmith’s suffering from drop foot, wearing a JR Reed-type gadget to keep his foot from dragging.
Anyone concerned about the “return” of Jaylon Smith pretty much has his head uncomfortably buried somewhere.
Consider my head buried 🙂 I thought him making it back was a distinct possibility, no? Did something happen / was something reported since draft last year?
Wish the kid well… though I wish he hadn’t been drafted by dallas, of course.
ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports free agent DT Johnathan Hankins is seeking more than $10 million per season.
One week into free agency, it’s fair to say the market believes Hankins is asking for too much. The Miami Herald reported earlier Thursday that Hankins is adamant about signing a long-term deal. Typically, the money is all gone at this point in free agency, but many teams remain flush with cap space. Hankins, though only 25 this month, seems unlikely to get his desired $10 million per year, but could still come away with a nice chunk of change.
http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/2013/02/nope.gif
Lol – good luck with that!
Seems like my teeth won’t have to be drilled in the coming weeks…!
Yeah, I can’t blame Hankins for trying to cash in, but I wonder if in the end he’s going to get less than he might have because of this kind of $ demand.
I’m seeking an extended tryst with Gal Gadot, can I hold out for that as well?
More likely to hold your own.
https://twitter.com/NBCSports/status/840981997384261632
That is like 4 days old. Wasn’t that before his visit to Denver?
If you don’t like it just ignore it. Why does it matter if it was before his Denver visit?
I honestly don’t know why anyone posts news obtained on the internet on this site (excluding Tommy of course). I always assume anyone on this site has access to the internet and can stay updated as they choose via countless methods…. but I digress…
Believe it or not, this is the first site I come to for new Eagles related news.
Same.
Honestly this is a perfect place to come and catch up and most of you guys are cool as shit from what I can tell. I enjoy reading all the thoughts, ideas and whatever you guys contribute. I’m pretty sure we have some of the best, most knowledgeable fans in the league but of course I’m biased!!!
I agree. We have a little bit of everything here, legal advice + Eagles history (ACViking), injury analysis (Mitchell), mini Belichick (D3FB), and the human embodiment of vitriol (Media Mike). I wouldn’t change a thing here except some trolls being banned.
I agree with Mitchell and Insomniac; you guys all do a great job of keeping me informed if there is stuff I missed.
Also; I can’t see what ATG replied to that got you to comment, because it is blocked.
PITTSBURGH — Former Penn State wide receiver Chris Godwin will take a pre-Draft visit to the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to ESPN.
http://www.pennlive.com/steelers/index.ssf/2017/03/steelers_host_psu_chris_godwin.html
wow that Anderson kid is quick. Too bad he seems like an awkward fit
Hey guys, I am going to try to take on my own Eagles draft board challenge. I have a pretty decent handle on what the Eagles like and want to do. But I have no scouting knowledge, and I don’t follow college prospects close enough to have personal opinions on…pretty much anyone. I know highlight reels are pointless, and I’m not going to watch multiple game-tapes on a hundred players (because holy hell that’s a huge task and I wouldn’t be able to get anything accurate out of it anyway).
So I’m looking for resources. I’m looking for recommendations on any writers, analysts you guys like for prospect knowledge that provide notes on a lot (preferrably most) of different prospects. I’m going to try to roughly form some consensus’ and come up with a position-integrated tiered board based on the Eagles and what we do. It’s a sizable task, so it seemed a lot to ask of someone else. But I got some time before the draft on April 27th, and I would probably like to have this to work with on draft day more than anyone, so I should probably give it a shot.
So task 1, what are your favorite draft resources?
Iggles Blitz
Y’all better be around when I come around asking if you think Corn Elder is in tier 4a or 4b.
I hear Corn has a great pop to his hits but he is a bit of a butterfingers in securing the ball.
Which reminds me, my information is mostly making shit up for the sophomoric genital jokes and corny puns.
I got a bad feeling that your corny puns will have more substance than anything I look up
Combo of what I read on NFL.com, CBS, Walter Football, and Draft Tek from a pure web site perspective.
Radio wise; Pat Kirwan on Sirius
Twitter wise; Matt Miller, Josh Norris, and a few others.
This is great, good luck with it. Will you be sharing with the group once you have it pulled together?
Btw, completely agree with you on draft prospects… I can’t even fathom how people have so many opinions on so many different college players!
yeah I’m going to try to make it as collaborative as possible, A couple days before the draft, and on draft day I’ll put up the board as deep as I can get it. Going to focus on the top 100 players or so (as I think the Eagles would rank them), after that it gets weird and more time consuming. I know Howie prefers guys with the physical tools to be starters, but may drop from lack of production or refinement. I’d look at a lot of combine and pro-day stuff, but would also need the eyes of guys like D3FB to tell me “no, he times well, but he has stiff hips, he won’t make it as a safety in the nfl” or some such insight to rule out fools gold.
So if the Cowboys and Eagles played today, who would be covering Dez and AJ, respectively?!
Mills and Carrol?
I’d go with the Dez/Mills matchup…!
Maybe we could have Alshon play CB also?
Hands do seem to be large enough for an effective finger wag.
Mills vs Dez, nolan Carroll vs Alshon?
In this situation, I’d ditch the CBs and rush 6-7 on every down.
As of right now our secondary is probably way ahead of where dallas is.
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I guess Scandrick gives them the edge at nickel corner, since I don’t even know who our nickel is
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Nolan vs Mills(Sophmore season) should be somewhat even give or take
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we have a huge advantage at safety with jenkins, McLeod and Watkins vs Byron Jones
.
the Eagles and Cowboys might end up bidding on the same free agent corner since we both have a huge need at Corner and we will both be looking to bargain shop. How does dallas Cap situation compare to ours?
Court TV and TMZ
Air
HOWIE basically said that this tight salary cap situation we are dealing with is a one year issue and that our Cap will open back up next offseason. I got the impression that he still plans on signing a CB before The draft because he mentioned how the last thing they want us is to go into a draft with a glaring immediate need. I think the Eagles can reasonably count on Mills improving and handling a starting role next year if needed, but I don’t know that we have another corner that our Front office views as a worst cas scenaruo starter on the outside.
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I’d love to sigń a DT and a corner, but unlike corner at least we have Beau Allen who can Probably handle starting on 1st and 2nd downs just fine if we need him to, but we don’t have a Beau Allen caliber Backup at Corner so We should make sure we sigń a veteran corner first and foremost. Im not expecting a stud but I’ll be Dissapointed if we don’t add a veteran corner sometime before the draft
..
What’s the plan with Ron Brooks? I know we can’t cut an injured player but is there any chance he may be in the plans for this year? Will he even be healthy enough to play in September? He was nothing special but I liked his Physicalitt at the Nickel spot and he was a quality ST player.
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All I ask is that No Matter what we make sure we add enough corner Talent so we don’t have to waste Malcolm Jenkins playmaking asking him to play slot corner. need to make sure we have a capable nickel or two so we can leave jenkins at safety
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Someone has to be getting cut or traded soon? Think i read we are 7 mil over the cap.
Only starting caliber CB left would be Claiborne but looks like he going Jets.
How would you like another season of terrible CB play that loses us games?
Apropos of nothing;
Minnesota’s players need to STFU in their game vs. Middle Tennessee. Nobody likes Minnesota, Middle Tennessee has lost every close call with the refs, and Big “10” basketball is the equivalent of a blood clot born of menstruation.
Did Kenjon Barner go to Minnesota?
Re BPA:
Let’s play a game! If both OJ Howard and Foster were available at #14, whom ya got?!
Howard and it’s not even close.
Why?
He’s a great athlete, polished for a college TE, showed up in big games, and I’m sick of hearing about Ertz’s breakout season.
Yeh but its coming THIS year. Just you wait, Ertz is gonna be top 2 TE!!!
I’m picking him up after Thanksgiving to win playoff fantasy.
I’d bet you two whole sticks of juicy fruit that he won’t.
You mean when he tackles himself?
I can’t believe McShay has the TE going #4 to Jags. I can’t even think of the Last TE that went in the top 10
Vernon Davis
I was thinking Winslow
Eric Ebron – 2014
10th overall.
(earlier comment deleted on 1st Rd TEs)
Foster. Him and Hicks will be best duo in the league. Throw in Bradham best trio i would say.
Howard sharing reps with Ertz, Celek, Burton just dont see it happening.
Tough call. I’m good with either, but Foster probably fits a need more. Both would be great to watch, but I like getting a tone setter on D.
Yeah i feel the same way, i would love either but would prefer a tone setter like Foster on D, but would also be sick if howard ends up on the giants or cowgirls
I could see Tennessee taking him at 5.
Davis
“I have always had the #1 corner matched up against me since I have been in the NFL so you are going to have to pick between me and Alshons And you won’t be able to double team Both of us”-Torrey Smith
..
“carson already text me saying no pressure but if we will be in Philly next week he would love to get together for a workout”-Torrey
Torrey Smith, as a Raven, played 2 seasons with Anquan Boldin and 1 season with Steve Smith (both of whom out-performed Smith every year).
And Smith’s saying he drew the opponent’s #1 CB — wherever he lined up?
Interesting.
Well, a lot of teams may have matched big with Boldin and speed with Torrey, and Torrey more likely to get over the top help. But Steve Smith Sr definitely got the #1. I watched a lot of Raven games back them, Torrey was definitely a big part of the offense, but not the chain mover. He did basically win them a Super Bowl, after all.
Connor signs with Rams. Another 1 year deal. Lol
Good for him though. Wish him well!
Man thats the team i thought be good trade partner for Barwin too. Switching to 3-4
YOU PEOPLE ARE FAGGOT DICKSUCKERS!
The case for OJ Howard
If Travis Kelce and Brent Celek had a baby, it would probably look like OJ Howard. He’s not as violent of a runner as Kelce but he has the same finesse and ball skills. So where does the Celek part fit in here? He has the same qualities that makes Celek an beloved Eagle for so long. Reliability, toughness, blocking, and a team player. Howard was criminally underused during his time in Alabama because he would be used to block and he’s pretty good at it too. Yet you didn’t hear any complaints from him despite being Bama’s best matchup nightmare. When Bama needed a play, they dialed it up for Howard. You needed 9 yards? Howard would get you 14+ yards. You’re giving him room to run? He could take it to the house because he’s just that good.
So where would that fit for us since we’ll have a logjam at TE if we take him? Celek is old and he doesn’t offer much as a receiver anymore. He’s still a good blocking TE. Ertz and Howard can alternate between the F and Y TE in two TE sets. Trey Burton, it was nice knowing you if you’re not going to play FB.
Great so he would solve some issues at TE but what about the other parts of the offense? Remember the reliability part from earlier? Howard was the safety blanket for 2 bum QBs at Bama, that’s not going to change when he plays with Wentz. Howard is going make everyone better since you can’t just cover him with one guy. He’ll do most of his damage working the middle or being schemed open. Howard could even be used on those multiple screens since he has pretty good RAC skills. Here’s the buzzkill though, I haven’t seen him post up guys in the red zone but luckily we have Alshon for that. Maybe DGB could too but who am I kidding, that would make our offense too good.
If the staff thinks he’ll be a game changing TE, so be it. He’s definitely an intriguing prospect and could possibly bolster the offense. I think we have too many needs elsewhere that need to be addressed first, but if he’s the best player on board, so be it. I do have to say, when I see his gamefilm and highlights he sure looks like a ‘can’t miss’ prospect. Great hands, outstanding speed, tough, durable. What’s not to like?
I can’t imagine Celek will play more than 1 more year. Ertz is a great, but not elite starter. If a more athletic, reliable guy like OJ Howard comes along, he can become expendable when it comes time to extend Howard (that’s *if OJ Howard develops into being an elite TE). Burton is great value and I think can be featured more in the offense. So yeah, it’s possible it could work.
For me OJ Howard reminds me of Jason Witten. Who is a HoF TE.
Call me crazy but I see Tony Gonzalez as his ceiling.
I said witten because of his potential as a blocker
Gonzalez was a great blocker too.
I don’t know what hurts more..
My root canal or looking at the Eagles depth chart of CB…
Your root canal probably has more depth
Today’s winning post, right here.
That’s what she said…
You just won the Internet today.
I Think after that post it’s probably a good time to retire. First ballot hall of fame poster
We don’t have the cap to acquire him without restructures or a contract extension that lowers his 2017 cap hit but this is interesting:
Bleacher ReportVerified account @BleacherReport
34m34 minutes ago
Seahawks are open to trading Richard Sherman, per @mlombardiNFL http://ble.ac/2mOrNof
Are you trying to make me more high on my meds?
a 2nd and how many OLs does Seattle need?
They most likely want a 1st round pick as minimum and while Sherman is great, hard pass consider his age
Seattle has struggled for a couple of years with OL problems for sure. I would be more concerned with Sherman’s unreported injury. A corner needs his legs. But someone is probably blowing smoke anyway.
The counter argument to prioritizing pass rushers over CBs is that our secondary (specifically our starting CBs) has consistently been putrid despite great DL play at times. Plenty of times when our secondary got shredded it was because teams opted to take quick 3 step drop passes (think Green Bay game). Our front 7 was effectively neutralized in many games when opposing offenses opted for this style of attack.
The team simply has to get better at evaluating and developing talent in the secondary. We hit homeruns with our S’s, but you can’t just buy your entire defense. I’d really like to see our team make a commitment to getting better at CB.
Agree. We also need to get better at Defensive Coordinator.
Jamal Charles doesn’t make much sense, but somehow he does.
Wouldn’t mind him to sign him to a 1 year, $2m deal.
I’m really surprised that Howie, who we all praise for his shrewd trades, couldn’t pull off a trade — even a shitty one — for Daniel or Barwin.
Nobody was going to take Barwin’s contract consider what he just got. Same for Daniel.
After reading about these pass rushers I went back to the Iggles Blitz predraft post
http://igglesblitz.com/2014/04/case-marcus-smith/
and almost threw up. I just hope Joe Douglas knows what he is doing.