This Year
Posted: October 30th, 2017 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 233 Comments »Back in 1994 the Eagles got off to a 7-2 start and looked like the best team in the NFL. They had dominated the Niners in SF, winning 40-8. That is still one of the best regular season wins in team history. The Eagles had won shootouts. They had won defensive struggles. They could seemingly do it all.
Veteran QB Randall Cunningham was healthy and getting the ball to Fred Barnett. Herschel Walker and Charlie Garner were a heck of a 1-2 punch at RB. Andy Harmon and William Fuller were studs on the DL. Bill Romanowski, Byron Evans and William Thomas were arguably the best LB corps in the league. And some guy named Eric Allen was still a shutdown corner.
As much as I loved that 7-2 start, it was a bit of a mirage. Coach Rich Kotite and Cunningham didn’t see eye to eye and weren’t on the same page. The O-line was up and down. Depth was an issue all over. Byron Evans got hurt in Week 10 and the Eagles never won a game without him. They finished 7-9. Garner got banged up and missed time down the stretch.
While the team had a lot of interesting characters, it didn’t have good character overall. The Eagles were a team in transition. Gang Green was all but gone and there was a wave of new faces on the team. Trying to get instant chemistry was challenging. Things were great when the team was playing well and winning, but that didn’t last when adversity came calling.
The team had enough talent to stay competitive, but they could not win. It still blows my mind that a 7-2 team finished 7-9. That just doesn’t seem possible.
The current Eagles are off to a 7-1 start. Is there any chance this is a mirage?
I really don’t think so. This team is very different from the 1994 bunch in a lot of ways. The two things that stand out are the head coach and the QB. Kotite had issues with his players for years. Pederson is tight with his team and has done a great job of getting everyone to buy in and play as one.
As for the QBs, Cunningham was somewhat of a head case by this point. He had gotten hurt or benched for each of the past three seasons. He got benched in ’94. He threw 16 TDs for the entire season (14 starts). Carson Wentz already has 19 TDs in just eight starts. He is the unquestioned leader of the Eagles and has a great relationship with Pederson.
I think what this team is doing is sustainable.
There have been a ton of injuries this year, but this team has overcome each one of them so far. There have been road games and short weeks. The team has handled all of that with no issues. There is no reason to think this team has peaked.
I bring all of this up because the Eagles have to ask some tough questions in the next day or two. Does the front office believe this is truly a Super Bowl contender? If so, how aggressive are they willing to be in regard to trades?
The Eagles 7-1 record is the best in the league, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are the best team right now or that they will be in the Super Bowl. At the beginning of the season, I thought the Eagles were a year away from being serious contenders. Clearly the Eagles are ahead of the schedule that I expected. What does management think?
Jay Glazer just said on FOX that expects the Eagles to be very aggressive at the trade deadline. Buckle up ya’ll
— John Barchard (@JohnBarchard) October 29, 2017
Glazer is one of the most connected media guys in the league. If he says it, you can basically take it to the bank.
The Eagles tried to deal for WR help last year, but couldn’t work anything out. That team was middle of the pack. Howie Roseman loves to wheel and deal so it makes sense that he will work the phones. At the same time, he is going to be a smart shopper.
The Eagles have a second year QB at the heart of the franchise. As much as they want to win this year, they also have to keep an eye on the future. Trading away a 7th round pick for a veteran for half a season might make some sense. At the same time, Jalen Mills was a 7th round pick. You have to be careful what you do with your resources, even those that don’t seem crucial. With Wentz at QB, the Eagles should be contenders for a while.
I do think the Eagles need OT help. I don’t mean a starting LT. I’m talking about depth. If anything happened to Big V or Lane Johnson, Isaac Seumalo would replace them. That’s a scary thought right now. Seumalo isn’t playing with a lot of confidence and is erratic. I don’t like him on the field as a jumbo TE. I would be nervous as heck about him at OT.
LB is trickier. The Eagles are set in the Nickel with Nigel Bradham and Mychal Kendricks. Joe Walker plays MLB in the base sets. Walker has not been impressive. He’s not a mess, but just isn’t doing much. The Eagles could put Najee Goode in at MLB in base sets. I think they are hoping that Walker will improve as he plays more, which is possible. I would love to add a veteran MLB if the situation was right.
RB is the other position where you wonder about a move. The Eagles are okay there, but could be better. Losing Darren Sproles definitely hurt. Wendell Smallwood has been banged up this year and didn’t play much on Sunday. If he’s healthy, you probably don’t need to make a move, but the Eagles need someone to get regular carries besides LeGarrette Blount. You need some speed to mix with his power.
One of the issues with making a move at RB is…what do you do with the current guys? I don’t mean to overrate them as players, but there is good chemistry with the group. They don’t complain about touches or snaps. If you bring in a proven veteran, you need a good plan for what happens with the RBs on the roster and how the group is used in games.
I’m sure Howie will be making a ton of calls. He will want to know who is available and what his options are. If he can improve this team and the price is right, expect him to make a move. The price has to be right, though.
Don’t expect this to be a big deal for a star player. The NFL doesn’t work like that.
*****
It is a shame the trade deadline is in October. It would be great if it was closer to Thanksgiving, so teams could have a longer look at their own players. That would let some know they needed to make trades to add talent and others to make trades because they are no longer contending or a young guy has taken a job and made a veteran expendable.
_
Matt Forte or Jeremy Hill may make some sense at RB. I read that TY Hilton might be available from Indy? If that is true and we could have him as our #1 making AJ #2 ( cutting Torrey Smith or Marcus Johnson) I would give up a 1st and a 4th next year to “go for it” all this year and try to win the super bowl. Other than that crazy blockbuster I would just like to see us get a MLB or OT as depth so that we are covered in case more injuries at OT or LB.
Anyone you bring on now is taking money out of the mouth of the youngins on our team we would like to pay. I’d say even more important than the resources you give up to get these players is the cap hit.
Cap number for Hill is $1.1mil. I’d be for it just because he’s still on the cheap rookie contract. Another name that was rumored is Carlos Hyde, and I imagine he’s no less available this week after another loss. His cap number is also $1.1mil. I’m not sure Hill is better than Smallwood, but Hyde is. Both are on the final years of their contracts.
Forte is 33 and carries a $5mil cap this year and $4mil next year. Absolutely not.
The only way I would be interested in TY Hilton is if he became the WR1 of the future. He already got his big contract and has a $10mil cap hit this year. You get one year out of him (more likely a quarter) and Alshon, and then he’s your guy through 2020 with cap hits of $13-15mil. If that’s what you want and it’s worth the cost, sure, go ahead. We will always need a WR1, so if he’s it, why not. They’re going to want something nice for that trade though, and it’s not a late rounder.
I would absolutely NOT give up that much!
In any given year, the best team in the league has what, a 25, 30% chance to win the SB, at the very best? Mortgaging your future to get an extra 5% is not worth it.
This isn’t the NBA, where with 7 game series in the playoffs the best team wins most of the time: between injuries, one-game playoffs, lucky bounces, refereeing, anything can happen in the NFL. The best way to build a team is not to go all-in during one year, but to build a team that can contend during multiple years, hoping to get through during one of them. Therefore, keeping most of your picks, drafting cost-controlled rookies is often the way to go.
The only caveat to this is when you try to capitalize on your franchise QB being on a cheap rookie deal to surround him with a good team, which the Eagles can do for 2/3 more years (and are doing to some extent).
No way. We don’t have the cap room to keep everyone as it is. I wouldn’t trade away valueable resources for 1 year. Especially not a 1st. Those picks are for cornerstone players Carson is in year 2. Are window is the next 10 years. I’m not sacrificing that window for a “Shot” this year.
No way.
There is way too much variance in the NFL to go all in on one season. One injury, one bad bounce, one big play that doesn’t go our way in a close playoff game, and we’re out of the playoffs and facing an offseason with no chance to add young talent to the roster and continue building.
No, no, no.
I met Randall Cunningham at a Benihana’s in the week following the 40-8 win over the niners. I was twelve years old, and he was my idol. I walked up to him and asked for his autograph. Then I slyly said to him, I guess they should rename them the 40 to 8ers… he kinda smirked and signed my paper, and I remember thinking, damn that sounded way dumber out loud than in my head…
FAGGOT
What’s going to be fun to watch is Howie making a move for the unexpected guy that no one thought of. I don’t think Ronald Darby was on anyone’s radar for a trade until that went down. If something happens, it’s going to be sneaky, unexpected move, not a splashy big name that everyone knows.
Unless the splashy big name IS the unexpected move now…
This definitely qualifies as the unexpected guy!
Vinny Curry just had his best game. But he isnt anything special + we have Barnett and Chris Long (and Means). There has to be another team in need of DE help, with dependable good (not great, not bad) OT at same kind of contract as Curry has. Also I would love to see that Calvin Johnson (for Torrey + 6/7th rd pick) rumor to be true.
No way I want to trade curry. Dude is a beast at run Down and the depth on the d line has been huge for our defensive success.
I’d only be willing to trade hurry for a young OT that can contain Curry, and those guys are not available.
I’ll still believe a trade of consequence when I see it. I don’t doubt Howie is burning up the phones looking for a deal/steal, but we’ll see what happens.
Trades sounds great but for most positions, they seem to be ineffective during the season.
Mack Hollins seemed to run the wrong pattern yesterday that lead to an easy interception.
I’m not sure how easy it is for offensive lineman to learn the playbook and get on the same page with their linemates in a few weeks.
I could see RB being an easier to pickup a limited playbook.
On defense, it seems Schwartz runs a simple enough defense that a trade for a LB could be a possibility.
I doubt we bring anyone on to be an immediate starter. I think we bring them in as Depth. A back up OT in case Lane or Vaitai gets injured. A WR or RBwho can be slowly added to the mix with a handful of plays. You never know when you are going to need your Depth. Look at the 49ers and skins OLs situations.
This is the last chance to get someone with more talent than the guys sitting on the street right now/other teams’ practice squads.
Mac is a rookie at a skill position. That’s not the same as getting a veteran OT used to a pro offense and plugging him in.
The only trade of any significance that I can recall was Will Witherspoon.
I highly doubt Howie will make a flashy trade unless he swindles the other team. I’m guessing he’s going to try to get a great deal for a veteran or younger underachievers near their end of their deals. I’m sure Joe Douglas has been digging up notes on guys and Howie is relaying them to everyone else.
Agreed
In my long 10 minutes of grinding up coffee beans and waiting for water to boil, this trade made the most sense to me. Beau Allen for John Brown straight up. Both guys are on one year deals and probably unlikely to resign with their own teams. They get a solid DT that has played in both a 3-4/4-3 but in limited snaps. We roll the dice on a underachieving deep threat that was once a promising WR. If he performs then he replaces Smith on a more team friendly deal. If not then we didn’t really lose anything since we’re pretty deep at DT.
John Brown is only medically cleared to steal money from me in fantasy, not play actual football for a full season. He’s far too ill for any type of investment other than a really cheap “prove it” type deal as a FA. If I’m going to trade Allen because I like my other 4 DTs, I can try to get a depth LB back.
Yeah. The last thing the Eagles arguably need is another WR. Don’t understand why fans are so fixated on it.
LB or RB are much bigger needs. Even a backup T.
RB is not a need, it’s a luxury.
Disagree with how Smallwood has played and his health status.
Clement/Barner are just fill-ins and ideally wouldn’t be getting regular carries on a weekly basis.
How about Jaron Brown? Same team, same position, probably easier to re-sign if we want to next offseason
Anyone with higher upside than Smith/Johnson would be ok for me.
This game was really boring. And I kind of mean that in a positive way. With the risk of this being a “trap game” and the weather conditions, they have decided to play with low risk plays and true discipline. Just look at how they cutdown the penalties in this game. If you take away the interception everyting was mistake free, even wentz taking the sacks instead of trying to make something happen. As a fan it was a bittersweet victory cause it was unspectacular but the gameplan was perfect.
Some miscues in this game:
– We talk a lot about DLine depht and the backups stepping up to keep the starters fresh but what about the WRs and TEs. Way to go Burton and Hollins.
– I am no expert but it looked like the Oline has had for some weeks trouble picking up blitzes compared to being near perfect in the beginning. It is a bit scarry with Denver DLine coming to town.
– I love that on an “off-day” Wentz was still the leader of this offense and was moving the chains when it matters. Kuddos to Jeffery though cause the pass was not really on target.
– I think the rest of our schedule is really tough, we are going to deal with some adversity.
Tyler was discussing his idea on Twitter last night that brining extra guys in tight to help with protection might actually be making it harder to diagnose who is blitzing.
When you have 5 OL and 3 TEs in front of Wentz, they can put 9 guys in the box and it is impossible to tell which 6 are blitzing.
Remember, there was discussion that Howie might be loading up for the Comp Pick Sweepstakes in the coming off season. If he can add a guy for a 6th or 7th rounder who can contribute this year and then either resign or bring a comp pick in 2019 it might make the math work out.
Definitely have concerns about our O-line. We must get that run game going and we must protect the franchise. If there is a trade it has to be an O-lineman.
Hoping that was just a desperate winless team with a talented D-line that just wanted it more, and our guys were just off. Otherwise we’re in for a long day against Denver. Luckily the same dynamic should be there with our defense though. Add Darby back and beat up their offense twice as hard as they beat up ours and we can pull out a win.
Maybe a WR to NE for a RB?
https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/924958234330501121
Been hearing for a couple of months that Dion lewis is on the trading block
As long as we disable the fire alarms, I am on board.
I wouldn’t do it unless he’s good at picking up blitzes. Just being a poor man’s Sproles is not worth unloading picks or players.
Good reference; was it Lake Placid? Lewis seems to be this year’s Blount for NE, in the sense that he is a mainstay in the offense. So I doubt if he is available this year. But next year, as in “the year after”, could be a possibility. BB seems to consider RB’s as replaceable parts not to be kept around too long.
Never take a NE RB.
We don’t have any spare WRs anymore. Treggs got signed, they could have Ward for free if they wanted, and Matthews is gone.
Johnson? Gibson?
I think this article ties into Tommy’s very well. This team isn’t complacent and isn’t simply buying into their own hype.
Johnson, though, was in no celebratory mood.
“I feel like a loss right now,” he said. “Just the way that we performed in the first half is not the way that we wanted to execute.
“I mean, I’m happy [we’re 7-1], I’m just disappointed. Anytime the offense doesn’t play the way we’re capable of, it feels like a loss for us.”
http://www.espn.com/blog/philadelphia-eagles/post/_/id/22718/eagles-unsatisfied-despite-7-1-start-to-the-season
Reading about Mills and the secondary, there were two stories recently that tie into Tommy’s point about being special and similar to kajomo’s example with Johnson.
A few weeks ago I read about the secondary’s loaf board. When the players watch the film, if they catch anyone loafing on a play they put them on the loaf board and tease them for the rest of the week. The meaningless touchdown that McLeod ran down and caused a fumble out of the end zone the other week was because he didn’t want to end up on the loaf board. Robinson did end up on the board because he didn’t get up an chase the guy. Mills was very proud of the fact that he hasn’t been on the board yet.
Yesterday, Mills said he was going to go out of bounds on the return, until he remembered that Jenkins, Schwartz, and Undlin have been teasing him all week about his return skills after last week’s interception. That is why he cut it back, and that is why Jenkins was the first to congratulate him in the end zone.
I saw Jeffery loafing on a play when the ball wasn’t going to him (think it was a TE screen). Maybe the WRs need a loaf board.
We all want to win the SB, but no matter what happens this year, this is a really fun team to root for. The FO will have a lot of tough decisions to make this offseason because of how hard/well the entire team has played. We need to enjoy this season while it lasts
NFL reviewing the play on which Fletcher Cox broke Joe Staley’s orbital bone for potential discipline and possible suspension, per source.
It would be an absolute liberty if Cox was missing the Eagles / Cowboys game while Zeke was not…!
Cox has zero history. Suspension would be huge overreaction
I am pretty sure the NFL won’t care about any potential non history. If he’d purposely poked him he should be suspended. And I am not sure if I’d still order his customised Eagles hat.
Looks like Staley was just lower than Cox and when Cox hit him, he hit him high. Doesn’t seem malicious, watched the replay a dozen times.
Snipped this image, but the scorebox really takes away from the picture. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/61508f1d8f61a788d2942d1425a92c560fa03cfee495c463a91e9acdc9614e33.png
Agreed. Staley was bleeding all over the place on the sideline and any intentional act should be met with at least a 1-game suspension if not 2.
I don’t think liberty is the word you want in that context.
Maybe liberty is a bad word in Germany?
ha!
Never heard of the British expression “what a f*** liberty”?! 😉
No, not at all, and I would wager that more than 99.9% of Americans haven’t either. But I guess I see the irony there – to them liberty (from their unfair rule and taxation) FROM THEM was a bad thing/pain in the a** – ha.
Ironically the American colonists had more sway over King and Parliament (legally) than the citizens of say, Pennsylvania, do today.
Indeed
I can’t even fathom how the word “liberty” works in this context.
I have not, but the conversation that followed made me laugh.
For the enlightenment of our transatlantic brethren, it usually means going beyond what’s reasonable, often when taking advantage of someone. For example if a friend comes over and you tell them to help themselves to a drink, and they open a bottle of expensive wine you’d been saving or finish off the last of your favourite beer, that would be a liberty.
I have heard it used in a similar context, but exclusively as taking liberties – taking liberties with the rules – never as a noun. Thanks.
This eagles seems more like 27-2 foles lead eagles.
Curious why this is different. Are teams gonna figure out wentz, like they figured out foles and Vick?
I don’t know why Foles regressed as much as he did. He had really good pocket awareness and timing during that year. One issue with the Kelly offense was that QBs weren’t calling plays and the offense became too predictable. Sean Lee was killing the offense by himself.
Vick was getting injured too much. I still think his 2011-12 season was decent but was derailed too much with injuries.
But then foles sucked on rams too.
Yes but, Jeff Fisher could’ve ruined Joe Montana’s career.
Sometimes a QB makes WRs look better… other times the WRs make the QB look better.
Foles was never again confident in the pocket after getting pounded relentlessly in the Washington game his second year. It’s one of those things you have to be careful about with young quarterbacks; if you make them throw repeatedly behind a leaky line, they can lose that confidence. And some of them (perhaps even most) can never recapture it. Getting freight trained multiple times by 330 lb men running at high speed will do that.
They were each figure out after their first year starting for the eagles. Teams figure them out and they were unable to handle those adjustments.
Teams already had 16 games of tape on Carson and now have 24 games. They’ve game planned for him and made adjustments and still haven’t been able to slow him down. Time to admit carson is just legit
Very different teams. The 2013 Eagles’ team depended upon dynamic playmakers and had all five 5 OL starters for 16 G.
Kelly thought his schemes could overcome lack of offensive play-making talent and he was dead wrong.
Can you imagine Wentz with that OL line along with prime McCoy, Jackson, and Maclin?
Defense also didn’t have nearly the dominance this DL did up front to compensate for a weaker secondary. S are also considerably better on this team.
Remember Will Witherspoon? Fun times.
The one thing I hope that we keep going is the mindset that the Eagles need to accomplish their goals “this year”- because next year is never guaranteed. I hate the idea of “well, we are building the team the right way. There’s always next year.”
We’re 7-1. Foot on the gas, keep kicking ass; a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs is a real possibility. I don’t want to settle for “just making the playoffs”- I want to win, and it looks like the team has the same mentality.
That approach has limits. Mortgaging the future to marginally improve your chances of winning this year is foolish. I realize it’s a different sport, but that mentality is part of what took the Phillies from World Series contenders to the worst team in baseball within 5 years.
Wentz looks like a franchise QB who will bring high level play to that position for us for the next decade. There are no guarantees we’ll win next year if we don’t this year, but it’s likely we’ll be in the mix. And there are no guarantees we’ll win this year even if we go all in by trading a high pick for a veteran or whatever.
I’m not encouraging the mortgaging of the future- I’m talking about a mindset of “well, there’s always next year.”
Each year is different- my point is that you can never guarantee future outcomes; you must take care of business now, as in this year.
I’m talking about a mindset of “well, there’s always next year.”
Nobody will have or should have that mindset until our season is over short of a SB championship. But part of the GM’s job is to think about the long term and build a sustainable foundation for success. Doug and his staff, and the players, shouldn’t be thinking beyond the next 8+ games. But if Howie isn’t doing so he’s terrible at his job.
“my point is that you can never guarantee future outcomes; you must take care of business now, as in this year.”
And my point is that you can’t guarantee this year’s outcome either, so if a small increase in the probability of winning the SB this year comes at the expense of a decrease in the probability of doing so in each of the 5 subsequent years, that’s not a good tradeoff.
The Phils biggest problem was over a decade of terrible drafts and player development starting in 2003. No team could survive that without bottoming out and most of the talent they traded away did nothing.
The only prospect of signifinance they traded turned out to be Carrasco in the first Lee trade. Also started their rebuild at least 2 years too late too.
Bad drafting and player development didn’t help, to be sure. But that’s why I said the mentality is *part of* what took the Phillies out of contention. Even if those prospects didn’t turn out to be players themselves, they could’ve been traded for younger, developmental players rather than established stars due to leave in free agency in a year or two – there was an opportunity cost to strip mining the farm system for that kind of “win now” acquisition alone, rather than trading assets for players that could help build a sustainable foundation.
A more famous (and crystal clear) example of mortgaging the future was the Red Sox trading Jeff Bagwell (then a highly regarded first base prospect) for Larry Andersen (a decent middle reliever) as part of their playoff push in 1989. Bagwell became a HoF caliber player for the Astros. Andersen didn’t make the Red Sox any more likely to win the WS right away (they still got swept in the first round of the playoffs).
I’m not saying we can’t ever deal a pick for a veteran if the right offer is out there. I just don’t want them making the football equivalent of the Bagwell-for-Andersen trade.
Newest Eagles twitter rumor: Duce was seen talking to Carlos Hyde after the game = we are definitely trading for Hyde.
I hope. Hyde would be a really nice complement here to Blount and be a decent fit on 3rd down/passing downs since he can actually catch the ball & is decent enough at blitz pickup.
Nice upgrade over Smallwood/Barner/Clement.
I haven’t re-watch the game, but I thought I saw hide drop two or three balls that hit him in the hands yesterday. At the time I was thinking I’m glad we’re not trading for him… So I guess I’m saying I still feel the same way.
Was that just a bad day? Or am I missing something else?
He was never a pass catcher in the first place.
Carlos “averaging 2 YPC in some games” Hyde is a nono.
Those are his Carlos Jekyll games.
Why do so many Eagles’ fans seemingly want to trade players for picks?! or aren’t willing to give up picks next year (say a 4th) to improve real areas of need (RB, LB, T)?
Don’t need a sexy acquisition or to ‘mortgage the future’ by trading a 1st rounder or even a 2nd rounder in 2019.
The window is wide open this year, the Eagles are 7-1, and they have a strong chance to get a bye & clinch home-field where they have been dominant.
Pats have consistently made moves and brought in players mid-season when they thought it could help or saw a need to help them in the playoffs. Don’t see why the Eagles should be any different this year.
Because it’s extremely unlikely that a player acquisition mid season can put a team over the edge to win a super bowl. Learning the scheme , playbook, and being comfortable with communication with other teammates isn’t something that can be picked up quickly.
RB isn’t a huge need, teams aren’t giving up capable OTs for a 4th round pick, LB is a need but there will be scheme/communication issues that the new LB might not be able to learn in time.
Most of the time a trade is done for a player from a that team isn’t willing to bring back the following year.
Last year there was talk about acquiring Alshon. It was talked about a possible 3rd round pick. Could it have won them extra games? Maybe. But that 3rd rounder was used to trade up for Jernigan and draft Rasul Douglas. We also signed him the following year anyway.
On top of this (which is very accurate), the Eagles had a long terrible stretch of history where they dealt picks and had terrible results. In general, the NFL doesn’t reward this roster building method.
It isn’t about building a roster though this methodology or anything close it.
About ensuring that the needle doesn’t take a hit this year with a Blount/Kendricks injury and looking for a bit of marginal incremental improvement in making (and winning the Super Bowl).
Trading draft assets for veteran talent is a roster building method. You might disapprove of it, I might approve of it. It’s still roster building.
Incremental value of acquiring Alshon didn’t make much sense given the likely expected payout (simply making the playoffs) last year.
People are also laying this out the wrong way from a decision analysis payout matrix too. Moving up say even 4-5% chances of winning a Super Bowl though a single move would be HUGE.
That would require a big name trade though. Not advocating for that and also considering the issue if Blount/Kendricks got hurt which would notably hurt the Eagles’ chances of making or winning the Super Bowl.
RB and LB are big needs for this team especially LB given Kendricks’ health status.
But what can you realistically get with a 4th round pick at LB?
To match the Eagles needs it eould have to be a healthy, quality player, who can learn the playbook quickly. On the other side it would have to be player on a non-playoff team, that is over 30, and is set to be a FA the following summer. Otherwise teams wouldn’t trade him.
So I am in that camp. I am all for good trades. Interested if you could propose one plausible trade using out 4th round pick.
I’ve seen lots of speculation but no really news of guys actually on the block. I looked for a list of guys on the block and really came up with nada.
What if…
The Eagles trade for our lost son, Frank frigging Gore?!
Yuck.
Just put a uniform on Duce. They are just about the same age. 😉
Would he decide to not show up again? No thanks
boooooo
It’s time to let it go man. Chip drove him away just like Banner did.
LOL. I wouldn’t want him. It would be a really awkward scenario though.
It won’t be the same, I don’t think we’ll recapture the magic of his first stay here.
Westbrook remains unsigned at the moment. Probably knows the playbook better than anybody.
He is having a better season than imagined consider the state of the Colts team
Maybe they can trade a conditional 6th for Posluszny. Hes 33 and has narely played this year
Nah. That would cost us about 3 million in rollover cap space.There’s guys they can sign off the street.
If the Eagles trade 6th or 7th round picks, remember it won’t be hard to recoup late picks. There could be chances to trade players for picks but they can trade down in 4th and 5th. Like we did this year:
Philadelphia traded their fifth-round selection (155th) to Tennessee in exchange for Tennessee’s fifth- and sixth-round selections (164th and 214th).[source 1].
Former 7th round picks:
Jalen Mills, Beau Allen, Kurt Coleman, Moise Folu, King Dunlap,
Former 6th round picks:
Jason Kelce, Joe Walker (current startin MLB), Bryce Brown, Joe Mays
There are a lot more previous 6th and 7th round guys we picked up that didn’t do anything for use but went and had or are having really good careers around the league. Sure you guys might hate Kurt Coleman, but if you actually think about it you would know that he was an important pick. Most of these names aren’t studs, but all of them played important roles for this team. Expand this to 5th round (as many have suggested they would be ok parting with), good googly moogly.
Sure trading for the right guy would be super impactful and worthwhile. Don’t get crazy.
Walker was a 7th round pick out of Oregon. Same with Brown (but not Oregon).
But good info- teams hit on those late round picks, and they make a huge difference
Oh, you talking about Pro Bowler Kurt Coleman?
My fault. No logic. Gimme all the young probowlerzzz for our 7evenf rpund lickzzz!#!!@
It’s tough for us to make a splash in a trade. If we’re trading for an impact player, he will either cost us a lot of draft capital (that we’ve been sparse on for a few years now, that’s not sustainable), or they are currently a cap problem for their current team or imminently will be a cap problem. And we are flirting with cap trouble already, so…
Anyway, my prediction is trade for depth, nothing flashy.
Yup. The following players will be free agents next season and the team currently has less than $7M in cap space for next season.
Alshon Jeffery
Darren Sproles
Nigel Bradham
Trey Burton
Corey Graham
LeGarrette Blount
Timmy Jernigan
Caleb Sturgis
Najee Goode
Patrick Robinson
Kenjon Barner
Taylor Hart
Beau Allen
Jernigan and Bradham need to be re-signed. Alshon would have to be done at a cheaper rate. Graham, Blount, and Allen should be brought back for cheap. Everyone else can go.
I expect them to get rid of Celek, Curry, and Smith next year. It will save about $15 million.
Currently, there are 37 receivers who make $5M or more in salary. I don’t see anyone on this list below Alshon who is better than him.
I think the market for Alshon would be at or above $9.5M for next season as well.
Antonio Brown $17,000,000
DeAndre Hopkins $16,200,000
A.J. Green $15,000,000
Julio Jones $14,250,000
Demaryius Thomas $14,000,000
Dez Bryant $14,000,000
TY Hilton $13,000,000
Doug Baldwin $11,500,000
Keenan Allen $11,250,000
DeSean Jackson $11,166,667
Larry Fitzgerald $11,000,000
Emmanuel Sanders $11,000,000
Tavon Austin $10,555,501
Allen Hurns $10,012,500
Randall Cobb $10,000,000
Jordy Nelson $9,762,500
Alshon Jeffery $9,500,000
Pierre Garcon $9,500,000
Michael Crabtree $8,500,000
Kenny Britt $8,125,000
Marvin Jones $8,000,000
Kenny Stills $8,000,000
Robert Woods $6,800,000
Mohamed Sanu $6,500,000
Corey Davis $6,348,688
Golden Tate $6,200,000
Travis Benjamin $6,000,000
Terrelle Pryor $6,000,000
Mike Wallace $5,750,000
Amari Cooper $5,665,780
Brandon Marshall $5,500,000
Markus Wheaton $5,500,000
Jeremy Maclin $5,500,000
Julian Edelman $5,500,000
Seth Roberts $5,242,500
Rishard Matthews $5,000,000
Torrey Smith $5,000,000
He is definitely better than Torrey Smith…
I think Mack Hollins is better than Torrey Smith, although Mack and Carson clearly are not on the same page yet as evidenced by the interception yesterday.
Damn expensiveness … bring back DGB for a try. .maybe he gets it now
Funny, that’s the first time I even thought of him since he was cut. Still unemployed and most likely done in the NFL
Most likely yes. .. but like the temptation to try out TO.. same with DGB .. man if I only had his size ..
Amari Cooper is better despite the struggles early this year, and Crabtree is close (not that this was the main point of your post). Edelmen is different, but more valuable when healthy. But your conclusion is definitely correct, dont see his market value dropping.
Cooper is still on rookie contract and will be paid handsomely in a few years.
I agree Edelman is different as he can only play the slot. If you would take any #1 receiver, including Alshon, and put them in the slot, they would dwarf Edelman’s stats.
Ags is case in point that receivers who cannot beat outside cornerbacks can put up great stats against #3 defensive backs.
I totally agree we can’t add significant salary but it’s hopefully a little better than that. Add 6.4 million in rollover and 5 million for Torrey off the bat.
Celek will be gone, or take a massive pay cut. That’ll save $4m. = $15m
Hard to say what they will do with Kelce; he’d be a $1.2m cap hit vs. $6m in cap savings. = $21m
Donnie Jones is a $250k vs. $1.6m savings. Tough call.
Vinny Curry has a $6m dead charge, but we’d save $5m. That’d get us to $26m or so.
This doesn’t include Peters ($6.3m vs. $5.3m)
The 2018 cap space doesn’t include rollover does it?
Current 2018 cap space = 5.3 million
Current 2017 cap space rollover = 6.5 million
Torrey Smith = 5 million
Brent Celek = 4 million
Vinny Curry = 5 million
Jason Kelce = 6 million
Chris Maragos = 1.5 million
That’s 32.3 million ish not including Peters and Jones if rollover isn’t included in 2018 cap space .
Also if they decide to cut Peters they won’t be able to do it until he’s cleared to play right?
Missed that- sorry. Looks like your numbers are correct.
I don’t think they’ll get rid of Maragos if they get rid of Jones. Just a hunch.
My thinking is they don’t miss him and he’ll be 31.
yup, I think we could expect to get a player like Seantrel Henderson..low cap hit, buffalo could be open to dealing him, Stoutland connection…decent player who would provide depth at tackle.
How about Tahir Whitehead? solid lions linebacker, tackling machine…might be expendable after they drafted Davis. local dude who played at temple and grew up in jersey, was drafted by Schwartz in Detroit. and I think he may be in the last year of his contract
I’m ok trading any pick 4th or later. We can always trade down to acquire more picks. Teams like NE and Seattle seems to trade down every single year. We probably won’t be adding any impact players next offseason, but we can certainly fill holes and improve depth. This is already a really talented roster.
Basically, we don’t have to mortgage the future if we want to make some moves.
I agree. I just posted this. It’s something that is important and easy to forget. We traded down in the 5th last draft just 9 spots and picked up a 6th.
And we traded a 7th to move up 6 spots in the 4th round to take……..Donnell Pumphrey
Yeah the trade down in the 5th recouped that pick.
Shocking, multiple sources confirm former NFL linebacker Daniel Te’o Nesheim has died. He was 30. R.I.P.
http://www.kitv.com/story/36713544/multiple-sources-confirm-former-nfl-linebacker-daniel-teo-nesheim-has-died
Oh that’s heartbreaking.
RIP Te’o
Wow.
Very sad.
We fans talk about these guys so much as football players that I think we sometimes lose track of the fact that they’re first and foremost human beings.
My thoughts are with his family and friends.
*except Cowboys.
But, yeah, it is easy to think of them as chess pieces.
Didn’t know he was Hawaiian. Aloha and sincerest respects to the family.
American Samoan, but went to high school in Hawaii (and apparently became that school’s head coach this year).
Thanks for posting. Very sad.
This Cox thing is so weird. How the hell did he break Staley’s orbital bone? This is like the Muhammad Ali phantom punch against Sonny Liston. Would it be awkward if the Eagles traded for him now?
I agree. I was wondering yesterday if his helmet came off and he was kicked. I can’t understand how Cox’s hand fits into his face mask with enough force to do that, or that Staley’s own helmet could do that.
Only clip of it I could find is:
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/SandyExaltedAsianlion-size_restricted.gif
Not much of a good look. Seems like Cox just went to block him after the interception. Something went wrong though as Staley went down, and Cox held his hands up immediately, so something didn’t go according to plan and Cox knew it immediately.
Kempski put up a couple more views of it here. Looks like the block was a bit high and did hit Staley’s head, but not sure anything went in the helmet — but it’s still hard to see even on those views.
http://www.phillyvoice.com/eagles-dt-fletcher-cox-could-receive-league-discipline-block-niners-ot-joe-staley/
But something contacted his cheekbone just below his eye, from the sideline shot of him bleeding. Really hard.
Yeah. Hard to fathom what could have happened, but maybe a couple fingers got in there, or something odd happened with the helmet. Looked pretty innocuous, but something happened right then. Cox pulled his arms back right away, so Staley had some kind of unexpected reaction. Didn’t look like anything other than an attempt to block, but something went horribly wrong.
Yep, you’d have to thing Staley exclaimed something prompting Cox’s reaction.
Yep, I saw that. It just made me more confused.
Seahawks traded for T Duane Brown tonight. They just got better.
I’ll play the game though. What’s Megatron’s cap hit for *next* year? Maybe it’s not about this season.
Megatron isn’t playing on that previous contract. Eagles don’t have the cap to sign him this year or next year on it. He is owed $16mil a year for the 3 remaining years of his contract (would be owed ~$8.6mil this year as he wouldn’t get the first 8 weeks of salary) – which i assure you the Eagles would never play him at this point in his career.
Any trade would have a new contract agreed with his agent before you execute the trade. Johnson has earned $110+mil in his career so far – if he is coming back he is coming to win a championship not make big $$. If he was interested in that he would have come out of retirement and played for the Lions.
Nice column, teach.
And the Seahawks just became our biggest threat in the NFC.
I really do hope we won’t have to play in Seattle come January…!
I still think this shouldn’t move the needle much for the Eagles, but I certainly rather not see conference rivals making these types of big moves.
You’re joking right?
Why would this be a joke. We lost a pro bowl OT while they added one. They were already our biggest threat and just got better
An acquisition doesn’t automatically make a team much better. Dream team? Ring a bell? Potentially, sure.
No.
We have to find a way to beat them. Go full Belicheat if we must, can NOT let the road to the Superbowl go through Seattle.
I’m not scared of the Seahawks at all, especially if they have to come to Philly as seems would be likely at this point. Even with Brown their offensive line is terrible.
The Eagles be better off finishing with one game better than the Seahawks if they lose the 3rd December game.
With the Zeke ruling to come tonight, who ya got?!
Unfortunately, I bet Zeke. I think he ultimately serves the full 6 games, but we’ll have to wait.
https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/925154828577378304
WOW. if they were interested why not do this before the season?
I think the landscape of college QBs is not as impressive as many assumed prior to the season. SF will most likely end up with a top 3 pick, so they definitely didn’t see Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, or any of the QBs as a top 20 talent.
Good call. Didn’t think of that angle
that’s it??
Buyer beware! Do you really think Belichick would part ways with his young QB in a quarterback starved market if he was worth a damn?
Especially with Brady at age 40.
If Brady plays plays next year, the only way to keep him would be to place the franchise tag on him. Not sure the team wanted to have $40M+ in QB contracts.
If he’s really a future franchise QB, it’s worth either paying both of them or risk parting with Brady a year too soon rather than a year too late. Considering the pats regularly pick at 28-32, they wont be getting opportunities to pick a QB of high pedigree and they’ll be in the scrum with the rest of the schmucks desperately looking for a QB with the likes of Flacco, Manning, Roethlisberger, Rivers, and Palmer leaving. Add in all the usual perpetual QB hunters. No way you let Garoppolo go for a second round pick.
Belichick is smarter than that, Garoppolo isn’t a franchise QB is my only conclusion.
I don’t think there is any circumstance that Bob Craft allows Belichick to cut Brady.
If Brady plays next year (as he is under contract), they would be playing the Kirk Cousins game of paying Garoppolo $23+M next year (to sit on the bench) and then $26M+ guaranteed in 2019. That would potentially guaranteeing $50M+ before he plays a snap in the 2019 season at the age of 27 with 94 career pass attempts (assuming Brady does not get injured).
Still gave him away for less than we got for Kolb, (in the middle of the QB golden age). I remain skeptical, franchise QB’s are priceless.
Either way, we can all celebrate the long long long odds of the Patriots finding a replacement for Brady any time soon.
We can also celebrate that this might mean the Skins re-sign Cousins as SF would have been his biggest suitor.
I think Cousins wants out of that situation. My from down town shot in the dark prediction, Cousins to Pittsburgh
I think your correct about the Gruden/Cousins relationship.
I would love to see him go to Pittsburgh. Let Tomlin show his capabilities without Big Ben and let Gruden twist with a rookie QB.
That was going to be my off the wall prediction and you beat me to it!
They have their 6th next year, don’t they?
What if Belichek has no interest in breaking in a new QB and they are planning to walk away together? Maybe you spend you resources on now and then ride off onto the sunset without looking back at the wreckage?
Aww that would actually be kind of sweet, in all meanings of the word. You know how the Aaron Rodgers injury busted the NFC wide open? Multiply that by a decade and that would be the feeling of Brady and Belichick retiring together.
Shit I said every meaning of sweet…well once Tom Brady is irrelevant I can drop the TB12 diet and eat sugar again!
Paying 2 franchise qb is not an option. They’d have to force Brady out.
Interesting indeed. Same thing they got for Cassle right? At least that worked so well.
Shanahan is a good coach to develop a young QB. I think Jimmy G will do okay with the 49ers if only because they won’t put him in a position to fail.
Spend a 2nd on him, trade him for a higher 2nd rounder a couple years later. New England always playing the long con.
Still, maybe really good value for the niners if he can play.
I’d say they can package it with their first to move up for a QB but even pick #33 plus a high 20s at worst won’t get very far.
Long con…I’ll gladly pay you today for a hamburger in 5 years (preferably on a Tuesday).
Kirk Cousins just lost for the 2nd day in a row.
I would still like to take a shot on Zachary Orr, but apparently no NFL will fell comfortable enough to clear him to play.
Ellerbe May be our best option for short term depth.
Looks like Emmanuel Sanders will be back in the line up next week. We could really use Darby for that matchup. His speed and quickness would be a real asset against Sanders
I’d like to see Darby play 10 to 15 plays to get some decent reps before he’s back to full speed to help us obliterate Dallas.
…soon to without Zeke.
Simien might get benched before the eagles game
or during, we’d best prepare for his backup either way.
Can you imagine Brock Lobster’s eyes being terrified if he was called in to play against us? 😀
I’m hardly scared of Osweiler.
Trevor Siemian looking awful tonight. I hope he keeps getting his confidence destroyed. Next week would be a great opportunity to go to the rookie Denver!
You mean Lynch. He is in his 2nd year.
He’s Hurt right?
Supposed to be ready for return anytime now.
At this point I would rather just play Siemian at this point, wouldn’t you? Game tape, team can’t catch the ball for him. Last think I want to see is THAT team with a spark from the kid.
Of all potential landing spots for Kirk Cousins I do hope he won’t sign with the Giants next off season.
Let him go to Buffalo or Cleveland please.
Cleveland, banish him to the factory of sadness where he can go 5-11 for the next 10 years.
“THE PIT OF MISERY!”
Lol.
Dilly dilly!
Im starting to think broncos
He is going to hook up with his old friend Kyle Shanahan.
I would so much love for the Giants to pay Cousins+dead money for Eli.
Why would him going to the Giants be a bad thing? They’d be locking themselves into a QB who’s good but not good enough and eats up tons of cap space for years. That’s a recipe for a team we can beat up on every year if we have an actual franchise QB. If they don’t get Cousins they could draft somebody like Rosen or Darnold and have that guy turn into a genuine threat.
I find Cousins a huge upgrade over Shelli.
Siemian another awful int. I like what I’m seeing.
I suspect we won’t be playing Siemian next week.
So, the Seahawks gave up a starting CB, a 2018 5th and a 2019 2nd round pick!!! For a 32-year old OT that held out for the first 6 weeks??!!! That a Houston team which is very much in the mix for the playoffs was willing to part with?
Excellent. That’s what a desperate team does that’s scared of the pass rush of rivals (Rams, Eagles). Given the Seahawks OL play, one can understand why, but that is a seriously risky move at a high cost.
Brandon Graham is going to take his lunch money.
If I remember correctly from an article a few years ago, the injury rate for holdouts is elevated as well.
Big V can be a serviceable starting tackle. The Seahawks don’t have anyone who even meets that description.
Booyah!!!!
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/319672702672953e2c57d00459677f3407fdaf5b9141917cf00d5381165dd438.png
UnBooyah!!! https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/31f28d8095085f8dad1437323112b77af8f1bd127090ea14edf2ab313273a57a.png
Even so, the whole carnival remains a major distraction to a franchise that deserves nothing but the worst.
I’ve never seen anything like Zeke’s suspension, even Brady couldn’t find a way to stave off suspension this many times
The legal system is a joke sometimes. How much time is being wasted by the courts on this nonsense?
How many times does he get to appeal?
Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but wasn’t this ruling about whether he would be suspended while going through the appeals process? Meaning after this 24hr window he will be suspended. He will miss games while appealing. If he wins the appeal he will recieve his game checks for any missed games. If he loses he will continue to serve the balance of his 6 games suspension.
If this is accurate I assume he will miss a game or 2 before his appeal is even heard
The Broncos don’t look that great.
It’s still a trap game though.
If they are smart they will run it a lot on us. Of course they should of been doing that the last 3 weeks and it hasn’t sunk in.
Why? We have the best run D in the league. This puts teams in tough 3rd down situations where our DL can pin their ears back.
Middle in base sets looked really suspect.
I think they will get better. It was Joe Walker’s first real plying time. If he doesn’t improve we can stick goode in there. I think we’ll be fone
I’m real nervous about it. I hope you are right.
Their offense doesn’t quite strike any fear. I am curious about Emmanuel Sander’s return, though…
Siemian looks terrible enough that they’re going to yank him for next week. We could struggle against the new QB with no tape. Eagles traditionally do….
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/78d3ea4eb07556eb2e3a2203f4b7c86a04d8607ff480906ebe963807b376b0ab.png
So, how many times exactly are you allowed to file for emergency appeals and injunctions? This is getting absurd.
Right. At some point I’d think the decision stands. They’ll appeal every time just to circumvent the suspension smh.
Well the NFLPA and Zeke have lost now. They have no chance of winning at the circuit court in an actual case.
They may be able to appeal to the circuit court, get another TRO, and then loose the prelimary injuction case again, but that will only delay the decision a few more weeks.
Zeke will be suspended and he is running out of options to delay it.
DILLY DILLY!!!!
*lose
Boom shakka lakka.
I’m very gladly wrong on this one.
The Cowboys are likely to go 3-3 or 2-4 over their next 6 without Zeke and people will finally shut up about how great Dak is. Happy Halloween!
And Kevin Kolb!
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/542079e4388c1a4c3cfc117d469894dcc40844b9bb0285fd75ca3d8604f4d661.png