Moves Keep Coming

Posted: March 10th, 2018 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | Comments Off on Moves Keep Coming

Another day, another deal.

There is no surprise that Smith is on the way out. He was due to make $5m this year and the Eagles just can’t afford that with big money already going to Alshon Jeffery and Nelson Agholor. It also helps that the team is very high on Mack Hollins. They want to get the young WR on the field to see how good he can be. The Eagles also have Shelton Gibson in the mix, a speedster who can take the top off of defenses.

The surprise is that the Eagles were able to find someone to trade for Smith. The Panthers are giving up a 23-year old starting CB for a player the Eagles were almost certainly going to let go. Interesting.

Let’s focus on Worley first. He is 6-1, 204 and has 33-inch arms. That is an excellent build for a press corner. The problem is that he’s not a great athlete. He tested okay at the Combine, but if you watch the tape, you can see he’s a bit stiff and he’s not explosive. I think he is more effective when he plays off. In a way, he might remind you of Jalen Mills. He’s better at sitting back 10 yards, reading the play and then going forward.

Worley is a good tackler. He has good ball skills. He doesn’t a great break on the ball. I don’t have a good feel for his instincts yet.

It is possible the Eagles could think of him as a Safety. My guess is CB, but that’s not certain. The Eagles brought him to the NovaCare Complex before the 2016 draft so this is a player they’ve had some interest in. He is a Philly kid so the visit didn’t count against the Eagles 30-visit limit, but I think they liked him regardless. The Eagles drafted Rasul Douglas in 2017 and he’s a very similar player in terms of size, speed and ball skills. And they both went to West Virginia.

The Eagles now have a deep set of CBs with Ronald Darby, Sidney Jones, Mills, Douglas and Worley. The problem is that none of them is ideal in the slot. There was a recent rumor that Howie Roseman was going to move a CB for a draft pick. That makes even more sense as of today. We’ll see if the Eagles can get any offers for Darby. It blows my mind that the Eagles are so deep at CB. For years, that was a spot they struggled to keep stocked with any kind of talent.

Back to Smith.

This move will help the cap situation, but not until next week so the Eagles still have work to do.

As for the Panthers side of things, I can see where they wanted Smith. That offense struggled without a vertical threat. They missed Ted Ginn in a big way. Smith is a very similar player, a veteran with explosive speed and inconsistent hands. Smith is also a high character guy who can help the young WRs on that team develop.

*****

Joe knows the cap. Trust him on this.

Howie wouldn’t be making these moves if he couldn’t make things work financially.

*****

Wow.

Exactly right.

This move could affect the Eagles. Denver and Arizona are in the market for QBs, possibly veterans. Taylor was a consideration for both. He’s gone now. And Buffalo needs a QB. That could change how things play out.

This is going to be interesting to watch with the veteran QBs available and such a talented draft class. Teams do have choices. But someone is going to get desperate and that could lead to some wild moves.

It feels great to have Carson Wentz and Nick Foles and Nate Sudfeld. The Eagles can watch The Great QB Chase and not have to be part of it unless they choose to.

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