Meaningful Win

Posted: October 28th, 2019 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | Comments Off on Meaningful Win

The Eagles win on Sunday evened their record at 4-4. It ended a two-game losing streak and bought the team a week of rest from questions about what is wrong and why the season is slipping away. The win doesn’t make the Eagles a perfect team and it doesn’t solve all their problems, but it does have real value.

By getting to 4-4, the Eagles now are half a game back for the division lead. They remain alive in the playoff hunt.

Jeffrey Lurie, Howie Roseman and Doug Pederson likely saw enough on Sunday to make them buyers this week. A loss would have dropped the Eagles to 3-5 and I don’t know that they would have been able to do much serious shopping.

Sunday changed that. 4-4 doesn’t sound like much, but it does make a big difference.

The Eagles are going to start getting some players back from injuries. They have five road games on the back end of the schedule. They have games against the Dolphins, Redskins and Giants (2). There are reasons for optimism.

Last year the Eagles made an aggressive move by dealing a third round pick for Golden Tate. He did make a big catch in their wild card win, but overall the deal did not work as planned. Tate struggled to fit into the offense. The coaches struggled with how best to use him.

That move didn’t work, but that sure doesn’t mean that Roseman should give up on mid-season trades. The key is to look for good fits and to find good value. There are all kinds of rumors about who might be available. Some of the names make zero sense. DeAndre Hopkins? Why would the Texans deal him? Won’t happen.

I’m interested to see what the Eagles do or try to do. That will tell us where they think this team is weak.

With Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby back, CB isn’t as much of a pressing need. Neither guy is a shutdown corner, but they are good enough to get the job done. If you can upgrade, go for it, but make sure the price is right. Xavien Howard is a fascinating idea. Patrick Peterson will turn 30 this summer. The price would have to be right to make a move for him.

DT is a need, but that could change if Tim Jernigan comes back soon. I would certainly make a call and see if Geno Atkins is available. He’s older and expensive, but remains a productive DT. He would be an excellent fit for the Eagles scheme. You could plug him in right away and get production. DL is so critical for the Eagles that he would be worth taking a chance on.

LB would be an interesting spot to add to, but Nigel Bradham should return soon and the Eagles may want to stick with their young guys. The young LBs seemed to play well in Buffalo. We’ll have to see if that holds up after tape study.

WR is the one position I would definitely try to upgrade. DeSean will return, but there is no guarantee he stays healthy. What if someone else gets hurt? Robby Anderson of the Jets is the guy most people want and he does have deep speed. One move I would make is signing Jordan Matthews. The Niners cut him the other day. Matthews stepped in last year and was productive as a role player. He would offer good depth and already has chemistry with Carson Wentz.

Mack Hollins lack of production is amazing, in a bad way. Matthews would absolutely be an upgrade on him.

Safety would be interesting. I just don’t know if the coaches see that as an area that needs help. The coaches seem to love Andrew Sendejo. There also aren’t a lot of good safeties on the market. That’s a tough position.

I do think the Eagles need to be careful about how aggressive they are. This is an older team and they need an infusion of youth in the offseason. You don’t want to give draft picks up too casually. The Eagles had a thin draft class this year and in 2018. They need a deep class to bring youth, and hopefully some talent, to the roster. I hope the Eagles are careful about bringing in older guys. Be very picky about that.

Could the Eagles possibly move a player or two?

Big V’s name has come up. CLE could use OT help in a big way. They lost on Sunday so they might not feel being aggressive for an OT makes sense. The Texans were missing one OT and the other one got hurt against the Raiders. They could use help, but I don’t know if they’ll want to part with more picks. They gave away a lot to get Laremy Tunsil from Miami.

You wonder if Joe Douglas would have interest in Big V. You don’t want your franchise QB playing behind a garbage OL the rest of the year.

Sunday’s win will make Roseman and the Eagles more aggressive as they look for help this week. It should be fun to see how things shake out.

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