Fletch and Phase II

Posted: March 19th, 2022 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | Comments Off on Fletch and Phase II

Free agency got off to an exciting start with the signing of pass rusher Haason Reddick. Then things went quiet. There are plenty of rumors of the Eagles talking to other players, but there haven’t been any moves with outside free agents.

There have been plenty of moves involving Eagles. The biggest shocker came when the team released star DT Fletcher Cox. Was this a sign that Howie Roseman was moving away from keeping veteran players?

Fletch is back for another year. This very well could be it for him in Philly, but he’ll be an Eagles in 2022. The Eagles looked into trading him, but the contract situation was beyond tricky. Once they cut him, I thought Fletch might want to go elsewhere. Apparently he decided he wanted one more year in Philly.

As for the other moves:

  • Re-signed RB Boston Scott to a 1-year deal
  • Re-signed SS Anthony Harris to a 1-year deal
  • Re-signed WR Greg Ward to a 1-year deal
  • Re-signed DB Andre Chachere to a 1-year deal
  • Tendered RFA OL Nate Herbig

That’s like getting socks for Christmas. Sure, you need them, but they aren’t fun. You want to get fun gifts.

Are the Eagles over-estimating their own players and roster?

The first week of free agency is a free for all. Teams go crazy in pursuit of their top targets. Money flows and deals get made. Things settle down after that and Phase II of free agency begins. The market relaxes and teams become more disciplined shoppers.

Will the Eagles start making moves now?

I think they will. You have to understand that the Eagles (or any team) don’t look at free agency like fans or the media. They don’t have every free agent receiver listed as a potential target. Teams have scheme and culture fits. They are choosy about who they want to go after.

Back in 2010, Roseman wanted Julius Peppers. The Eagles desperately needed a pass rusher and Peppers was the key to the team’s offseason plans. They were going after him hard. The Bears were even more aggressive and landed Peppers. The Eagles didn’t have any other veteran pass rusher they were interested in. With Peppers gone, they focused on the draft. That led to the trade up for a guy named Brandon Graham.

We know the Eagles tried to trade for Calvin Ridley. That didn’t work out due to his gambling suspension. Jimmy Bama reported the Eagles had interest in Christian Kirk, but Kirk got a crazy deal. You had to walk away from that. We don’t know if the Eagles had interest in guys like Allen Robinson or DJ Chark.

The Eagles know they must get better at WR (and other spots). Don’t confuse a lack of moves with over-confidence in the current roster. There are still some interesting players in free agency and there is always the possibility of making a trade.

This doesn’t mean the Eagles have a big move ready to roll, but it gives them flexibility. There are still moves to be made. The Eagles could add help at LB, S, WR, and CB. Others spots are possible, those just feel most likely.

At LB the Eagles could target an athlete like Kyzir White or a tackling machine like Bobby Wagner.

At safety, the Eagles could target an elite veteran like Tyrann Matheiu. I doubt that happens, but it would be interesting. Jayron Kearse is a player I’m surprised has gotten little buzz. Terrell Edmunds is still out there as well.

The top receivers are gone. There are good complementary players available. Keelan Cole is talented and affordable. Zach Pascal is a player that Nick Sirianni loves from their time together in Indy. If the Eagles want to add another speedster, Will Fuller would be a good fit. Would the Eagles have interest in older veterans like Julio Jones or AJ Green? What about TY Hilton from Indy? My guess is that they focus on younger options.

Woods could be a good fit. He’ll turn 30 in April. He’s a reliable veteran who would be a good fit with young guys like DeVonta Smith and Quez Watkins.

I will be surprised if the Eagles don’t make a couple of veteran additions. They know the roster isn’t good enough. They also know you don’t want to panic and go pay for a free agent that you don’t really want or is a questionable fit.

Let’s talk about the moves they did make.

I’m fine with bringing back Cox. He is still an above-average DT and has some great moments in games. Cox is here as a short term rental. Expect the Eagles to draft a DT or two in April.

I did not like re-signing Harris. I wasn’t impressed by him last year and wanted the Eagles to move on. He’s only getting $2.5M so that doesn’t guarantee him a starting role. The Eagles will draft a safety and they could still add someone in free agency. I would love to know what exactly Jonathan Gannon is looking for in a safety. I get that he wants versatile guys and not a pure CF or a pure box guy, but finding talented, versatile safeties is hard. You must have some flexibility. Or you sign Anthony Harris two years in a row.

Greg Ward drives me crazy. On one hand, he is everything good about the NFL. He is an overachiever who does everything he can to help the team win. On the other hand, he’s just not a good player. Keeping solid role players for four years is a bad sign. Can’t you upgrade on him? I feel like a total jerk for criticizing Ward, but the goal is to find talented players to beat out mediocre ones.

Scott and Herbig are the kind of guys you do want back. Scott is a good role player who can start and be effective here and there. Herbig can be a starting OG. He’s got a limited ceiling, but he is effective.

If the Eagles shock me and don’t start making some moves, Howie Roseman will deserve all the criticism he gets. Sneaking into the playoffs is very different from contending for a Super Bowl. The draft will be huge, but this roster also needs some veteran upgrades.

*****

This really got to me last night. John Clayton is one of the key reasons I became such a big NFL fan. I would hear him on the radio or see him on ESPN and loved the way he had nuggets from all over the league. Clayton wasn’t a schill for agents like Adam Schefter or Ian Rapoport, repeating whatever message they wanted to get out. Clayton was a reporter who dug for info and shared it.

There were a ton of great tributes to him on Twitter. He truly was loved and will be missed.

*****

I’m glad that situation is over. Cleveland can have him. Watson is a great QB, but watching teams throw themselves at him knowing the accusations of 22 women just seems crazy to me.

I would have been incredibly uncomfortable with writing about him had he come to Philly.

*****

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