Another Departure

Posted: March 19th, 2023 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 2 Comments »

The Eagles had a good run for a few days, keeping players and adding outside talent. Alas, all good things must come to an end.

The Eagles simply couldn’t afford to keep the veteran OG. He is coming off a terrific season and will be an excellent addition for the Steelers. Young QB Kenny Pickett will love having Seumalo as one of his blockers. The Steelers already added former Eagle Nate Herbig so they should have improved guard play in 2023.

Jimmy Bama hasn’t given us our comp pick update yet this morning, but that contract is disappointing. We hoped Seumalo would get about $14M per year. I’m sure it is killing Howie to let him walk at that price, but they just have to.

Younger. Cheaper.

The Eagles kept BG, Cox, Slay and Bradberry. They can’t keep every vet. One of the reasons they kept those guys is that they didn’t have younger options ready to play. That’s not the case on the OL. Cam Jurgens will get the first shot at replacing Seumalo. I think letting Seumalo go tells you the Eagles have a lot of faith in Jurgens and want to see him on the field.

Jurgens is 6-3, 303. Seumalo was 6-4, 303 when he measured in at the Combine in 2016. Jurgens will be new to OG. He was a 3-year starter at center in college so he’s played a lot, but this will be a new position. Jurgens looked very good in the 2022 preseason. He is an athletic blocker who excels when blocking on the move. He will have a full offseason to learn the RG position. It will also help being between stud veterans like Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson. Having Jeff Stoutland oversee the whole thing doesn’t hurt either.

The Eagles have Sua Opeta on the bench. He’ll be allowed to compete for the job. The team will likely bring in someone in the draft to add depth and competition. They should be okay. It won’t be easy replacing Seumalo, but Jurgens should do a solid job.

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One player who could be of interest is John Michael Schmitz of the Minnesota Gophers. The Eagles had a senior scout at his Pro Day to see him work out. Schmitz is 6-4, 301 and he’s the top ranked center in this draft. He started 35 games over the past four years, all in the middle. You can see why the Eagles are interested.

He’s not the same level of athlete as Kelce or Jurgens, but he has good movement skills and is good out in space. Schmitz could be in play at pick 30. He won’t last too long into the second round. He’s coming off a good career and then had an outstanding showing at the Senior Bowl. Schmitz could be good at C or OG.

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Tony Pauline has a note about the Eagles and  pass rusher Jose Ramirez.

Ramirez is drawing a lot of interest from the Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, Philadelphia Eagles, and Jets.

Ramirez is 6-2, 242. That’s tweener size, but would be fine for the Eagles. Very similar to Haason Reddick. Ramirez was highly productive at Eastern Michigan, racking up 12 sacks and 2 FFs in 2022. He had a great showing at the Combine. Ramirez had the speed, explosion and agility to be a good pass rusher in the NFL. He should go in the 3rd or 4th round.

The Eagles don’t need starting edge rushers, but adding someone like Ramirez in the middle rounds would make sense. Brandon Graham is back for 2023, but we don’t know about the future. It would be great to have someone who could backup Reddick, especially if they have a similar build and skill set.

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I think we’re all fascinated by the Rashaad Penny signing. This certainly gets you excited about the potential he’s got.

There are no guarantees the move will work. But if it does…watch out. Could be a home run.

He is incredibly talented and had great games in Seattle. He just couldn’t stay healthy. The Eagles aren’t gambling on one game or something they saw five years ago. Penny was great last year for five games before breaking his leg. This is the kind of risk you absolutely want to take. They’ve got solid runners in Kenny Gainwell and Boston Scott and will almost certainly add a RB in the draft. They won’t be counting on Penny to be The Guy. If that happens, great. If not, they will have options.

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2 Comments on “Another Departure”

  1. 1 EAGLES NEWS: CJGJ agent reveals details of Philadelphia contract offer? - uuldesign said at 8:33 AM on March 20th, 2023:

    […] Another Departure – Eagles BlitzJurgens is 6-3, 303. Seumalo was 6-4, 303 when he measured at the Combine in 2016. Jurgens will be fresh at the OG. He was a 3-year starter at center in college, so he played a lot, but this will be a new position. Jurgens has looked very good in the 2022 preseason. He is an athletic blocker who excels at blocking. He will have a full vacation to learn the RG’s position. It also helps to be among veterans like Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson. Having Jeff Stotland to oversee the whole thing doesn’t hurt either. The Eagles have Sua Opeta on the bench. He will be allowed to compete for the job. The team will probably bring in someone in the draft to add depth and competition. They should be fine. Seumalo won’t be easy to replace, but Jurgens should do a good job. […]

  2. 2 Eagles News: CJGJ’s agent reveals details of Philadelphia’s contract offer? - Camel News said at 8:34 AM on March 20th, 2023:

    […] Another Departure – Iggles BlitzJurgens is 6-3, 303. Seumalo was 6-4, 303 when he measured in on the Mix in 2016. Jurgens will likely be new to OG. He was a 3-year starter at middle in faculty so he’s performed quite a bit, however this will likely be a brand new place. Jurgens seemed superb within the 2022 preseason. He’s an athletic blocker who excels when blocking on the transfer. He can have a full offseason to be taught the RG place. It’ll additionally assist being between stud veterans like Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson. Having Jeff Stoutland oversee the entire thing doesn’t damage both. The Eagles have Sua Opeta on the bench. He’ll be allowed to compete for the job. The crew will doubtless herald somebody within the draft so as to add depth and competitors. They need to be okay. It gained’t be simple changing Seumalo, however Jurgens ought to do a strong job. […]