Opening Presents
Posted: July 30th, 2011 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 68 Comments »Getting a bunch of new players is like opening presents on your birthday or Christmas…or whatever other occasion you might get them. You’ve got something new and shiny. It’s exciting. Life is good. With that in mind, Happy Free Agency Day! Let’s talk about the presents we got.
Nnamdi Asomugha – 6’2, 210
Most people consider Nnamdi the second best CB in the NFL (Darrelle Revis is top dog). Asomugha is a physical press corner. This means that he likes to line up right over the receiver and get physical with him right from the snap. Nnamdi uses his long arms to jam the receiver and keep him from getting a clean release. Plenty of big CBs do this, but Nnamdi has some skills that make him special. He runs well for a big guy. He also has great body control and change of direction ability.
A CB doesn’t know where he’ll be going on the average play. He has to react to the WR. This is where most big CBs get in trouble. They can run in a straight line, but receivers can separate from them with sharp cuts or quick moves. Nnamdi is able to turn, bend, and cut with the receiver. Nnamdi is quick and fast. He also has good coverage instincts.
Nnamdi will be the Eagles CB on the right side of the defense (Sheldon Brown/Bobby Taylor’s old side). He will lock down receivers over there. Last year poor RCB play cost the Eagles the Titans game. It almost cost us the Giants game (miracle comeback changed that). Nnamdi’s presence at RCB will force teams to look elsewhere. He’ll get challenged on occasion, but Hakeem Nicks won’t be doing to him what he did to Dimitri Patterson.
Nnamdi is an effective tackler. He’s much better than Asante, but won’t be mistaken for Antoine Winfield any time soon. He occasionally will hit. It is hard to rate his ball skills. Nnamdi only has 3 picks in the last 4 years, but he’s also one of the least targeted corners in the NFL. He did have 8 INTs back in 2006 so that shows you he can make plays when given regular chances.
Nnamdi is a great signing by the Eagles because he came at a reasonable rate. $12M per season is cheap compared to the $19M we heard about at one point a few weeks back. While $12M is still a lot, you’re paying a fair salary to a blue chip player and one of the 10 or 15 best defensive players in the whole league.
As for whether the Eagles should keep all 3 CBs…real tough question. I would be willing to trade Asante Samuel, but the price has to be right. I think a fantasy deal would be dealing him to the Jets for CB Kyle Wilson and a pick. Wilson is a player the Eagles liked very much in the 2010 draft. The Jets took him 29th overall. Wilson struggled some as a rookie, but has the potential to be a good starting CB in the NFL.
I would not give Asante away. You can keep him for 2011 and trade him next March. The question then becomes whether you can manage the egos. The Eagles did a good job of that with Bobby Taylor, Troy Vincent, and Al Harris from 1999-2002, but the circumstances were very different. Nnamdi, Asante, and DRC have no relationship. Mixing them together and keeping everyone happy would be tricky (if not impossible). The Eagles got burned by trying this in 2008 with Sheldon Brown, Lito Sheppard, and Asante Samuel. Lito acted like a turd and his career has been in a downward spiral ever since.
Howie Roseman can sit back and field offers for Asante. If the right one comes in, take it. If no one is offering anything decent, keep the 3 Amigos together.
Good chart from PE.com on how tough it is to throw on Nnamdi.
RS/WR Johnnie Lee Higgins – 5’11, 185
The Eagles signed Higgins to a one-year deal on Friday. I love this move. We have Chad Hall and Sinorice Moss as #5 WR/RS candidates. Higgins is here to fight for that same role. Higgins hasn’t done much as a WR for the Raiders in his 4-year career. He’s got just 57 catches. He has been a solid KOR and good PR. He had 3 PR touchdowns back in 2008.
I was a big fan of Johnnie Lee’s when he was at UTEP. Here’s part of what I wrote about him prior to the draft: “Also a RS. Returns both punts and KOs. Averaged 15 yds a PR for his career. Had 2 TDs. Catches the ball smoothly. Has good vision. Can make the first guy miss. Solid KOR. Averaged 20 yds a KOR for his career, but never had a TD. ” I also noted that he was deceptively tough as a WR. Johnnie Lee isn’t all that big, but he was willing to work the middle of the field and could break some tackles.
Higgins is here in Philly as competition. He will push Moss and Hall. We need someone to emerge for the #5 WR spot. Higgins does have a chance to make the roster if he plays well.
TE Donald Lee – 6’4, 248
Veteran TE has 198 career catches. Good athlete and receiver. Had some very productive years with the Packers. He started 6 games for them last year. Lee’s only a limited blocker.
Lee is here to provide competition at TE. We have Brent Celek and Clay Harbor as the top two guys. We have Martell Webb as a blocking type TE prospect. John Nalbone and Cornelius Ingram are young guys trying to show they belong in the league. Lee can step in right away and practice at a high level. He knows how to run routes and catch the ball. There was no player to strongly push Celek and Harbor prior to Lee’s arrival. The other guys have talent, but are more projects than finished products. Lee gives us a good veteran camp body. Could make the roster if injuries happen.
UDFA – WR Gerald Jones – 5’10, 195 – Tennessee
Back in 2008 I watched Tennessee play and this young WR really caught my eye. He was the Wildcat QB and showed real good running skills. Over the next 2 years I kept waiting for that guy to emerge as a great college player. Never happened. That was Gerald Jones. He is still talented, but only developed into a so-so player at UT. He didn’t always have great QB play to help him out, but Jones never became the playmaker he should have. He does have potential. Jones is a very elusive runner. He’s athletic. Solid receiver, but not great. Has some PR experience. Realistically, he’s pushing for a Practice Squad spot. I am curious to see if the light ever goes on for him and he’s plays up to the potential I saw back in ’08.
UDFA – RB Derrick Locke – 5’9, 190 – Kentucky
Here are some pre-draft notes I wrote on Locke: “Talented, athletic RB. Rating goes down because of durability concerns. Only played in 41 of 52 career games. Productive when he did play. Had 6 games with more than 97 yards in 2010. Ran for more than 2,000 career yards. Real good burst. Hits the hole hard. Had a real good showing at the Senior Bowl. Caught 95 career passes. Good KOR. ”
Locke was terrific in the Senior Bowl game. Here are my notes from that: “DERRICK LOCKE — Had a nice gain to the right side on early run. Defense gave him a hole and he didn’t hesitate. Good burst. Made an really nice cut on the next play. Started up the middle. Pressed the hole, then bounced a gap to the left and got upfield. Got 9 yds on the play. Made another real impressive cut a couple of plays later. Started to the right, off tackle. The defense was all over that area so Locke made a quick move and then bounced the run way out wide. Used a quick burst to turn a simple draw play into a gain of 15.”
I’m a little confused by the fact we have so many RBs and they’re all sorta similar. I do like the fact that Locke can run, catch, and be a KOR. That gives him added value. Very good college player who could challenge for a roster spot or place on the P-Squad.
I feel like the aloof men on the Maury Show after the DNA test reveals they are not the father. I couldn’t be more ecstatic.
what about noel devine??? could be an extra playmaker?
I like Graig Cooper, hope he pans out.
I like turtles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMNry4PE93Y
I love lamp!
For one who was clearly not awake, it is more than crazy to see what has gone on over the last 24 hours. For real? Unbelievable! And great 😉
Tommy, can you confirm that we went hard after Doug Free on tuesday?
I no longer require Patrick Peterson.
What about Samuel to the Jets for David Harris straight up?
David Harris isn’t special. We’d be trading a special situation (Asante-Asomugha-DRC) for a solid LB who may or may not be a good fit. I don’t want to waste the opportunity to have a really special group of CB’s just because we’re taking on some risk by going with Matthews and Chaney.
We now have the biggest, baddest Air Force in the world. Do we reduce that war power to upgrade our tanks or do we capitalize on our air power?
Arby: What about giving Arizona Asante and their 2nd for Peterson?
I’m most excited by the names in the secondary… Namdi, Asante, Dominique, Jaiquawn, Trevard….
I couldn’t help myself last night… (this is in the sour grapes with a bumped out chest mentality) in re-visiting the notion of how much of a douche Julius Peppers is for not even considering us last FA period.
I’m thrilled, could hardly sleep – was like Christmas, thinking of the possibilities.
Tommy what work do you think is left? Myself I’m now mostly concerned with the DT position – as mention yesterday…and I started to think about our options at kicker. For a team that seems like it’s built to win now – seems very risky to go with two rookie kickers? I mean the Giants lost a game due to Dodge, who despite having a monster leg is inexperienced. And we’ve seen plenty of rookie kickers fail to have success in the NFL…
So I guess ontop of the DT question which you answered – how confortable are you with the Henry and Hernery combo? (if I have them spelled correctly).
Tommy- you’ve mentioned before that you would like to see a larger RB in the mix, and in this post you mentioned that the RBs the Eagles brought in are very similar. Any chance we see Havili and Schmitt in the same backfield? Since Havili really isn’t a true blocking FB, is there any chance that they plan (hope?) he can be the bigger back this season?
Good piece on Nnamdi at PE.com.
http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/news/article-1/Just-How-Good-Is-Asomugha/74bcc35a-957b-4a4b-8cfa-6e538142e242
RE: RB
I do think it is possible that Havili sees some time at RB as well as FB. Back in 2004 we drafted Thomas Tapeh to be the FB of the future. That year we actually used him as a RB since we were already set at FB. Maybe we do that with Havili.
RE: Henery I and Henry II
I am comfortable with Alex Henery. Great PK. He could fail, but that’s the kind of rookie PK I’m willing to take a chance with.
Chas Henry I’m less confident in, but I don’t have specific doubts about him so much as rookie Punters make me nervous. Let’s see what the guy does through the first couple of preseason games. That will let us know if he has a chance to be okay or if he must be seriously challenged. I like the fact he’s getting so much work right now. Let’s find out what the kid can do.
Apparently NE is moving to the 4-3. Wilfork and Haynesworth will be their DTs- scary
What about Nmandi playing the Charles Woodson role. I don’t think he played the traditional CB role and he was the defensive player of the year.
Is anyone else just as happy about the fact that the cowboys didn’t get Namdi as they are that we did. I wish I could have seen Jerry’s face when they announced he was coming to Philly. Please Dallas, if anyone has a picture of that we will pay big bucks. Hahahahahahahahah,
I think the more accurate title of New England’s defense would be the “amoeba defense.” Does UNLV own the rights to that?
Hey Tommy,
How about setting up a Fantasy Football league on Yahoo for the IgglesBlitz faithful?
And just like with presents, there is always a few spoiled kids who don’t know how good they have it and instead complain about getting Trapjaw when they really wanted Triclops.
Some poeple are always pessimists, but the off season is Prime time to be an Optimist.
I wonder if instead of getting a big back, which never seems to work out, we are getting guys who make Shady into the big back by comparison?
@ ATG…
Brilliant, as usual.
“I wonder if instead of getting a big back, which never seems to work out, we are getting guys who make Shady into the big back by comparison?”
Why didn’t I think of that?
@ Cliff…
You guys can do a FF league. Way too busy to take part in anything like that.
@ Dan…
Woodson is a good blitzer, hitter, and tackler. Nnamdi doesn’t compare to him in those areas.
You could try him in that role, but there’s no guarantee he’d be anywhere near as good.
Love the He-Man reference. I wish my mother never threw all mine away!
I’m very happy with how everything turned out.
I’ve seen DRC blitz before and he was fine at it. I’m just not sure if he’d on board for 60% of the snaps as he’s looking for a new deal (hard to get paid when you’re not on the field). DRC is definitely athletic enough to be Charles Woodson.
Still, we added 1 all-pro CB, have the best backup QB in the NFL and a DE who had 12.5 sacks last year. Life. Is. Good.
This off-season feels better than 2004 and 2008 together.
I really hope we are keeping Asante to make a serious run at the Super Bowl in 2011. On paper we should be the team to beat and you don’t simply trade away one of the greatest ballhawks in the entire NFL.
Also you can always lose a player to injury. So it may be a luxury but in today’s pass happy league you can never have enough pass rushers and quality defensive backs.
I still have issues with our roster and the GM. Crippler is one of my favorite posters, but I read his thoughts and think, “This means we have another Lito/Sheldon/Asante situation.” Or, “best backup QB and most talented backup QB are two very different things.” And, “why sign a 31 year old DE when you can a 26 year old (Edwards) for the same contract?”
However, the people on this blog and others I respect a great deal all seem to disagree with me. When that happens in life, its probably time to re-evaluate your position. After I get over my self-loathing, I plan on getting started.
The Kolb trade was a home run for Howie, no doubt. Some of the other moves have left me scratching my head, after I stopped jumping up and down for joy…
@mcud
Vick breaks his leg and is gone for 6 games. Young could conceivably go 4-2 and put up points. How many other teams can say that? Maybe Matt Flynn in GB (I’m unconvinced). Kitna can. It’s hard to find good backup QBs.
I still think Asante is a goner. I just refuse to *give* him away
Hopefully Havili is better than Tapeh was…
howie roseman did not sound like a guy that was considering keeping all 3. he sounded like it was for sure one is gone and obviously that would be asante.
the tough part of keeping all 3 is exactly what kevin said. can u imagine telling drc who was a probowl corner 2 years ago and is looking at getting a big contract, we just traded for u and u are the slot guy? he would be so pissed we traded for him. this guy is looking to get paid. drc seems like a desean jackson type, he doesnt seem like a B Westbrooke type. just my opinion on it. this is def a good problem to have.
also asante had one of his best years last year so he has good value. think about it he was targeted just a few more times than namdi but asante got 8 picks. i wonder if there is any chance at a 1st round pick. maybe conditional, where its a 2nd and becomes a 1st if he makes the probowl. raiders??
i cant remember ever being this excited aboyt football
Sounds Like we got some team players fellas:
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/inq-eagles/Asante-doesnt-want-a-trade.html
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/dneagles/DRC-Ill-Play-Nickel-If-Thats-What-Team-Needs.html
Sounds like our CBs are gonna be team players:
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/dneagles/DRC-Ill-Play-Nickel-If-Thats-What-Team-Needs.html
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/inq-eagles/Asante-doesnt-want-a-trade.html
mcud
there could be a few reasons we didnt get edwards. he was probably looking for a lot of money and by the time he realized he overvalued himself we moved on. personally i dont think thats why though.
i think we looked at edwards as really rolling the dice cuz his best year he had 8 sacks x 2 and he was on one of the best lines in football. and more importantly he doesnt seem like a reid guy. he complained about money after his first decent year. he had 8 sacks and he said something like “i am not playing football anymore if Brian Robinson is making the same amount I am”. also last month he said he was gonna quit football and box if he doesnt get paid.
he also decided to bash R Gooddel, i know alot of guys have but not any eagles. PFF really likes Edwards but i think eagles looked at it like they would be taking a big chance.
i think that we liked what babin did in wash’s system and wash said he really wants him. the guy put up 12.5 sacks. babin only played 60%of the snaps. he actaully had 100 less pass rushes than T Cole had. those 12.5 sacks were legit, even though it was just one season. over the last 3 years he actaully did well in the limited opportunities he had, per PFF.
IF the eagles trade Asante then hopefully only for a player with immediate impact. I don’t want picks next year. The eagles want to win now that’s why it wouldn’take much sense to get picks next year instead.
Any chance the Seahawks are willing to give tatupu away?
I could be wrong about this but I think one of the reasons we wanted Babin instead of Ray Edwards is how they fit into the wide 9.
I’m all for keeping all three corners. If they are willing to work together, this could be something really special. Samuel and Asomugha could share their tricks of the trade with each other and DRC, making all three of them better in the process. If Castillo is smart about his sub packages, DRC can step in for either Samuel or Asomugha, with very little drop-off in production, plus he would be on the field for evert three and four WR set. This could be a beautiful thing, rovided egos don’t get in the way. So far Asante and Dominique are saying the right things . . .
I was so excited about last night’s news, I broke into my rare beer cellar for an imperial stout I had been saving for a special occasion. I still have one set aside for the Super Bowl, though.
@Kevin (still strange to write that, so used to “RealCrippler”
You’re probably right. I’m scared that VY won’t pick up the offense, that’s all. I’ve never thought of him as a good fit for us, though he is definitely an exciting one. One thing I can count on is Andy’s ability to bring out the best in a QB. Hopefully, that’s the case here. Another thought that occurred to me is the length of a contract. Lets assume that I am completely wrong about VY (not difficult), and he has success. Why not sign him to a similar deal to Mike Vick (2 years)? That would make him a tradeable asset for next offseason. Perhaps VY didn’t want to go that route. I’d be interested to see if there is any clause in his contract preventing the Eagles from franchising him.
@CVD
Perfectly reasonable post. There were three DEs I was thinking of at the beginning of the offseason:
Edwards
Babin
Kiwanuka
All have their positives. All have their negatives (Babin – age, Edwards – attitude, Kiwi – injuries). My reservations come from the actual #s Babin got from us, but I haven’t seen specific details about the contract. Very likely, it protects us should Jason fall off a cliff athletically. I would have preferred Kiwi, Edwards, and Babin, in that order, but it’s not a 1., 2., 3., thing. More like 1a, 1b, 1c., if that makes any sense.
Gah! Spelling. *event, *provided.
I could be wrong about this but I think one of the reasons we wanted Babin instead of Ray Edwards is how they fit into the wide 9.
=======================================
without a doubt that has to be part of it
how bout how we always had small corners and now we have 2 guys 6’2 and they are studs
from King, As for a potential Asante Samuel trade?
If indeed they did however, “the Eagles would prefer a significant player instead of high pick. They want to bulk up for ’11.”
Tommy if we don’t “get rid of” Samuel do we then cut Hanson? It’s a crowded position all of a sudden.
And this might be for slower days, but does Washburn have his DE’s use more 4 point stance? And what are the advantages / disadvantages in doing that, if that’s the case
mcud
i agree with u. i wasnt really thrilled with the dends on the market so i wouldnt have went nuts about picking any of them. to be honest i didnt want babin until i heard we got him. the reason i like it now is because i figure wash loved him, so that gets me excited. dont forget though, we still have BG as a wild card. i know u dont like him all that much but he has potential. BG could help late this season and next year, so u never know.
i could be wrong about this but since we are in a completley new system for the dends, doesnt that give T Cole a huge adavantage? nobody has tape on T Cole in the wide 9. especially for our division teams that are so used to seeing trent and know all his moves, they now dont have that advantage, but Cole still knows how they block. i expect Cole to have his best year. but i could be completley wrong about the how the wide 9 is that differnt though.
oh plus we have the almight namdi at corner to help Cole.
lombardi said that the eagles dont plan on extedning desean until next year. i really hope that is just a way of getting some leverage in their negotiation.
What a glorious day for Eagles fans, and therefore, the world…
I agree with CVD, the implication from Roseman’s press conference was Asante will not be here. Hopefully they get some good value for him as he is a stud pro bowl player. The team must have made the decision to go back and play more man and cover 1. Bringing a safety up more will help the team be more aggressive with pressure schemes and will help against the run.
@CVD
Perhaps it comes off that I dislike Brandon Graham, or any # of other players. Not the case at all. Every single player good enough to be in the NFL has value to me, to varying degrees. I like Brandon, and will continue to cheer for him. I just would have ponied up and went up for Eric Berry, based on talent, need, and the resources we happened to have at the time. But that amounts to a matter of taste, as good arguments can be made that the BG trade was the right thing to do.
This morning, I was reading a post on another site about the Phillies trading for Hunter Pence. Buried in the analysis was a sentence that struck a chord with me. I’m paraphrasing, but basically, he said that liking a player and liking a deal involving a player are two very different things.
I couldn’t agree more. It is all about value, but more specifically, its about incremental value. When you replace a guy like Dimitri Patterson with Nnamdi Asomugha, you are taking your weakest position of the 22 on the football team (IMO) and making it the strongest. Add that to the fact that the RCB is probably one of the top 10 most important positions on the field for us, and its worth the upgrade at almost any price.
However, the incremental value of the Nnamdi signing is far less today than it was a week ago. It doesn’t make nearly as much sense to sign Nnamdi after the DRC trade as it does to sign Nnamdi before the DRC trade. The roster is still evolving, and the situation is fluid. We’ll see what we end up with for Asante Samuel, as I’m sure he’ll be traded now. A week ago, if you had told me Aso was going to be an Eagle, my biggest joy would have been that he was replacing Dimitri Patterson. Now, more than anything I’m happiest that we got to screw Dallas over.
Just how my mind works I guess.
Tommy-
Any chance the Pats might be willing to part with Logan Mankins for Asante?
mcud
i know u dont dislike BG, u just think we could have done better. i think its just so hard to know what a team should have done cuz there are so many factors. i like the way we got BG and Nate Allen. We could have gotten Earl Thomas but then what dend would we have gotten? you know what i mean? there are just so many things that fans arent a part of. or maybe a guy is good but the team realizes there is something about him that wont fit the system. i love BG, but he could wind up being horrible especially after the knee injury.
i agree w u about picking up namdi. i was thinking we already had a stud in asante and we got drc, why get namdi? the huge key to that is what we get for asante.
what i like about roseman is he does a lot of outside the box thinking. he does things that we never would have done. we never did player for player trades, or 3 way trades.
PFT is trying to make us into the heat, and make all the fans hate us.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/30/vince-on-vick-were-going-to-compete/
a rookie at MLB, a rookie at SS, a 2nd year man at S, a 2nd year 7th round pick at WLB, and a 3rd year 7th round pick at SAM. yeah we are the heat
sorry its this one
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/30/vince-young-declares-the-eagles-to-be-a-dream-team/
VY need to just come in and do his job. and shut the F UP!
@ EaglePride…
Not sure how Bill B and Asante are. Seemed like there was some friction between the two when Asante left. Can’t imagine them giving us their best OL for Asante.
There’s one more present that was hidden behind the tree….
Cullen Jenkins!
http://twitter.com/#!/adamschefter
Wait…what?
Why? I mean it’s a pretty awesome signing, but he’s 30, we have plentyof DTs… doesn’t make a ton of sense.
Not entirely sure how I feel about this, but DTs can play until their mind 30s, especially when they use power games like Jenkins does. He’s a perfect fit in the nose on 3rd down.
Cullen Jenkins joins the party…
$25m over five years…not sure about the guaranteed money…
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/6819083/cullen-jenkins-philadelphia-eagles-agree-5-year-25m-deal-source-says
Is this the end for Bunk?
Jenkins gives us a proven inside pass rusher. That is definite help. I’m just curious where he fits into the mix. Gotta think he’ll start.
I guess Washburn took a look at Mike Patterson on the first day of practice and said ‘This isn’t going to work.’
Bunkley to Clevland for a 5th, per my friend who just texted me
Bunk traded to the Browns for a 5th rounders, per Caplan’s twitter
Wow. Bunk gone. I’d have to think Patterson has to be on the way out too.
Is Akeem our veteran LB or do you still see us signing someone?
Posted new column about Jenkins.
Fellas:
Needless to say, I am beyond excited to see how all of these players that we have just recently added (NA, Babin, Jenkins, and even the smaller signings of Lee and Higgins) perform when the games count.
But, I was wondering if Sam could break down the numbers on the contracts (gtd money, if a 5 yr deal is really only a 2 yr deal b/c of the gtd money) and how they fit in with the existing contracts and most importantly, how we have been able to do all of this. It seemed going into FA that we would be able to do some things, but this seems like way more than what anyone envisioned (also, how the probable extensions for 1Yard and Vick play into this).
I know this would be like judging the Mona Lisa before Da Vinci painted her face, smug smile and all, seeing how Joe and Howie have indicated that we may not be done, but this has been super exciting and I am uber fascinated with how we are able to do all of this. Plus, it would be the kind of breakdown that we probably won’t be able to find anywhere else.
Thanks in advance, The Reddgie
Have a great day!
Lmao@ “I love lamp.” ^^^