Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Depth Moves for the Offense

Posted March 23rd, 2024 | 1 Comment »

Howie Roseman has used free agency to add key players like Saquon Barkley, Bryce Huff and CJGJ. He has also done a good job of adding depth the to the roster. Some of those players won’t make the team in September, but it is smart to bring in players to compete in the spring and summer. You never know when one of them will turn out to be a good signing.

You may wonder why the Eagles would add a fourth QB. They already have Jalen Hurts, Kenny Pickett and Tanner McKee. They drafted two of those guys and just traded for the other one. I doubt they are unhappy with any of the trio.

Grier makes sense because of his history with Kellen Moore, the Eagles new offensive coordinator. Grier was a backup for the Cowboys in 2021 and 2022, when Moore was the OC there. Grier then spent some time last year with Moore and the Chargers.  Grier can help the Eagles QBs and other skill players better understand the new offense. He can talk to Hurts about how to read a certain progression. Moore can explain it, but from a coach’s perspective. Grier can talk from a player’s perspective and there is value in that.

There is also the simple question of depth. Should one of the other QBs get hurt, Grier could win a roster or practice squad spot. He started 2 games back in 2019, but hasn’t played since then. The Eagles will be his sixth team so he’s been good enough to bounce around, but not good enough keep a job.

Now let’s talk about Parris Campbell.

He was a second round pick by the Colts back in 2019. He’s caught 117 career passes. That sounds like someone you should be interested in. But he averages 9.3 yards per catch for his career. That’s not good, to put it mildly.

Campbell has solid size at 6-1, 205. He ran 4.31 at the Combine. He’s got the physical tools to be a good NFL receiver. Somehow his best NFL season was 2022, when he went 63-623-3.  Campbell is proof that there is more to the NFL than size and speed.

The Eagles were high on Campbell when he was coming out of Ohio State. They took JJ Arcega-Whiteside with pick 57. Campbell went to the Colts at pick 59. There is a story that scouts wanted Campbell, but were overruled by Jeffrey Lurie wanting JJAW. That may or may not be true. Either way, both players turned out to be disappointing. Campbell has at least been functional.

AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith are a dynamic duo. The Eagles needed depth behind them. They signed DeVante Parker and now Campbell. That gives the team a pair of veteran players to compete for the #3 spot. Parker has had the better career, while Campbell is younger and more athletic.

The Eagles are not done at WR. They might be with pro moves, but they are doing a lot of work on draft prospects. They are even checking out guys who could go as high as the second round. I’m not sure that’s an ideal use of resources, but this shows you the team wants better depth at receiver than they had last year. Quez, Oz and Julio Jones were an odd combination.

While Nick Sirianni wants to feed his stars over and over, Moore has spread the ball around. AJ and DeVonta will still be the workhorses. Moore might just push Hurts to use the other weapons more often than he did in past seasons.

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No real news, but still sounds like Reddick will end up traded. Teams aren’t getting great compensation this year with veteran trades, but Reddick isn’t going to be happy until he gets a new deal. That isn’t coming from the Eagles. We’ll see how this plays out.

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More on Devin White

Posted March 20th, 2024 | 1 Comment »

It would be great if the Eagles had a sure thing at linebacker. The days of Seth Joyner, Byron Evans and William Thomas are a million miles away. Last year the Eagles gambled on cheap alternatives, but the players had limited upside. This year they are at least taking a chance on someone who has legit talent.

https://twitter.com/DiBonaPFN/status/1768623541585404070

https://twitter.com/mccrystal_alex/status/1768426905600983344

White is a skilled LB. He can fly around the field, in coverage or in pursuit. He has 3 career INTs, 6 FF and 9 FRs. That shows playmaking ability. Watch the INTs and you see a defender making clean catches with his hands. Some of the FF came when White punched the ball out in awkard situations. Those are skilled plays, not lucky hits. He has 23 career sacks. White is a good pass rusher. He has terrific closing speed. When he blitzes, there isn’t any hesitation. And he knows how to get by blockers.

The risk in this move is that White is coming off his worst season. White still made plays, but frustrated the coaches enough that he lost some playing time to KJ Britt. Tampa let him leave in free agency without making an effort to keep him.

The Eagles might get the White who was a good player. Or they might get the guy from last year. But I think White is the kind of player who is worth taking a chance on. If they get the good version, he would be a huge upgrade on last year.

Howie Roseman needs to keep building depth at LB so that there is some competition. Add a key player in the draft. We’ll still have to wait and see how things pan out, but this group certainly has the potential to be more talented than last year’s bunch.

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We aren’t sure who will be in the slot for the Eagles. Avonte Maddox was released and there isn’t a clear frontrunner. Isaiah Rodgers could end up inside, but could also play outside. We know Darius Slay will be outside. James Bradberry, if he’s back, will stay outside. Eli Ricks?

Hall could win the spot. At the least, he provides depth and competition. He’s spent most of his career in the slot. Hall has played in 31 career games and has 6 starts so he’s got some experience.

Mustipher is 6-4, 318. He could be depth at NT. The Eagles needed depth on the DL so this is a good signing. Mustipher played in four games last year.

Noah Elliss is still on the roster as depth at NT. We haven’t seen much from him. Marlon Tuipulotu can play NT snaps as well, but he might be needed at the 4i spot to offer depth with Fletcher Cox gone.

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Reddick wants more money. The Eagles don’t want to pay him more. They are willing to trade him, but need some team to make a good offer. You don’t just give away a good pass rusher like Reddick.

If no team makes a serious offer, you wonder if Reddick will see that he’s overestimated his value. That’s not easy for players or their agents. The Eagles are stringing the situation out, hoping for a good resolution.

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