The total numbers for Westbrook's deal haven't been disclosed, but some information on the deal has become known, which I'll bullet point:
-- The contract came out to be a whopping 52 pages.
-- There is $13 million in "new money."
-- $13 million over the first two season is guaranteed.
-- Westbrook will make $21 million over the next 3 seasons.
-- Escalators based on individual performance and playoff appearances may raise his salary to $24 million.
-- Westbrook's 2005 contract was for 5 years and $24.9 million with a base salary of $11 million in the final 3 years of the contract and a $1.5 million signing bonus.
The Eagles are expected to announce Westbrook's new deal before they take the field against the Pittsburgh Steelers later tonight for their opening preseason game. Despite 3 years left on Westbrook's current contract, the Eagles, who are known to be sticklers when it comes to contract negotiations, have done was is right, and have decided to pay the man who set the franchise record for yards form scrimmage.
Owner Jeffrey Lurie acknowledged that Westbrook has "outperformed" his current 5-year $25 million contract, but what remains to be seen is how much Westbrook will earn with the new deal. Westbrook stated that he wants "L.T. money" -- the highest paid NFL runningback, who has an 8-year $60 million contract. I doubt he'll get that much, but he'll certainly be in the ballpark.
The Eagles released their 2008 depth chart, which you can view here.
Some interesting notes from the chart:
-- Lito Sheppard and Sheldon Brown are "co-starters" -- that may be a first.
-- DeSean Jackson is the #7 receiver on the depth chart, but I wouldn't
read too much into that: I expect that he'll be on the field for about 30% of the team's packages. Gasperson is ahead of him and I'm looking
forward to seeing what he can do.
-- Lorenzo Booker is going to return kicks and DeSean Jackson is going to return punts. Quitin Demps is the backup to both guys and then J.R. Reed is behind them. It looks like we'll finally have an explosive special teams. I'm setting the over/under for special teams touchdowns to 3.5. Any takers?
-- Quitin Mikell is ahead of Sean Considine at the start of the season
for the first time... it's about time the Eagles got that one right.
-- Juqua Parker is still holding on the starting spot opposite of Trent Cole. I was expecting Abiamiri to step up and take over the starting spot, but Abiamiri is set to have surgery on his wrist.
-- Schoebel is still ahead of newly signed Kris Wilson. Many expect Schoebel to get the boot when the Eagles brought in Wilson from the Chiefs in the offseason.
Via YouTube (yes I said via Youtube) Drew Rosenhaus pleaded with the Eagles to restructure CB Lito Sheppard's contract. This was a surprise to not only the Eagles management and their fans, but to Lito Sheppard himself. His current contract has Sheppard in Philadelphia til the end of the 2011 season. Rosenhous in an appeal on YouTube, announced to all who would watch, that he and Lito plan to pursue a contract renegotiation with Eagles management since they feel as though Lito's contract, like B-West's, is out of date and needs to be restructured due to how well Lito has played the last few seasons. No word on how seriously the Eagles are taking this online plea.
-- DT Trevor Laws is
back practicing in full contact drills. His foot injury seems to be a
thing of the past and the coaches are pleased with his play.
--
DE Chris Clemons was taken a local hospital near Lehigh University
after suffering from what was described as dehydration and heat
exhaustion.
-- DE Victor Abiamiri will have surgery on his
wrist. There is no timetable for his return. He has been competing
with DE Chris Clemons for the starting defensive end spot opposite
Trent Cole.
-- DT Kimo von Oelhoffen left practice with a “knee injury”. No other information was given on his condition.
-- TE LJ Smith left practice with calf injury and will be evaluated by team doctors later today.
--
DT Broderick Bunkley (shoulder contusion) and LB Rocky Boiman (leg
contusion) will sit out practice for an undisclosed amount of time.
A great return game in the NFL ensures that the offense will have a shorter field to work with to score points against the opposing team. Watching the Eagles’ offense last year, it became apparent that their explosive offense of years past was now incapable of scoring a touchdown, even while in the red-zone. Settling for field goals (3pts) rather than scoring touchdowns (6pts), usually leads to loses in today’s NFL. This is exactly what all Eagle fans saw last year- loses. To make matters worse, our special teams weren’t all that special. In fact, they were dismal. The opening day game last year versus the Green Bay Fudge-Packers was a perfect example of this mediocrity shown by the Eagles Special Teams. Rather than start the season with a great win at Green Bay, the Eagles Special Teams embarrassed themselves and their fans as they blew the game in the closing moments of the game by fumbling a kick return that would have most likely ended the game in their favor. From that moment on, the Eagles return game was at best shaky, making Philly fans nationwide squirm in their seats every time a member of the Eagles Special Teams squad was waiving for a fair catch.
This year the Eagles Special Teams coordinator, Rory Segrest, doesn’t anticipate having the problems of last year due to the two new faces he has chosen to run kicks back for the Birds this year. Although, the elusive and speedy DeSean Jackson was the obvious choice at punt returner, the position of kick returner was open to many players including Quintin Demps, JR Reed, Correll Buckhalter, Jamal Jones, and Lorenzo Booker. Out of this group of able returnmen, RB Lorenzo Booker in his second year out of Florida State seems to be emerging as the as the clear leader of the pack. Not only is he doing well on special teams, but on offense as well as the back-up to RB Brian Westbrook. In Monday’s practice, Booker broke a 60-yd touchdown run on a reverse play followed by some great returns on special teams drills. Similar to other great returnmen (i.e. Deion Sanders, Dante Hall, Devin Hester) both DeSean Jackson and Lorenzo Booker not only have speed, but great vision. Both players seem to be able to see space and creases very well, sometimes before these gaps to run in even occur. These intangible skills that both Jackson and Booker possess will give the Eagles a chance to put up six points every time they touch the ball without the offense even stepping onto the field. This indeed would be a welcome gift to the Eagles and their fans.
I purposely arrived late at camp today (around 8:30am) so that I could go through the trials and tribulations of parking far away and making the long walk with other Eagle fans to the Lehigh practice field. Today, Saturday July 26th, marked the first day that the entire Eagle team (including RB Brian Westbrook and CB Lito Sheppard) practiced in full contact drills in front of more than 15,000 passionate and die hard Eagle fans. As I sauntered through the crowds making my way to the main practice field where the offense was going through some drills, I stopped and talked to some of the Philly faithful about their thoughts on this glorious day. “I’m here with my boys to finally see some hitting. We have all waited long enough to see some football,” said Dave of Wilmington, DE. The nest was surely a buzz. Angela from Philadelphia added, “This is my first year ever coming to camp. It reminds me of a Woodstock-like concert. There are so many people here. My boys and husband are happy that they are able to see some of the new players on the team. This Eagles camp is probably the best professional training camp in the country. Don’t you think?”
Angela could not have been more right in her assessment of Eagle camp. Eagles training camp is not probably, but definitively the best NFL camp in the nation. Where else can you find passionate fans in the tens of thousands, driving up to 5 hours from their homes in places such as Virginia Beach (VA), Wilmington (DE), Lancaster (PA), Harrisburg PA), etc. just to see some guys they cheer for on weekends practice? I mean…we’re talking about practice. Not the game, not the game….but practice. (Thanks again for those words A.I., you are truly missed)
The first thing I saw as I reached the stands to watch the actual practice was Donovan McNabb throwing a dart across the middle to a cutting Hank Baskett in stride for a 15 yard gain. McNabb looked great and poised, and so did this year’s probable receiving corps of Kevin Curtis, Reggie Brown, Greg Lewis, Jason Avant, Hank Baskett, as well as new comers DeSean Jackson, Shaheer McBride, and Bam Childress. Not only that, but our secondary looked great as well. Led by Brian Dawkins, the corners and safeties also put in great work picking off and deflecting numerous passes from our QBs (this is not to say that the QBs played poorly). For example J.R. Reed made a great read on a McNabb to Curtis route and jumped the route to pick of Donovan and take the ball back 20 yards. This play was then immediately followed up by a delayed handoff to Brian Westbrook, who received a clamorous cheer from the gallery as soon as he touched the ball. B-West was cutting and weaving past the linebackers and headed directly for the secondary before he decided to get out of bounds on many of his touches. What followed was truly amazing. Fans began to stand and yell comments from the gallery such as “Don’t worry Brian, we will pay you”, “Don’t hold out on us Brian”, “We need you Brian”, and “We love you Brian” for about 3 minutes after his 7 second run. This got me thinking. Should the media saturate the airwaves with talk of holdouts by Lito Sheppard and Brian Westbrook (as once reported here by me) along with contract disputes, rather than talk about other more pressing issues (i.e. what to make of an offense who struggled to score touchdowns in the red zone) surrounding the team and the players who are content with their roles on the 2008 Eagle squad. So, to get an idea of what Eagle nation thought about this issue I decided to ask some fans for their thoughts on the subject and then relay their thoughts to you the reader. What I found was that there were two schools of thought regarding this matter. On one hand we had Eagle fans that were fed up and disgusted with the media who at times made more of these distracting contract issues then the players themselves did. Conversely, on the other hand we had fans that were adamant that contract “hoopla” is important for fans to know about and discuss as part of Eagle nation. “I’m tired of all this contract stuff,” complained Joe of Malvern, Pa, “If I hear that garbage on TV or the radio, I simply switch the station. Fans shouldn’t have to worry about that stuff.” When asked specifically about the B-West and Lito contract disputes Will of Lancaster, PA replied, “The media makes more of it than they do. It’s all infuriating.” Rob of Bethlehem, PA agreed with Joe and Will but also added, “All these NFL guys are way overpaid. I honestly don’t think any of them are worth even a million dollars. I mean, it’s a million dollars we are talking about here!” Not all fans, however, saw the media’s role as “distracting” to the real issue at hand; getting to the Super Bowl. “The players and the media are only as noticeable as the fans want them to be,” explained lifelong Eagle fan Nate L. of Sicklerville, NJ, “Take a look around. How many #5, #20, and #36 jerseys do you see walking around? We (the fans) all pay upwards of a $100 for tickets and jerseys and most other Eagle paraphernalia, and take more than 3 hours plus a week cheering on the team during the regular season. Don’t you think, especially in today’s economy, that that money could be spent in other places? But no, we the loyal Eagle fans see ‘being a fan’ in a different light. In a way, through spending our hard earned money on the Eagles franchise, we become shareholders of this company called the Philadelphia Eagles. When they win, we win. When they lose, we lose. It’s a mindset and a lifestyle each one of us has chosen. Therefore, when asked should the fans care about contract ‘stuff’ and the media’s role in telling us about that ‘stuff’, I think we the fans must have a say, and be fully briefed on what is happening. In a way, these players are being paid with our money.”
It was now 10:15am, and I turned away from the practice field to take a minute in the shade to reflect on what I had heard from you, the Eagle fans, and also gather my thoughts and then jot them down in a notepad. My attention was then suddenly taking away by the joyous yelping of young Bird fans playing in the designated play section located about 100 yards away from the practice field. Every little kid’s face I observed playing on the moon walk, participating in kick, pass and punt competitions, or simply eating Italian ice was one of delight and happiness. This is what it should all be about I thought, Happiness. These kids probably cheer our team, the Eagles, just as hard as you and I. When we (adults) concern ourselves with contract disputes, what player said what, and who is hurt or not, we take away the element of happiness from our lives. Rather than concern ourselves with the above mentioned distractions, we should all learn from the children and just enjoy. We have a great team and a great fan base, and that alone should make us all happy.
-- Jay Vaidya
(Thanks to every fan and person that took time out of their day to stop and talk to me. I learned a lot from you guys and appreciate it.)
QUICK EAGLE NOTES:
-- Shawn Andrews is still a no show at practice, citing personal reasons. There is no word on when he will arrive at Lehigh.
-- Asante Samuel’s practice was cut short when he re-aggravated his hamstring. This injury has plagued the $10mil a year Pro-Bowl cornerback ever since his arrival in Philadelphia. No further information was given about this injury.
Jay's Day 1, Morning Practice Review: A perspective other than Dave Spadaro.
Donovan McNabb/DeSean Jackson:
After viewing the Eagles morning practice today, I was pretty impressed with what I saw. I began the day, obviously, by watching Donovan McNabb in action to see how our franchise player looked. He began his practice by throwing some quick outs and flare patterns, followed by launching some deep balls to the rookie wide receivers including DeSean Jackson. I mention Jackson specifically, since his presence on the field was very apparent to the point that it almost seemed as though McNabb was targeting the first year rookie, out of California, during the drills. This is great to see since good QB/WR chemistry (especially with a rookie WR) is a huge factor in determining how well the offense will get things done this coming season. Although McNabb's knee injury seemed not to bother him, I couldn't help but notice the signs of rust from his shoulder injury that he and the team have been calling a "non-issue" during the QB drills. But it was not only me who felt this way. Perez and Jordan from Downingtown, Pa said, "He (McNabb) seems to be in the best shape we've seen him in the last three years. His arm strength was great, but his throws seemed to come out a bit wobbly". Jeff of Emmaus, Pa added, "Donovan looked to be in great shape and threw some great deep balls to DeSean Jackson. I must admit, however, that he wasn't throwing a very pretty ball". Like Jeff, I was a bit discouraged by #5's throws but was amazed by the pure speed and agility of DeSean Jackson. The only knock on the rookie today was the many drops I witnessed during his workout. Let's hope these drops only last another few days until he learns the "ins and outs" of Marty Mornhinweg's offense. Joe, a veteran Eagle fan from Philadelphia said of Jackson, "Although DeSean looked good and had some spectacular moves and catches, I'm afraid he's gonna turn out to be a 'hot dog' on the field". When asked what he thought about the Eagle QB situation Joe replied, "McNabb may have looked rusty, but that's normal. He is a proven veteran and leader and will be ready for opening day. But what really stood out to me, was how good Kevin Kolb looked. To me, he had just as much zip on the ball as Donovan, and at times seemed to outplay him (McNabb) and Feeley on this first day of training camp".
The Linebackers:
After watching the offense for a good 35 minutes, I got up and walked over to where the rookie linebackers were getting some work in. I must say that I was completely blown away by how good our young LB corp looks. The presumtive starters at the LB position include 2nd-year man Stewart Bradley, Omar Gaither and Chris Gocong, but any of the other six LBs could fill the void if one of the starters were to go down. The only problem I can think of concerning the LBs is that there is no possible way that we will be able to pay and/or keep all of these young studs, and will inevitably lose some of these guys to other contenders in the NFL that need help at the LB position. The Eagles must decide decisively and quickly which of these linebackers they need to keep around the huddle.
To conclude, practice ended a bit early, around 10:25am, just as the heat began to wear down not only the players, but the spectators as well. Afternoon practice is scheduled for 3:30pm.
Most of the premier players/starters on the Eagles' 2008 roster are scheduled to report to training camp at Lehigh University on Thursday July 24th. One familiar face's (Brian Westbrook) arrival is uncertain. As of early this morning Westbrook and his new agent have been in talks with the Eagle front office in attempts to get the 29-year old Pro-Bowler and team leader a new deal that would bring him more money upfront along with more years on his current contract. Eagle management has offered to give B-West more money upfront, but are hesitant to give the disgruntled runningback a contract extention. As a result, rumors have started to circulate around camp that Westbrook will be a no-show on Thursday, and will possibly hold-out the rest of camp until a new deal is reached.
In other news, CB Lito Sheppard is expected to arrive at Lehigh as scheduled on Thursday and will battle his friend Sheldon Brown for the other cornerback position opposite Asante Samuel, who was named a starter the day he signed with Philadelphia in the off season.
Even as the price of a gallon of gasoline nears $5 and heat indexes soar above 100 degrees in the Lehigh Valley, Eagle fans are once again expected to converge at Eagles Training Camp 2008 on the campus of Lehigh University in record numbers. Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the summer amongst the fans and the media is nothing new to Coach Andy Reid, who will be preparing for his 10th year as head coach of the Eagles. Yet controversy and concerns still loom amidst an anxious and eager 2008 Philadelphia Eagle squad before the pads even go on. As all of Eagle nation knows, six of Coach Reid’s past Eagle teams have found their way into the post season with limited success (aka one Super Bowl appearance) and four of them have forever been deleted from our memories (not to mention the lingering void from not reaching the playoffs in two of the last three seasons). This all of course is in addition to the salty taste and anger that has been brewing in Southeastern Pennsylvania ever since David Tyree’s “immaculate reception” in last year’s Super Bowl.
Topping the list of the afore mentioned concerns include the contract dispute of disgruntled Pro-Bowlers RB Brian Westbrook and CB Lito Sheppard, the health of Donovan McNabb, and rookies WR DeSean Jackson and DT Trevor Laws.
(1) To begin, both Westbrook and Sheppard have fired their current agents and have re-signed with different agents in order to gain leverage against Eagle management, since their previous representation could get nothing done during talks in their favor before training camp. At the “Welcome to Training Camp” press conference, Coach Reid made it clear that he has been in contact with Westbrook in the past few days, but has not spoken with Sheppard since the discontent cornerback skipped Organized Team Activities (OTA) last month. To me, although the Eagles can survive and thrive in a season without Lito Sheppard (a la Sheldon Brown), a season without Brian Westbrook would mean disaster. Let us all cross our fingers and hope that a Westbrook holdout is not in the near future.
(2) Moving to less turbulent news, Coach Reid also noted (as reported here at www.allphiladelphiasports.com by Zach Zawarski) that Donovan McNabb’s shoulder problems are now in the past. #5 has spent the last few weeks rehabbing his injury and training in Arizona (as he does every year) along with teammate Brian Dawkins and has been quoted as saying his shoulder ailment is a "non-issue". It is good to see the captain of our offense and the captain of our defense spending some of the offseason together butting heads in attempts to get the Eagles Team focused on another Super Bowl run. Once again, we should all pray that both these cornerstones of our team remain healthy for the duration of not only training camp, but the entire season.
(3) Finally, we move to the contract situations with rookies WR DeSean Jackson and DT Trevor Laws. It is my pleasure to report to you that as of July 21st both these explosive players, one on each side of the ball, have inked 4-year deals with the Eagles. (NOTE: DT Trevor Laws will likely miss a portion of training camp due to what’s described as a “foot injury”, however this injury does not seem to be a major concern to either Laws or the Eagles’ staff)
Near the end of his press conference, Coach Reid announced his new “30 Plus Club” policy. This policy is specifically targeted at older veterans (i.e. Brian Dawkins, Tra Thomas, and Jon Runyan) to keep them fresh and ready for the start of the regular season. Basically this means that after these players workout back-to-back days, they will receive the following next day “half-off” in order to relax, recuperate, and keep from getting fatigued in the intense summer sun. Players over 30 not included in the “30 Plus Club” include Donovan McNabb and AJ Feeley, since they wear the protective red jerseys, and don’t get as physically into the practices as the rest of the players do.
TRAINING CAMP SCHEDULE NOTE: Over the next three days, the Eagles will work out their rookies and some select veterans (27 in total), including throwing sessions with Donovan McNabb, AJ Feeley, and Kevin Kolb so that these select players are ready for when the pads go on this Saturday July 26th.
The total numbers for Westbrook's deal haven't been disclosed, but some information on the deal has become known, which I'll bullet point:
The Eagles are expected to announce Westbrook's new deal before they take the field against the Pittsburgh Steelers later tonight for their opening preseason game. Despite 3 years left on Westbrook's current contract, the Eagles, who are known to be sticklers when it comes to contract negotiations, have done was is right, and have decided to pay the man who set the franchise record for yards form scrimmage.
The Eagles released their 2008 depth chart, which you can view 
Via YouTube (yes I said via Youtube) Drew Rosenhaus pleaded with the Eagles to restructure CB Lito Sheppard's contract. This was a surprise to not only the Eagles management and their fans, but to Lito Sheppard himself. His current contract has Sheppard in Philadelphia til the end of the 2011 season. Rosenhous in an appeal on YouTube, announced to all who would watch, that he and Lito plan to pursue a contract renegotiation with Eagles management since they feel as though Lito's contract, like B-West's, is out of date and needs to be restructured due to how well Lito has played the last few seasons. No word on how seriously the Eagles are taking this online plea.
-- DT Trevor Laws is
back practicing in full contact drills. His foot injury seems to be a
thing of the past and the coaches are pleased with his play.
A great return game in the NFL ensures that the offense will have a shorter field to work with to score points against the opposing team. Watching the Eagles’ offense last year, it became apparent that their explosive offense of years past was now incapable of scoring a touchdown, even while in the red-zone. Settling for field goals (3pts) rather than scoring touchdowns (6pts), usually leads to loses in today’s NFL. This is exactly what all Eagle fans saw last year- loses. To make matters worse, our special teams weren’t all that special. In fact, they were dismal. The opening day game last year versus the Green Bay Fudge-Packers was a perfect example of this mediocrity shown by the Eagles Special Teams. Rather than start the season with a great win at Green Bay, the Eagles Special Teams embarrassed themselves and their fans as they blew the game in the closing moments of the game by fumbling a kick return that would have most likely ended the game in their favor. From that moment on, the Eagles return game was at best shaky, making Philly fans nationwide squirm in their seats every time a member of the Eagles Special Teams squad was waiving for a fair catch. 
From the Desk of Jay Vaidya
Jay's Day 1, Morning Practice Review: A perspective other than Dave Spadaro.
Most of the premier players/starters on the Eagles' 2008 roster are scheduled to report to training camp at Lehigh University on Thursday July 24th. One familiar face's (Brian Westbrook) arrival is uncertain. As of early this morning Westbrook and his new agent have been in talks with the Eagle front office in attempts to get the 29-year old Pro-Bowler and team leader a new deal that would bring him more money upfront along with more years on his current contract. Eagle management has offered to give B-West more money upfront, but are hesitant to give the disgruntled runningback a contract extention. As a result, rumors have started to circulate around camp that Westbrook will be a no-show on Thursday, and will possibly hold-out the rest of camp until a new deal is reached.
