I love the way the first day of the draft went. I was very surprised. I wanted Knowshon Moreno. I was pissed when he went to the Broncos. In my opinion, the Broncos should have focused on their defense, which was ranked in about the bottom 4 last year. No worries though, the Eagles got a true game-changer in Jeremy Maclin. He should have been a top 15 pick, so I’ll gladly take him at 19. Can you imagine the Redskins, Cowboys, and Giants trying to defend a 3 WR set of DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Kevin Curtis? If McNabb can’t find one of those guys open with THIS line, he has serious problems. I don’t want to hear another complaint out of #5′s mouth. It’s time to get it done McNabb.
Some people were upset with the Eagles pick in Maclin. Yeah, most of us wanted Moreno; he was gone, too bad, what the hell are you gonna do? Maclin will be a stud in this league! He is just like DeSean Jackson but bigger and more physical. He puts the Eagles receiving corp over the top.
To make things even better, we get a RB in round 2 and it’s none other than LeSean McCoy: a guy who easily could have been a late first, early second-round pick. I’ve graded Knowshon Moreno an A prospect and LeSean McCoy a B+ prospect, but there’s not much difference between the two. We have a RB that is elusive, quick, can make things happen with the screen play, and fits in perfectly with the Eagles system. Everyone was so obsessed with a RB in this year’s draft, it seems like we all forgot that we still have Brian Westbrook. Yes, Westbrook is coming off a knee injury and is 30-years-old, but he is still the #1 guy and I expect him to rebound this season to his 2007 form. We didn’t need a starting runningback, we just needed a #2 RB on our depth chart. Anyone who is comparing LeSean McCoy to Ryan Moats is crazy. McCoy will be much better than Moats.
Our defense has 10 starters returning, the 11th guy need not be named. There’s no need to worry about going offense/offense with the first two picks. The defense has plenty of bodies.
No more knocking the front office. They are not cheap and they know what the hell they’re doing. Trading down in the last two years has paid dividends and I am relentlessly optimistic about the 2009 season. McNabb must be thrilled with Stacy Andrews, Jason Peters, Leonard Weaver, Jeremy Maclin, and LeSean McCoy. Yes, I’m still pissed about them letting Brian Dawkins go, but it’s Dawkins who decided to leave for greener pastures. This team is ready for a Super Bowl. Let’s make it happen!
NFC East Roundup: No first day picks for the Cowboys. Ha! The Redskins got a gift with Brian Orakpo falling to them. The Giants had a pretty good draft too: WR Hakeem Nicks, LB Clint Sintim, and OT William Beatty on day one.
I always find what Walter Football has to say about the Eagles draft interesting. He usually throws some curve balls from what you’re used to seeing at other mock drafts. Let’s see who he has the Eagles taking with their first 5 picks:
21 – Robert Ayers – (DE) – Tennessee
28 – Alex Mack – (C) – California
53 – Duke Robinson – (OG) – Oklahoma
85 – Javon Ringer – (RB) – Michigan State
117 – Chase Coffman – (TE) – Missouri
It looks like he has a pretty good grasp on the Eagles needs: offensive line, running back, and tight end. His curveball: the Eagles taking Robert Ayers with the 21st pick. Here’s my reaction to his picks.
ROBERT AYERS: I don’t know if the Eagles will be targeting a DE early. It seems to me like the Eagles are happy with the way Victor Abiamiri is developing as he is sharing time with Juqua Parker, who also had a very solid season as well. On the other side of the line the Eagles have their stud Trent Cole, and then have reserves Chris Clemons and Bryan Smith, who they jumped on a bit early in the 3rd round of last year’s draft.
Ayers is a solid player. Here’s a link to his highlights and you can read up on his draft profile here. Ayers is currently ranked 17 on Mel Kiper’s big board and his stock is rising. I don’t think defensive end is a pressing need, so I would pass on Ayers to address a bigger need or would take Illinois CB Vontae Davis.
ALEX MACK: I previously wrote that the Eagles could target Duke Robinson with the 28th pick, but the Eagles could get their hands on him in the 2nd round and that’s what Walter has happening. There are some questions about his work ethic and Robinson may be a bit raw. Alex Mack, however, has been hailed as the best center prospect in the last several years. The Eagles could upgrade Jamaal Jackson and Alex Mack would be a great pick at 28. The Eagles signed Jamaal Jackson to a 7-year extension back in 2006, so they may not be thinking of adding a center and they also drafted Mike McGlynn in last year’s draft, who is able to play at center or at guard.
DUKE ROBINSON: Robinson could be available to the Eagles in the 2nd round so he may not be worth a 28th pick since he kind of has that “Winston Justice bust aura” about him. The best RBs are off the board as is TE Jared Cook, so boosting the line is the way to go the way Walter Football’s mock draft is playing out. Just to note: Walter has Wells going to the Jets and Knowshon to the Cards. They’re the only RBs taken in the first round of his mock draft. The Browns then grab Donald Brown at the top of the 2nd round followed by LeSean McCoy to the Giants a few picks after the Eagles are on the clock in round 2.
JAVON RINGER: I am a big Javon Ringer fan. He’s amassed over 3,000 yards rushing and nearly 500 yards receiving in his last 2 seasons and he scored 22 TDs last season. I’ve seen him play a few games live and he was tremendous. A very exciting RB to watch. I think he’s going to be a very solid back in the NFL. He ran a 4.42 at his Pro Day which is incredible. His style is very similar to Brian Westbrook, so he would be a great match for the Eagles since he is good at catching the ball out of the backfield. The Eagles don’t necessarily need to find a starter in this year’s draft, so they’re not going to kill themselves by passing on Knowshon Moreno, LeSean McCoy, and Donald Brown. Javon Ringer would be a great guy to plug in there when Westbrook needs some plays off or games off. Worth Watching:Highlights 1, Highlights 2, Highlights 3, and Highlights 4.
There’s really not a back in this draft that I don’t like. The Eagles will definitely draft a running back, probably not in the first round, but they will definitely add a solid RB at some point in the draft and I think that will come in round 3. In round 3, Javon Ringer would be my first choice, followed by Shonn Greene, and then Mike Goodson. I wouldn’t complain about any of them.
CHASE COFFMAN: Andy Reid said in an interview that he prefers tight ends who know how to catch first and foremost. He doesn’t necessarily care about blocking as much; he says his coaches can teach a kid how to block, but you can’t really teach a TE to catch — they either have those skills or they don’t. You can take that as a hint that Reid may not be thinking of taking Brandon Pettigrew with his 21st pick. Coffman would be a great TE addition in the fourth round. You have to love what NFL Draft Countdown says about him: he runs great routes, has a good burst off the line, has good hands, runs hard after the catch, does well over the middle, and is a fantastic red-zone threat.
FINAL REACTION: If this is how the Eagles draft ended up I would be very happy. We added a LDE. We boosted the offensive line with Alex Mack and Duke Robinson. We added a tremenous RB and TE in the later rounds. Instead of overpaying for a TE and RB early, we got quality guys in round 3 and 4. Well done. Less than 30 days until the draft and I cannot wait!
In my last article, I addressed the possibility of the Eagles drafting Maryland’s Darrius Heyward-Bey. I think the possibility of that happening is very slim. The Eagles could have their eyes set on Virginia OT Eugene Monroe, who is a lock to go in the top 10. However, according to the draft value chart, the Eagles could trade both first-round picks and a fifth-round pick to trade into the top 10 if they find a willing trade partner (Cincinnati at 6 and San Fransisco at 10 are possible trading partners). If the Eagles can make the move, I think they should do it. All the top tackles will be long gone by the time the Eagles are on the clock at 21 and they desperately need to find Tra Thomas’s replacement.
If the Eagles are forced to stay put, Darrius Heyward-Bey may go to the Jets (17), Bears (18), or Bucs (19), so it’s time to look at other some other options the Eagles have to boost the offense. Brandon Pettigrew would be ideal, but let’s go a bit deeper in the draft. Who could the Eagles target in rounds 2 and 3? I already posted an article praising the skills of Texas A&M RB Mike Goodson, who reminds me very much of Brian Westbrook with his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield.
Another guy you should get familiar with is North Carolina WR Hakeem Nicks. Nicks is 6’1″, 212 pounds. He’s not nearly as explosive as Heyward-Bey, so he’s not really a vertical threat, but he reminds me a bit of Calvin Johnson with his long arms, leaping ability, and great route running. He’s just a tremendous option for the Eagles in the 2nd round.
With Tra Thomas’s departure to Jacksonville, the Eagles have a huge need to address at the left tackle spot. We already know the Eagles have stockpiled draft picks. The Eagles have 12 picks in this year’s draft and they don’t intent to keep them all. The Eagles traded Lito Sheppard and Greg Lewis to acquire more draft picks that they can deal to either move up in the draft or use a combination of picks to go after Bills LT Jason Peters. Peters is a 6’4″, 340 lbs., 27-year-old LT with 6 years of experience. He would be a much needed addition if the Bills are willing to deal him.
Adding a veteran tackle like Orlando Pace is another idea. Pace was just released by the Rams. With all the recent injuries, I’m wondering if he’s serviceable at all, but if the Eagles have to draft a tackle, they will want to add a veteran as some “insurance.”
We know that the Eagles wanted a tackle in last year’s draft. Chris Williams was their guy. His stock skyrocketted in the days leading up to the draft and the Bears took him with their 14th pick. The next guy on the Eagles radar was Brandon Albert, but the Chiefs traded up to grab him before the Eagles could make their move to get him. This prompted the Eagles to trade out of the first round and they still got another guy that they wanted: DeSean Jackson.
Last year was much deeper at tackle than this year’s draft, so I’m wondering what the Eagles thoughts are this year on drafting a tackle. Jason Smith and Eugene Monroe should be locks to go in the top 10, so they are way out of the range for the Eagles to trade up. Andre Smith would be another top-10 lock if it wasn’t for his breakdown at the combine. Perhaps an impressive Pro Day will put him back at the top of the board and a team like Cincinnati could jump on him with their 6th pick. That would put Michael Oher as a potential guy the Eagles could target, but would have to trade up for.
We also know the Eagles want to get their hands on Brandon Pettigrew to fill the TE spot left by the departure of L.J. Smith. With the Eagles drafting at 21 and 28, I expect the Eagles to package some of their late-round picks with each of their first rounders to move up a few spots to secure Michael Oher and Brandon Pettigrew.
If the Eagles don’t find a trading partner and have to stay put and the top tackles are off the board, what do the Eagles do? Do they draft another position of need (RB) or do they go with the next best tackle? Who knows. William Beatty and Eben Britton are the consensus next-best tackles. The Eagles would also have their choice of Beanie Wells, Knowshon Moreno, or LeSean McCoy at pick 28, but the Eagles never draft a RB in the first round and RB is deep in this year’s draft. I wouldn’t be opposed to waiting until round 2 or 3 to grab a RB. There are great options in the later rounds. Iowa’s Shonne Green and NC State’s Andre Brown are good options in round 2, but I think the Eagles will have their eyes set on Texas A&M’s Mike Goodson as a 2nd or 3rd-round target. If the Eagles go OT/TE with their first two picks, I would definitely jump on taking Goodson with a 2nd-round pick. Goodson posted a 4.54 40-yard-dash at the Combine, but improved that to a 4.43 at his Pro Day. Plus, his skills at catching the ball out of the backfield have been praised, which is a prerequisite to be an Eagles RB.
Watching Material (Remind you of Brian Westbrook at all?)
When I said the Eagles should draft Knowshon Moreno if he miraculously happens to be available by the time the Eagles pick, some people loved the idea and others criticized it because “no runningback is worth a first-round pick” and the Eagles need a “big back.”Although a “big back” would be nice, an “extraordinary back” would be better. Do the Vikings regret drafting Adrian Peterson? No. Do the Cardinals regret passing on him? Yes.
I’ll throw another fact out there. How much do you think Marshawn Lynch weighs? I would guess that he’s about 230. At least that’s the weight at which he plays. Marshawn weighs 215 lbs. Knowshon is 207 lbs. and only 21 years old. Not a big deal.
Knowshon runs hard! Don’t give me the he can’t get a 3rd and 1. Knowshon is the next great back coming out of college. Knowshon is the Eagles’ Brian Westbrook v. 2.0, not Lorenzo Booker.
Any Reid finally got the memo to run the ball and look at what happened. Brian Westbrook had 4 TD’s. Of course the Cardinals defense isn’t anything close to the Ravens defense, but I’m just saying that Donovan McNabb is only as good as his running game.
I, among most others, threw Donovan McNabb under the bus after the Bengals game. Four turnovers in that game, another three turnovers to boot in Baltimore. That’s seven turnovers in seven quarters of football.
Was it all Donovan’s fault? No. The playcalling was terrible, the offensive line played poorly, the Eagles had no running game, and the wide receivers were dropping passes and not getting open. That still doesn’t take away the fact that Donovan McNabb should have won that game against the 23rd ranked defense. That was the worst game from McNabb that I have ever witnessed. Balls were thrown right to defenders, balls were thrown right into the ground 20 feet shy of a receiver. Balls were thrown 15 feet over receivers heads. Donovan was terrible.
Things didn’t improve much the next week at Baltimore and Andy decided to light a fire under McNabb’s ass to get him playing better. If McNabb still played at this poor level, there’s a young guy that we drafted #1 that we could throw in there.
The McNabb I saw against the Cardinals is someone I haven’t seen play all season long. He wasn’t the careless player who laughs when he makes a terrible throw. He had a little hustle in his step. Instead of being a statute in the pocket like he has been most of the year, he actually tried moving around a little bit and look at the results. McNabb finally played like his job was on the line. If there’s anything positive that came out of the benching of McNabb it’s that the pressure of losing his job is making him play with more passion and pride. That’s something that should have been in his head from the start.
Do I still want Kevin Kolb as the QB of this team? Let’s look at the facts. Yes, McNabb was incredible in 2004, but we can’t keep living in the past. It’s 2008 going into 2009 and since 2004, McNabb has suffered two very serious injuries, is now 32, has gained a bit of weight, has lost his best asset (his mobility), and hasn’t had a single season that’s close to earning him a trip to the Pro Bowl.
I’m willing to give Kevin Kolb a mulligan. Andy Reid threw him to the wolves. He had to go in relatively unprepared against the NFL’s best defense. If you expected him to go in there and play like Joe Montana, that’s delusional. Kolb made two bad interceptions and a critical one in the endzone, but let’s give Ed Reed a bit of credit. He is the best safety in the NFL and if I was playing Madden and saw Reggie Brown come across the endzone, I probably would have made the same call. Throughout that drive, Kolb was looking sharp and looked like he had a good grasp of the West Coast Offense. Kolb throws a very nice ball, he’s more mobile, but his decision making is obviously poor due to inexperience. I don’t think he’s going to end up being a bust. Kolb will be a very good player one day.
The Bottom Line: The Eagles are 6-5-1, which is last place in the NFC East, and unless they win every single game on the remainder of their schedule, they will not make the playoffs, something that McNabb has gotten to since 2004. Remember who the QB was the last time the Eagles made the playoffs? That would be Jeff Garcia. McNabb: 5-5. Garcia: 5-1. Garcia clinched a playoff spot, beat the Giants in the first round, and then lost to the Saints in the next round. The Saints loss wasn’t Garcia’s fault. He played great. The Eagles run defense lost that game. If the 2008 Eagles defense played on that 2006 team, the Eagles could have played the Colts in the Super Bowl.
I’m tired of McNabb costing us a playoff spot season after season. McNabb plays very good at times, but performances like last night are few and far between. Westbrook won that game for the Eagles, not McNabb. Unless McNabb can miraculously get the Eagles a playoff spot, the Eagles need to go in a new direction. I still love McNabb. He’s given us many great memories, but let me define insanity to you. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. McNabb hasn’t led the Eagles to the playoffs since 2004 and his time is running out. The Eagles need to take a new direction and that means a change at QB and at head coach.
Andy Reid’s Play Chart REVEALED [The 700 Level] — My favorite: Greg Lewis (Token Catch). Buckhalter (Let him on field 1-2 snaps). Baskett (Fade, use sparingly).
“I guess he felt his normal mild-mannered self wasn’t working,” linebacker Omar Gaither said. “With Coach Reid, when the volume goes up and he starts turning red, you start paying a little more attention.”
BRIAN WESTBROOK — Coach Andy Reid said Monday that Brian Westbrook (ribs) is “progressing” and has a chance to return after the Eagles’ Week 7 bye.
REGGIE BROWN – First a hamstring injury, then a groin injury. It doesn’t appear to be too serious and now he’ll have 3 weeks to get healthy again.
KEVIN CURTIS — He traveled with the team to San Fransisco, but was inactive for the game. Now that the Eagles have the bye week, I expect that he’ll be fully healthy and ready to go against the Falcons.
SHAWN ANDREWS — The latest word is that surgery on his back is not likely required and doctor’s are “optimistic” about it. After missing the last 4 games, and now with the bye week, I wonder if having him back in week 8 is a possibility. We’ll keep you posted when we hear more.
RECAP FROM ANDY REID’S PRESS CONFERENCE:
– Max Jean-Gilles – Shoulder sprain.
– Lito Sheppard – Hamstring strain.
– Tra Thomas – Foot strain.
– Reggie Brown – Groin strain.
– J.R. Reed – Ankle sprain. Hamstring strain.
– Brain Westrbook – Making progress with ribs.
– Shawn Andrews – Seeing 4th back specialist.
– Kevin Curtis – Making Progress.
– All players except Shawn Andrews should be ready for Atlanta.
At least we don’t have the only kicker in the league who is sucking. Apparantly the Saints’ Gramatica can give the other team 7 points and still leave 6 points off the board, but you also have to assign some blame to the offensive line on that block; he did make a 53-yarder; and a 46-yarder isn’t a gimme.
If there is one man that I want to blame the Redskins loss on, it’s this man: Andy Reid. You can spread the fault of the Chicago loss out on a lot of people, but this one pretty much falls on Andy Reid. The defense also couldn’t stop the Redskins at all. You think a little more gameplanning for Cooley would be made. Covering legit TEs has been the Eagles’ Achilles heel the last 3 years. How many 3rd down conversion did that guy have? And Clinton Portis is just a beast. Jason Campbell is also becoming a legit NFL QB. It’s sickening to think how much talent is in the NFC East. If the Eagles were in the North, South, or West, they would be a division winner. Ok, well maybe not the North, and the Bucs/Saints/Panthers/Falcons ain’t that bad, but the West for sure! Instead, a 9-7 record means last place in the NFC East and our loss tally is already at 3 without being a 1/3 of the way through the season and 4 tough division games left to play. I never thought the football blues would hit me this early in the season. It’s been hard. At least the 49ers, bye week, Falcons, and Seahawks are coming up. If we don’t go 3-0 in that stretch, major changes to this team need to be made.
Let me guess what words came out of Reid’s mouth in his press conference: “I have to do a better job at putting my players in a better position to win games.” You would think that with a 14-0 lead, you could put them in the right position for 3 more quarters and it starts with good play-calling instead of this shoddy BS that we’re seeing — especially in the red zone.
In other Eagles news, Brian Westbrook fractured his ribs during the Redskins game. For some reason, he hasn’t officially been ruled out of the 49ers game. If you play as a runningback in the NFL with fractured ribs, you are one tough son of a bitch. We’ll keep you updated on Westbrook as soon as we hear it.
I love the way the first day of the draft went. I was very surprised. I wanted Knowshon Moreno. I was pissed when he went to the Broncos. In my opinion, the Broncos should have focused on their defense, which was ranked in about the bottom 4 last year. No worries though, the Eagles got a true game-changer in Jeremy Maclin. He should have been a top 15 pick, so I’ll gladly take him at 19. Can you imagine the Redskins, Cowboys, and Giants trying to defend a 3 WR set of DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Kevin Curtis? If McNabb can’t find one of those guys open with THIS line, he has serious problems. I don’t want to hear another complaint out of #5′s mouth. It’s time to get it done McNabb.
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