A quick re-cap of the latest headlines:

– The Falcons traded for Tony Gonzalez. All it took was a 2010 2nd-round pick. The Eagles were rumored to be in the mix by offering a 2009 3rd-round pick. I don’t see why the Eagles wouldn’t make the move when the pick wouldn’t even have to be dealt until next year’s draft. With Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, Roddy White, and Tony Gonzalez, the Falcons are looking pretty dangerous. If they add a few defensive pieces in the draft, watch out.

– The chance that the Giants trade for Braylon Edwards is almost dead. The Giants don’t want to depart with their 29th pick and won’t give up Kiwanuka either. There’s now talk that the Giants may trade up to take Darius Heyward-Bey or will go with Hakeem Nicks with the 29th pick.

– Anquan Boldin is being shopped around and the Cardinals downgraded their demands. Now, they are willing to take a 2nd-round pick and “other considerations.” The Giants, Jets, and Eagles are all in the mix. I say trade Reggie Brown and the 2nd-round pick for him. Maybe even through in Juqua Parker to sweeten the pot. I love Juqua, but how many DEs do we really need? I expect Abiamiri and Bryan Smith to contribute big time this year.

– All I want is one thing tomorrow: KNOWSHON, KNOWSHON, KNOWSHON!

– What’s a pre-draft update without some pre-draft speculation and throwing out random names? If Knowshon is taken earlier than expected (let’s hope not), I say trade out of the 21st pick (maybe to the Giants so they can take Heyward-Bey), take the Giants 29th pick to take Donald Brown (or LeSean McCoy) and take the Giants 3rd-round pick. In round 2, TE Jared Cook may be our guy if he falls that far. If not, I would look for a CB, Utah’s Sean Smith and Vanderbilt’s D.J. Moore could be options. It may be a bit early to take Chase Coffman in round 2, let’s try to target him in round 3. If we get that extra 3rd rounder from the Giants, Oregon S Patrick Chung may be the guy we take in round 3 — watch these highlights — the dude’s half Jamaican, half Chinese, and is a beast — watch the dude block during an interception return — he lays out an offensive tackle!  Not only would we get a tremendous safety, but he can instantly contribute to special teams.  We could also take Chase Coffman in round 3 with the other pick. Sound like a good strategy? Who knows. I can’t wait to see what happens tomorrow.

Sheldon Brown Demands Trade [The 700 Level] — I’m so sick of pro athletes complaining over contracts.  You’re being paid 8 figures to do something you love.  When you sign a contract early in your career, you have to realize that your accepting financial security over giving up some money in the event that your talent hasn’t been fully reached.  It’s natural for the guy who signs a contract after you to get paid more money, especially if there is a high demand for that position.  Get over it.  Shut the fuck up, cash your $5 million check for one season, and play.  If you want to blame someone, blame your agent.

Now, I love Sheldon Brown.  I love his play on the field and I particularly love his blunt and candid interviews.  Good thing the Eagles said they will not entertain a trade whatsoever.  Asante and Sheldon could be the best CB tandem in the league.  Let’s hope this doesn’t blow up into a distraction this season.

Eagles Issue Statement On Sheldon Brown [The 700 Level] — Well said Eagles.

Eagles may trade up to draft Moreno [Bleeding Green Nation] — YES! Potential trading partners would be New Orleans at 14 or Houston at 15.  We need to make sure that we draft before the Chargers, Broncos, and Jets at 16, 17, and 18.  I’m wondering what the cost would be.  I don’t see the Eagles giving up the 21st and their 3rd-rounder to move up 6-7 spots to grab him.  Or maybe they would.  I would be extremely satisfied with Knowshon Moreno and Chase Coffman on Day 1 of the draft, but we’ll be without any 3rd and 4th round picks.  However, we will have 4 5th-rounders.  Would a deal of the 21st pick, a 2009 5th-round pick, and a 2010 4th-round pick be enough to move up to 14?  I don’t know.  Somebody go grab an NFL value chart and let me know what it would take to get a deal done with New Orleans at 14.

Possible Trade Bait [Inside the Iggles] — Could Juqua Parker, Omar Gaither, Reggie Brown be used in a deal?

Do we have to worry about Shawn Andrews? [Iggles Blog] — You know contracts are a bitch when you’re arguably better than your brother and your college roommate, but they’re both making more money than you.  Shawn Andrews signed a 10 year, $35 million deal back in 2006.  Do you think he’ll start speaking up about his contract?  When your undrafted college roommate (Jason Peters) is almost making twice than you and you’re a first-round pick, that could be pretty annoying.  Let’s hope Shawn is cool with it.

Nothing but praises for Peters from former NFL line coach and Peter’s mentor [Bleeding Green Nation] — The media also weighs in.

Walter Football DOES NOT like the Peters Trade [Walter Football] — The guy did give up 11.5 sacks in 13 games last year.  Let’s hope that’s because he missed some camp and was unhappy about his contract and that he returns to his 2006-2007 form.

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!

Before we get started, I just wanted to throw out a quick plug for my fantasy football rankings: Fantasy Links .INFO.  Definitely visiting that site before you start your draft.

The Eagles cut 12 players:

Kyle Arrington (CB),  Bam Childress (WR),  Jed Collins (FB),  Jason Davis(FB),  Therrian Fontenot (CB),  Michael Gasperson (WR),  Nick Graham (CB),  Jamal Jones (WR),  Mike Marquardt (DT),  Shaheer McBride (WR),  Jerome McDougle (DE),  Ryan Moats (RB),  Marcus Paschal (S),  Montae Reagor (DT), Justin Roland (LB),  Andy Studebaker (LB),  Pago Togafau (LB),  Kris Wilson (TE),  Scott Young (G)

This is how the final roster has shaped up:

Offense

QB (3) – McNabb, Kolb, Feeley
RB (3) – Westbrook, Buckhalter, Booker
FB (1) – Tony Hunt
WR (6) – Curtis, Brown, Jackson, Avant, Baskett, Lewis
TE (3) – Smith, Celek, Schobel
OL (9)- Runyan, Andrews, Jackson, Herremans, Thomas, Cole, Jean-Gilles, Justice, McGlynn

Defense

DE (6) – Cole, Parker, Smith, Clemons, Howard, Abiamiri
DT (4) – Patterson, Bunkley, Laws, Klecko
LB (6) – Gocong, Bradley, Gaither, Jordan, Mays, Boiman
S (5) – Dawkins, Mikell, Considine, Reed, Demps
CB (4) – Samuel, Brown, Sheppard, Hanson
ST (3) – Akers, Rocca, Dorenbos

Reaction:

Jerome McDougle — Most of Eagles Nation was surprised/disappointed to see Jerome McDougle let go.  In the past few seasons he’s been getting a lot of heat for not living up to the expectations of a 15th overall pick; however, it was not his fault for an unfulfilling career.  He’s had a series of unfortunate injuries and was shot.  This season, on the other hand, it looked like McDougle might be able to revive his career.  McDougle registered 2.5 sacks in 4 preseason games and it seemed that he had his motor and burst off the line back.  The Eagles decided to cut him though and it seems like the Giants will be eager to add him to their roster after losing Umenyiora for the season.  I think this was a poor move by the Eagles.  The Eagles could have placed Abiamiri, who recently received surgery on his hand, on the IR or they could have placed Bryan Smith on the practice squad.  Instead, the Eagles have a plethora of undersized DEs, which leaves Juqua Parker as the only viable option opposite of Trent Cole (until Abiamiri is back).   I don’t see the point of carrying both Chris Clemons and Bryan Smith — they will both have pretty much the same role on defense.  It will take weeks before Abiamiri is able to return.  I just don’t see the logic in this move.  My only hope is that the Eagles are pretty certain that Abiamiri’s hand has healed well and that it will be only a few weeks until he can get onto the field.

Tony Hunt – Hunt landed the starting FB role.  Jason Davis got cut.  Hopefully, Hunt will be able to pick up things at FB pretty quick.  He’s never played the position before and during an interview, he didn’t seem too pleased about transitioning to FB, but that’s what it is going to take to make the roster, so he should be pleased with that.  He performed well during the preseason, but still remains the #4 RB on the depth chart.  I think Hunt will do well at the position.

Kris Wilson –  I expected Schobel to be cut and Wilson to be the Eagles 3rd TE, but the Eagles opted for Schobel.  Not a huge deal, but something most of us expected to go the other way.

Andy Studebaker – I was surprised they let him go.  I figured he would be placed on the practice squad.  I was impressed with what I saw from him, but I guess the Eagles didn’t think he could be anything more than a special teamer.

Joe Mays – Joe Mays made the active roster and he was very deserving of the roster spot.  The guy was a total tackling machine this preseason.  The guy had 30 tackles in 4 preseason games including 13 tackles (9 solo) in the preseason finale against the Jets.  The Eagles hit the nail on the head with this draft pick.  The guy gets to the ball fast and makes great tackles.  The one aspect of his game that will have to improve is shredding blockers.

Quintin Demps — Another phenomenal draft pick by the Eagles.  I get excited every time I’m about to see Demps return a kickoff.  The guy can go from 1st gear to 5th gear in a heartbeat.  He runs over kickers.  He’s great.  He had a kickoff return for a touchdown against the Patriots and had several excellent kickoff returns against the Jets.  In the game against the Jets, Demps had 4 kickoff returns for 137 yards (34.3 yard average and his longest return was 51 yards).

The Eagles played preseason game #2 and here are some game notes.  I missed the 1st half, but what a game it turned out to be in the 2nd half: a come from behind win — 24 unanswered points — 24-13.  From what I saw from the 1st half highlights, it was uneventful, except for a botched field goal attempt by the Eagles that ended up in 7 for the Panthers.  Carolina was up at halftime 10-0.  The Eagles made a 2nd half comeback with Kolb leading the way to a 17-13 lead.  The Eagles then tipped a QB pass in the final minute of the game and it was picked it off by Justin Roland for a TD.  Here are some notes from the 2nd half:

– Kevin Kolb: I love the guy.  His stats don’t really “woo” you, but here’s what I saw.  Scratch that, he ended up with 155 yards and a TD in one half.  The guy throws darts on the field.  He has a great command of the offense, he plays fired up, he plays with passion — he’s a winner.  He has great awareness in the pocket, he steps up at the right time, and he makes the right throw — on a bullet.  He had an INT, but it wasn’t his fault: he threw a bullet to DeSean Jackson and it went through his hands, and ended up in the hands of the defender behind him.  More on DeSean Jackson next.  To reaffirm what I said about Kolb: he just threw a beautiful deep pass to Greg Lewis in the left corner of the end zone — touchdown, 7-13 — just text book.

– DeSean Jackson: He was definitely the #1 target with the second team.  2 mistakes from the rookie: he had a fumble and gave up and INT by not getting his hands on the ball.  Hopefully,  we get those mistakes out of the way early.  He has the great ability of catching short passes and turning them up field for big yards: he just caught a short ball and turned it into 9 and he ended up with 4 catches for 32 yards the last time I saw the stat tracker.  He looks good out there, except for giving up the INT, but as mentioned before, that pass was a bullet.  As I write this, another short pass to DeSean for a first down: 7 catches 70 yards — that’s 3 catches and 28 more yards in a matter of about 3 minutes: this guys is going to be good.  He will have to put on weight though, and that will come.

– Jerome McDougle: McDougle started out with a sick sack in the 3rd quarter: the first and only (as of now).  The guy has his motor back.  He is clearly playing for his job and it shows.  If he keeps playing at this pace, I wouldn’t be surprised if he overtakes Juqua Parker for the starting job.

– Lorenzo Booker: Booker got a few touches.  He got gobbled up a couple times, but he was able to break a really nice run for 17 yards.

– Hank Baskett: Baskett had a chance to convert on a deep ball from Kolb but he was forced out of bounds by a defender and couldn’t secure the ball before being run out of bounds.  I’m a big Baskett fan: I think he’s the best #4 receiver in the NFL.  Baskett and Kolb hooked up deep later towards the end of the 4th quarter to make a push to win the game.

– Sav Rocca: Beautiful punts from the Aussie.  I want see him start hitting some people.

– Lito Sheppard: He got a pick.  Is a healthy season too much to ask?

– Tony Hunt: I love the way he runs: he’s straight down hill.  3:00 minutes left in the game and he takes it 50+ yards to the house for the 17-13 lead!!!

– Andy Studebaker: After the Eagles scored 24 unanswered points (led by Kevin Kolb), I saw Studebaker with a beastly tackle on special teams at the end of the game.  Great draft pick by the Eagles.  Great draft pick.

– Bryan Smith: The “smallish” small school DE that the Eagles drafted in the 3rd round seems to be worthy of the selection.  He had 4 tackles in the game and looked good on certain plays.  He doesn’t look incredibly small on the field.  He reminds me of Trent Cole.  Another brilliant draft pick by the Eagles.

– Tackle Leaders: Bradley (5), Arrington (5), Mikell (4), Demps (4), Bryan Smith (4)

Let’s Go Birds!  Is it September 7th yet?  At home against St. Louis — I expect at least 35.

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.