BUILDING THE EAGLES ROSTER

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/04/02
Posted in: Conversations, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

 

jeff lurie and doug pederson.jpg

WHILE I myself have been critical of General Manager Howie Roseman during the first round of Free Agency, I did remind people (and myself), that it’s still early. There is no need to panic. Also, I have concerns about a number of holes left throughout the entire team. Not just at receiver.

There are a few sportswriters crying about the Eagles not getting QB Carson Wentz any new WR’s. They shook their heads about Roseman saying that the team internally, sees our WR position differently than people do from the outside, and that we have plenty of talent at receiver. I agree with his assessment, having written in support of our current receiving corp, back in early February, as one of my first article in The 12.

2019 Eagles WRs - Good luck trying to sleep

Hey! Remember a year ago when everyone was sure that WR’s Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson, and Nelson Agholor were going to torch the NFL? Remember a few months ago when the excuse was that Carson didn’t have Jeffery, Jackson, and Agholor? So wait. Now he’s getting Jeffery and Jackson back, and everyone is bummed about it? Are people really that upset about losing Agholor? Was he the difference maker? Is… Is that what this is?

Are people really upset that we didn’t get WR Stephon Diggs, who publicly threw his QB under a bus a few times? Are we really upset that we didn’t get WR Robby Anderson, a former Jet who’s not always proven to be coachable, and so had no serious suitors besides Carolina? Are we really upset that we didn’t spend 20 million on WR Amari Cooper, who has a well documented history of losing interest during games? In what way has Breshad Perriman proven himself the equal of either of our starters?

FYI: Trading for WR DeAndre Hopkins was do-able, but he wanted a new deal that the Eagles felt was outside of the team’s price range. Maybe something could have been worked out, but the Eagles want to get younger, and if we’re being honest, I’m not sure how Hopkins would have fit in the Audience Of One locker room, anyway.

AO1 carson_wentz .jpg

Make no mistake we have plenty of holes on Offense. Too many in fact, to obsess over any one position.

Depending on who you ask, LT is either solid for the next decade, or we have a bust waiting to be exposed and get our QB killed.

There is no insurance behind our starting RB.

If we don’t add some speed at WR, we’re one injury away from being where we were in Week 3 of 2018, and Week 3 of 2019.

Another veteran QB is an absolute must have. Preferably someone with a little mobility. Maybe signing FA’s Blaine Gabbert or Blake Bortles? A trade for Jacoby Brissette would also be a thing of beauty. (Though he would need his deal stretched out to five years.) Not to fuck over QB Nate Sudfeld, but you saw us last year. You can’t ever have too much talent at QB.

The Draft and the second round of Free Agency still lay ahead of us. Would it have been nice to have a few new, shiny pieces by now? Sure. Like I said, I’ve already said as much. But to whine and say silly shit like “Carson’s being hung out to dry.” That’s alarmist and stupid. Don’t be that fan. And ignore such rantings. 

WEAKENING THE EAGLES

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/03/24
Posted in: Coaching, Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Players, Rants, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

BDAWK.jpg

QUARTERBACK Carson Wentz’s leadership skills are not on trial here. I’m not questioning his ability to lead. So come on down off of that soap box. Don’t even get started. Deep breaths.

NBC’S John Clark wrote a story that I’m going to lift heavily from, because, well you’ll understand when you read it. In it he discusses why the Eagles really cut S Malcolm Jenkins. Check it out:

*****

But I think the biggest factor is changing the dynamic — turning this team over to their franchise quarterback Carson Wentz.

Jenkins was the leader. He was the voice of the team. He broke down the huddles. He was a very powerful voice in the locker room and a commanding and inspirational leader…

2019 Malcolm Jenkins pre-game

But you saw what Wentz was able to do this past season when the offense was ravaged by injuries at receiver down the stretch. “Carson and the kids.” He led them to the playoffs. He was free to be the leader with the younger receivers. They say he inspired them.

I believe the decision to let Jenkins walk is about changing the overall dynamic of this team so this is Wentz’s locker room.

I think it is similar to what the Seahawks did when they allowed Russell Wilson to take over the team and let go of powerful voices like Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Michael Bennett.

This is undoubtedly Wentz’s team now.

*****

We won’t get into how that worked out for the Seahawks. (Didn’t.) What we will discuss, is that at no point did it ever seem like Carson and Malcolm had the team chasing different goals. Both men were active in the community. Both promoted accountability, and didn’t throw teammates under the bus. So it’s seems more like the locker room lost a standard bearer, and a player who led by example.

2020BADTHING

What I’m questioning is, whether or not the Eagles are invalidating Carson’s leadership, with their artificial attempt to prop it up. Removing other leaders from the locker room, in order to magnify Carson’s voice, could very easily have the opposite effect, and make him look less like a leader, and more like the team’s mouthpiece.

Remember when other Eagles players called QB Donovan McNabb a “Company Man”? It wasn’t a compliment, was it? Being Managment’s guy, didn’t help him lead did it? In fact, it was sort of a barrier between he and his teammates, wasn’t it?

Now let’s take the situation with Carson and WR Alshon Jeffery. If the Eagles brass attempts to solve a rumored interpersonal rift between Carson and Alshon, by removing Alshon, it makes it seem as if Carson couldn’t “handle his own huddle”, and had to tell the teacher. Which makes Carson look like a weak leader. On top of costing Carson his most productive WR.

carsonwentz_camo

The locker room damned sure doesn’t need a bunch of suits meddling in their chemistry. The Eagles need to leave Carson’s leadership to Carson. Let the man do his thing.

You know what!? I’ll do you one better! If it’s truly going to be Carson’s team, then let him pick his new WR this year at the NFL Draft! Let the locker room see him wield that kind of juice. (Let Alshon see that.)

In the meantime, we should be about the business of adding strong players, and voices to the team, not subtracting them. Not all players (especially defensive ones) will relate to a QB, and having him as the only voice, risks losing resonance with part(s) of the locker room.

Removing Jenkins like this was bad for Karma. Owner Jeffery Lurie refuses to learn this lesson. This is is Reggie White all over again (11-5 in 1992 to 8-8 in 1993). This is Brian Dawkins all over again (NFC Championship game in 2008 to Wild Card in 2009). This is Terrell Owens all over again (Super Bowl in 2004 to 6-10 in 2005). We always pay for this immediately.

Do you see how we did Jenkins and LT Jason Peters (also a powerful locker room voice)?

We will pay for this in 2020.

EAGLES HOLES ARE FUCKIN’ UGLY

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/03/22
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Defense, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), Players, Roster. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

doug pederson water bottle presser 2020

WE have a hole at starting SS. We have a hole at starting MLB. We have a hole at starting OLB. We have a hole at starting CB. We signed a career back-up SS. We signed a career back-up Nickel LB. It’s still early in the offseason, but still, it would be great to not have so many exposed holes.

Look I get it. We can find quality free agents after the Draft. We did it before, with players like RB LeGarrette Blount, This makes Eagles brass feel good about being late shoppers. But I want to show you something. Look at the 2017 signing dates of the free agents we brought in that year:

2017 free agents

To quote the poet, Bubba Sparks: “How else can I say it? I don’t speak no other languages?”

That chart is as clear as you can make a thing. If you want an impact player, you generally have to get him before the draft. That’s just common NFL knowledge. It’s also basic economics. The law of supply and demand. The demand for impact players is high, and so the supply of them will quickly run out.

This leaves us hoping for huge contributions from our rookies. Because we’ve been great at developing those, right? Look, we don’t have to sign a ton of expensive veterans, but a couple of pivotal ones? To fill important holes?

Put another way, at certain positions we’re just standing and watching everyone else buy up all the Charmin. Maybe GM Howie Roseman feels really good about those boxes of dot matrix paper he just bought, but a quick look at the situation, says that our holes are in for some rough times ahead.

dot matrix paper.jpg

For all the gas the Eagles talk about being a “win now” team, and wanting to “be competitive every year”, they certainly have all the ear-marks of being about to take a year off. This feels like an outright re-build.

“It’s fuckin’ ugly.”

WHAT’S THE PLAN HOWIE?!

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/03/21
Posted in: Conversations, Defense, Draft, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFC East, Offense, Players, Rants, Roster, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Howie Roseman USAToday.jpg

That’s our kick-ass GM Howie Roseman. This guy, is a friggin’ GENIUS!

THIS so far, has been a nightmare. So far there doesn’t seem to be a plan. When we left the 2019 season we had obvious holes to fill, and things to strengthen. So get to it, right? Instead what happened, was our GM Howie Roseman, created more holes and has so far left them empty.

Some fans may have been placated by Howie trading for 30 year old CB Darius Slay. That said, I think many will acknowledge that a week earlier, no one was talking about Slay. Everyone (except me) seemed to want CB Byron Jones. As it stands now, Nobody’s First Choice, is thus far Howie’s crowning achievement of 2020.

Six weeks ago (going by talent on rosters), the NFC East was in the bag for the Eagles. Then our GM began just ripping shit up. Got rid of our only complete LB (OLB/MLB Nigel Bradham), a future Hall or Famer (LT Jason Peters), a perennial All-Pro (SS Malcolm Jenkins), the roster’s only down hill runner (RB Jordan Howard) and our leading receiver in Super Bowl 52 (RB Corey Clement).

card.corey.clement

Howie has left us thin at all of those positions now, and he hasn’t even brought in unproven players to fill those holes. What did we add to our roster you ask? Well shit, let’s take a look!

We got the aforementioned 30 year old CB, a NT (Javon Hargrave) for our 4-3 defense, in a Wide Nine system. We also got a… a… um…

Fuck! Just fuck, man! Fuck! The fuck is he doing, man?! I just want to… All he had to do was… I’m gonna go upstairs, put my head under my pillow, and blow my fuckin’ brains out!

Wait! Better idea.

head in oven.jpg

But it’s no time to panic.

It is after all, still early in the process, and with everything being pushed back a bit, due to a public health concern (WINK!), it theoretically gives the Eagles Front Office more time to weigh all the options. The problem with theoretically, is that other teams are making moves in real-time, which removes some of the options, off the board.

Raise your hand if you’d have liked a serious run at trading for WR DeAndre Hopkins.

How about QB Nick Foles for a 4th rounder (like Chicago paid)? Foles is re-doing his deal so that the Bears can afford him. So, you know. Yay. I’m happy for the Bears. Hey, if you can’t see my eye twitch, or hear the bitterness in my tone, then you might assume that I took that trade in stride.

Hey! CB A.J. Bouye for a 4th rounder (like Denver paid), would have  also been nice.

How about signing free agents like MLB Joe Schobert or LB Cory Littleton?! RB Lamar Miller is still out there (coming off an ACL injury) and waiting for a committee role.

Don’t even get me started about us not re-signing Bradham (still unsigned), Peters (still unsigned) Jenkins, Howard, or DE Vinny Curry (still unsigned). Rumor has it that the Jets are interested in Vinny.

too much stress.jpg

I understand the idea of getting younger. I understand the idea of leaning on the draft. What I don’t understand, is the inactivity. What I don’t understand, is what we’re waiting for. What I don’t understand, is the plan.

Howie Roseman USAToday.jpg

UGH! Look at this idiot’s face. What’s the plan?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MY TEAM!?!?

EAGLES TRADING FOR NICK FOLES.

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/03/05
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Draft, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), Offense, Players, playoffs, Roster, trade. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

QUARTERBACK Nick Foles is up for trade by the Jacksonville Jaguars. The two questions I keep hearing and reading are “Should we trade for Nick Foles?” and “Do you want the Eagles to trade for Nick Foles?” Funny thing is, many fans treat those like they mean the same thing, but really those two questions are a million miles apart.

player-nickfoles.534

Should we? Yes. The Eagles need a back-up QB with Josh McCown unlikely to be back. If we bring in another QB, it should be someone who fits the system, and culture. Someone the roster can rally behind, if our starter gets hurt. Foles meets those qualifications better than anyone else we could put in that #2 slot. In fact, Foles meets those qualifications even better than QB Tom Brady could. And I dare you to argue with that.

Do I want it? Yes. I want anything that obviously helps us be stronger. In January, we watched McCown get hurt and still keep the Eagles in a playoff game. Given that McCown was able to do as much as he did, there is no way that you can convince me that

A) if QB Carson Wentz doesn’t get cheapshot, we still lose that game.

B) if Foles (being more familiar with the roster) stepped in instead of McCown, that we still lose that game.

2019 Josh McCown

Eat a dick Clowney.

NOTE: This is not to say that McCown lost that game for us. Far from it. The guy was a gamer for us, and was a hell of a teammate. It would do me proud to see him in midnight green in 2020.

That all having been said, Foles coming here is out of the question, right? We can’t afford him, right? Sit. Have some tea. It’s Blood Orange. Outside the box tea, for outside the box thinking.

The deal that he’s on in Jacksonville? He was never going to be a Jaguar past 2021. Media types were saying that while the ink was still drying on the contract. Only 50 of the 88 million was ever guaranteed, and after 2020 the Jags can either cut Foles and eat 12.5M in dead money, or pay Foles the remaining 53.875 million over two years.

Bottom line: After 2020 Foles is owed just 12.5M if he’s cut. Letting him keep his roster spot exposes the Jags to owing him more money. So he won’t be there under any circumstance in 2021.

Just over a year ago (2/21/2019) I wrote “WHY NOT KEEP NICK FOLES?”. In that article I proposed 50M over 5, with 3 years guaranteed. Putting my GM hat back on a year later, I’d up that ante. 50 over 5, with every red cent guaranteed, with retirement being the only caveat language. If he (or his wife Tori) wants a no-trade clause, add it.

Next to the CBA (whenever it gets done) that’s an easy lift for a ringer in the #2 slot. It guarantees Foles stays until he’s 36 – 37, and basically retires him as an Eagle. A quick call to his agent Justin Schulman, will determine if Foles is amenable to reworking his deal. If so, we need to make the trade.

Wentz Foles

What about Carson!? (Shrug) What about him? If he and Foles truly have a great relationship, he should welcome it. If he secretly doesn’t want Foles to steal his spotlight, then the next time he volunteers to go into a tent, there should be s’mores involved. “With your shield, or on it.”

But what do we trade them? Hold on. Let’s understand the terrain before we travel any further. Trading Foles is a salary cap purge for them. As I outlined in that article from last year, most teams already have their prospective QB of the future. Thus, trading for Foles is asking for a back-up with an eight figure per year, price tag. Throw in a decent QB Draft pool, and the trade partners get really slim for Jacksonville.

How about we dangle DE Derek Barnett? Unless he has a monster 2020, we’d be silly to pick up his fifth year option after 2020. With them possibly losing DE Yannick Ngakoue, this patches a hole for them, with youth that may have more upside in their system, than in ours.

In fact, since they lost CB A.J. Bouye, I’d sweeten the pot by offering Barnett and CB Sidney Jones. I think Jones has more upside than most fans here do, but I think his confidence will always be an on/off switch. Better to broom him before we have to make any sort of tough financial decisions regarding him.

FAP DUDE

Admit it. You LOVE the idea.

So we offer something we can’t use, for something they can’t use. We do it before the Draft, so everyone knows what they need to replace as early as possible, and in the process give each other some cap relief, in the time-frames where we each need that space. Afterward, we rework Foles deal to be worth 50M not just 12.5.

0-card.nick.foles.SBMVP

Like I wasn’t going to include this.

As I said, these are two very different questions. BTW: If we don’t get Foles, it would be wise to make a push for Jacoby Brissett, and offer him that same 50 over 5 deal. 

BRINGING BACK JASON PETERS

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/27
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Front Office (F.O.), Offense, Players, Roster, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

ANDRE Dillard is the Eagles future at LT, and the future should start this season. Still, it would be a smart move to bring back Jason Peters as a starter as well. (Note: I started this article the day before Head Coach Doug Pederson said that he’d like to have Peters back. I nearly didn’t release this, but since Doug and I have different reasons for bringing him back, I decided to voice my side.)

jason-peters-1

I’ve been saying for years now that if Peters were to move to LG, it could add Pro Bowl caliber years to his career. I’ve said that for years, and even with him being 38, if he kicks inside, his rare issues with edge speed, completely disappear. Those instances where LG Isaac Seumalo finds himself forklifted into the QB’s passing lane, would also disappear.

Moving Peters inside means we get a powerful, mountain of a man, still quick, and still able to play in space. It means a Hall of Fame caliber mentor, playing beside Dillard. It means we get a Hall of Fame caliber back-up at LT, if we need it. Imagine: A HOF caliber, back-up.

Money? Peters played for 9 million dollars last year. Some people would say that he should be paid less if he plays G, but why dick him around? Is haggling over a 3 or 4 million dollar difference, really worth risking having to see him in a Redskins jersey? Certainly not. Just “overpay” him at G, which is easy for both the team and he to agree to.

card.jason.peters

This needn’t be an exercise. Three years, 18M, 9 guaranteed, with a signing bonus of 9M. That’s a 27M cap hit, spread over three years. Build the contract with the third year being a false floor, with a $0 salary, and of course amortize the whole shebang. That breaks down as:

2020: 9M base/3M bonus (Only year with a guaranteed base salary)

2021: 9M base/3M bonus

2022: $0 base/3M bonus

This means that if we don’t bring him back in 2021, or he retires, the team is just on the (dead money) hook for the 6M in bonus money. Everybody walks away happy.

If the move adds two years to his career, then he’s ours at a rate so affordable, it’s practically stealing. If he and the team decides to do a third year, then “restructure” his deal by moving the remaining 3M of his signing bonus to his base, and give him a final restructure bonus of 12M.

At that point the new CBA will be in place, and that 12M will be like a final high-five to an All-Time Great. But what do I know? I’m not a GM. LOL

Jason. Peters. Savage.Burn

FUCK ROOB. KEEP ALSHON.

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/24
Posted in: Conspiracy Corner, Conversations, Fans, free agents, Front Office (F.O.), NFL, Offense, Players, Rants, Roster, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

NBC’S Reuben Frank put out a steaming pile of bullshit, that called Alshon Jeffery a James Thrash clone. In it, he compares some “average season” stats, and delivers it with absolutely no context. When I see this from professional journalists, I want to just…

.Bernie bitchslap

On one hand, it assumes the reader is smart, because it attempts to persuade with statistics. On the other hand, it assumes we’re stupid, because it talks as if We The Fans haven’t watched both men play, and don’t get what’s going on here. (I’ll get into that in a minute.)

I’m guessing “Roob” either knows he’s full of shit, or he doesn’t do his homework:
1) Over the three seasons Thrash was here, he was QB Donovan McNabb‘s #1 targeted receiver.
2) Over the three seasons Jeffery has been here, he’s been QB Carson Wentz’s #2 targeted receiver.
3) As you can clearly see below, Jeffery has outproduced Thrash despite being fed the ball less:

Roob shut up

Here’s what’s going down. This is the Eagles using a beat writer to drive the opinions of pinheads, who’ll call into WIP, and parrot whatever they read that morning. The idea is to promote the perception that “the public” wants to cut Jeffery, so the Eagles then can do it with less backlash, even if they don’t already have a suitable replacement.

Kind of like the dumb shit they did with cutting LB Nigel Bradham. Even I was surprised by the level of public backlash on that one. I figured Eagles fans would scarcely notice it, but nope. Boy did you! So this is likely the Front Office telegraphing the move, and trying to manipulate the perception that we fans want this. Some do. Most don’t. 

alshon

I already said in THE 12, that we should keep Jeffery, letting he and DeSean Jackson help groom the kid we draft this year. Developing youth is the way to go here. Let me go on record now, and say that our options for moving Jeffery are likely worse than what we have already.

The flavor of the week is Minnesota’s WR Stephon Diggs. I find it hilarious that the idea is to replace Alshon’s attitude, with Diggs’ history of attitude issues, publicly criticizing his QB, and requesting to be traded. Here’s a link for those who didn’t know.

Some of you want to hamstring our salary cap, by paying Cowboys WR Amari Cooper 20 million or more per year. Amari has a terrible habit of losing interest during games, and whole chunks of the season. Remember our last game against them, where the Cowboys coaching staff benched him on he last play of the game (a CB Sidney Jones deflection in the end zone).

2019 Sidney Jones

But we need to swap Jeffery out for this guy, right? 

Someone also mentioned WR Breshad Perriman. In 5 seasons he’s played in just 51 games out of a possible 80, with just 10 career starts, while never starting more than 4 games in any year. While he’d be nice to have in camp, and maybe keep as a 4th, he’s by no means a 16 week starter.

Free agent WR Robby Anderson? Former Temple player. I could kind of see this one. But odds are, the Jets would overpay Anderson to keep him and provide consistency for their young franchise QB. 

There are other names: A.J. Green, Emmanuel Sanders, both older. Reclamation projects like Josh Gordon and Devin Funchess. Or scratch-off tickets like DeMarcus Robinson, Tajae Sharpe, or Laquon Treadwell. 

lottery loser

Instead of Jeffery? Really? These guys are who we hand to Wentz, and then expect more from him? That dog don’t even hunt. 

No. Don’t let these beat writers tell you different. Alshon Jeffery is no James Thrash, and will be harder to replace than you think. Much harder. Especially given that WR Nelson Agholor won’t be back. (Forgot about that, huh?) That would force Wentz into learning an entirely new WR corp.

Nah. Keep Jeffery and let him help train the pup we draft. 

Eagles wings

#12 STARVE THE KIDS

Posted by The BEAST on 2020/02/21
Posted in: Coaching, Conversations, Defense, Offense, Players, Rants, The 12. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

THE 12 2020.12

ROOKIE LT Andre Dillard was drafted knowing that he was taking a spot from a Hall of Fame caliber player. As a rookie, DE Derek Barnett split time with veteran DE Vinny Curry. QB Carson Wentz was expected to be our savior, and started Week 1 in 2016. in 2019 RB Miles Sanders was given heavy duty well before he was ready. CB Sidney Jones spent his rookie year hurt, but as soon as he was healthy he was expected to take a spot.

Imagine if JJ Arcega-Whiteside and another rookie WR were told on the first day of camp “Only one of you has a chance to make this team. We will keep the best one. The other one will likely never play another down.” After that, make the survivor wait until Week 4 or 5 to see a single down in the second quarter. That’s how you makes downs and targets count to him. 

Instead, JJAW played Week 1. Week 2 he made 1 catch for 4 yards out of 4 targets. Week 3 he started and made 1 catch for 10 yards on 3 targets. You see the wasted opportunities? That’s heavy action in the first three weeks. That’s 7 targets, 2 catches and 14 yards.

Mike Bolton Office Space disgusted

Eagles coaches have a tendency to do this with draft picks. The coaches give them time on the field, instead of making them fight for it. That needs to change. There needs to be a dogfigh-

mike vick

Sorry Mike. Young players should be made to compete for their opportunities. We need to pit the rookies against each other to make ‘em mean! Feed downs and starts to the winners, and as for the losers…

human slingshot

Because God made us MEN, that’s why

Honestly, I can’t tell you the last time the Eagles had a rookie that made me say “DAMN! That fucker is hungry!” Honestly, when was the last time you said that, or something similar about an Eagles rookie? Not “He’s talented”, but “He’s hungry”. That a guy was making the most of every snap that he got.

If you don’t work, you don’t eat. That needs to be our credo. We need to start raising our rookies that way.