1 hour ago, RLC said:

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Howie Roseman, the NFL's most aggressive general manager, parlayed eight trades into an impressive-on-paper draft.

One AFC scout lauded Roseman's haul, which reflected restraint. A team that typically prefers 300-pounders in the first round had high grades on at least eight offensive linemen yet took the first corner off the board in Toledo's Quinyon Mitchell. And to get defensive back Cooper DeJean at No. 40, before the Day 2 corner run ignited -- DeJean was the first of four straight corners selected in the second round -- was peak forecasting.

The Eagles found additional defensive value beyond DeJean. They will likely start him on the outside and see what he can handle from there, and are cognizant of giving him too many responsibilities too early, despite his versatility.

"[DeJean] is good at everything -- not sure he's elite in one area but his bust factor is really low," an AFC scout said.

Of Philadelphia's other defensive picks, the scout said, "[Defensive coordinator] Vic Fangio loves [third-round edge rusher] Jalyx Hunt. He's got some high-end traits. And even [sixth-rounder] Johnny Wilson is [physically gifted]. He's got major ability."

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There's still a lot to be determined, and he's shown nothing yet, but I don't know if you can risk Johnny Wilson being on the practice squad. He's going to flash, even if just a little in the pre-season. SOME team is going to be enamored by that and will snatch him up. He very well could never make an impact in the NFL, but not very often do 6-6 240 LB WR who can move fall in to your lap. 

9 minutes ago, Waiting4Someday said:

I’m not following why Ringo can play outside and Dejean can’t - they are both very similar physically including the perceived stiffness. Dejean went earlier as he is a playmaker displaying better instincts in coverage. Ringo is still very young, so he could certainly improve and compete (but I don’t see why he’s necessarily ahead).

I think the biggest difference between them is that in Ringo's evaluation, he was only an outside corner, whereas DeJean is projected to be able to play any position in the secondary.

So it's not that DeJean can't play outside corner, but more that, if he is average at corner, you may be giving up a really good safety by keeping him there.

46 minutes ago, austinfan said:

Ringo isn't pure projection, he was the best CB of the stable of rookies and second year guys last season, flashed real talent.

He needs more polish but the raw athleticism and size are there. Started for both Georgia championship teams. He lacks the fluid hips to stay with quick, agile WRs in man, but that's less of a problem in the Eagles scheme.

"Overall, Ringo struggles to stay in phase because of undeveloped technique and awareness, but he is a freaky and competitive athlete with the size/speed blend that NFL defensive coordinators covet."

Which is exactly what we saw. How much he can progress the next two seasons is an open question, but this is probably Slay's last season.

It's also worth noting that many had him as a safety in the NFL. We could be looking at an extremely flexible group of DB. 

2 minutes ago, Iggles_Phan said:

Because he played at UGA, and Dejean played at Iowa.     SEC bias.  

It would be great if Ringo pans out, as I like to get the best 5 DBs on the field and Dejean seems to have that CB/S versatility… but the CB room is full and these guys need to compete and see how they stack up. 

10 minutes ago, Waiting4Someday said:

I’m not following why Ringo can play outside and Dejean can’t - they are both very similar physically including the perceived stiffness. Dejean went earlier as he is a playmaker displaying better instincts in coverage. Ringo is still very young, so he could certainly improve and compete (but I don’t see why he’s necessarily ahead).

I think it's more about Ringo being limited than DeJean.  Ringo has a body type that looks more like an outside CB.  He also played almost exclusively outside in college.  DeJean played all over and had more snaps a slot and lined up at safety.  

Just now, Waiting4Someday said:

It would be great if Ringo pans out, as I like to get the best 5 DBs on the field and Dejean seems to have that CB/S versatility… but the CB room is full and these guys need to compete and see how they stack up. 

Absolutely.   If Ringo pans out, Dejean potentially becomes a chess piece to move around the field all over the place eventually and wreak havoc.  One thing Dejean showed over Ringo is playmaking ability in college.   That's a guy you want using his instincts to create plays, and frankly, that's what wins in the NFL now on defense.   Make some big plays, create turnovers.  Dejean was that guy much more than Ringo at college.  So, he is the weapon to maximize.


The ideal scenario is this for the long term (maybe starting as early as this season, if all works out to its best outcome): 
Ringo becomes a solid outside CB. 
Mitchell becomes a playmaking CB.
Dejean becomes a playmaker at "DB", and moves around at nickel, safety, robber, whatever.  

And they mix in Blankenship and CJGJ on the backend.  CJGJ and Dejean likely can be used interchangably and keep offenses guessing.

 

And, I didn't forget about Slay.  Ideally, he gets phased out this year because the young guys are too good to keep off the field.  Either way, he's gone after this season... and likely should have been gone this year, but Howie capitulated with his dissatisfaction with his contract and extended him, locking him in for this year.  

1 hour ago, Texas Eagle said:

Do you think the Eagles still gamble with Hunt in R3 if they didn't get two blue chip players in R1 + R2?

Most likely

i dont the risk tolerance is a finite sum over the class. Independent variables

45 minutes ago, Iggles_Phan said:

 Ringo is as much projection as Mitchell and Dejean.  He didn't flash much, and on a defense that was as bad as this one was, he struggled to get on the field.   That's a concern.   

Ringo is still an unknown, but he absolutely flashed last year. He showed the required athleticism and toughness to play the position. He made some plays on the ball. There's stuff to work with.

Now, he may not pan out but he's not Jobe, Ricks, etc.

19 minutes ago, bpac55 said:

There's still a lot to be determined, and he's shown nothing yet, but I don't know if you can risk Johnny Wilson being on the practice squad. He's going to flash, even if just a little in the pre-season. SOME team is going to be enamored by that and will snatch him up. He very well could never make an impact in the NFL, but not very often do 6-6 240 LB WR who can move fall in to your lap. 

You say they don't come up that often but we picked him at 185, I'm going to go out on a limb and say we'll probably be OK, unless theres a boatload of teams had him at 186 plus.

He's another Tyree Jackson (6ft 7 ran a 4.59 40)

5 minutes ago, RLC said:

Ringo is still an unknown, but he absolutely flashed last year. He showed the required athleticism and toughness to play the position. He made some plays on the ball. There's stuff to work with.

Now, he may not pan out but he's not Jobe, Ricks, etc.

That's not high praise.   I've conceded that he's better than them, but how good is he?   That part absolutely remains to be seen.  Same with Dejean and Mitchell, both of whom flashed better ball skills in college than Ringo.

Lol

This should be pretty simple going into camp -- 2 spots in the secondary are locked with Slay and CJGJ. The CB2 competition should be wide open among Mitchell, Ringo, DeJean and Bradberry. My personal opinion is Mitchell will win that spot -- Ringo would be the primary backup at outside CB, DeJean would be more of a versatile piece at both NCB and S (similar to CJGJ), and Bradberry is just cooked. As for safety, I think they go with Blankenship and CJGJ, with DeJean sprinkled in. 

DeJean adds real value with his versatility, if he can handle it as a rookie. Going with a nickel package of Slay, Mitchell, DeJean, CJGJ and Blankenship would allow Fangio to disguise coverages very well as both DeJean and CJGJ could handle NCB or S. I think they want that versatility in the back end. 

Ringo's development this year will determine the post Slay future -- does DeJean eventually move outside, or does Ringo step up and leave DeJean as a chess piece. 

14 minutes ago, ManuManu said:

Lol

44 minutes ago, bpac55 said:

There's still a lot to be determined, and he's shown nothing yet, but I don't know if you can risk Johnny Wilson being on the practice squad. He's going to flash, even if just a little in the pre-season. SOME team is going to be enamored by that and will snatch him up. He very well could never make an impact in the NFL, but not very often do 6-6 240 LB WR who can move fall in to your lap. 

Last year the Eagles 53-man roster was comprised of:

Offense -- 24  QB (3), RB (4), WR (4), TE (4), OL (9)

Defense -- 27  DE/EDGE (6), DT (7), LB (3), CB (7), Safety (4)

Special Teams 2

 

Where does Johnny Wilson slot on the WR depth chart?  1.  AJ Brown, 2.  DeVonta Smith, 3.  Ainias Smith, 4.  Parris Campbell, 5.  Devante Parker, 6.  Britain Covey, 7.  Johnny Wilson

It's possible the Eagles carry 5 WR on the 53 for this season.  Brown, Smith are locks (of course).  Ainias Smith figures to make it due to versatility.  What it comes down to is, can Wilson beat out Covey?  I don't think Parker or Campbell would be claimed by another team if they were released and brought back; Campbell got $400K guaranteed and I don't think Parker got even that much.  For roster management it's possible both could be released on final cutdowns.

Covey and Wilson would be an interesting roster decision.  Shipley was an excellent KR at Clemson, but didn't return punts.  Ainias Smith returned 82 punts in all 5 seasons at Texas A&M.  DeJean was an excellent PR at Iowa -- but do the Eagles use him there?

I honestly think Howie tries to trade Covey at some point; I don't really see a roster spot for him.  If not, he's likely a cut -- already being 27 years old.    

 

21 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

This should be pretty simple going into camp -- 2 spots in the secondary are locked with Slay and CJGJ. The CB2 competition should be wide open among Mitchell, Ringo, DeJean and Bradberry. My personal opinion is Mitchell will win that spot -- Ringo would be the primary backup at outside CB, DeJean would be more of a versatile piece at both NCB and S (similar to CJGJ), and Bradberry is just cooked. As for safety, I think they go with Blankenship and CJGJ, with DeJean sprinkled in. 

DeJean adds real value with his versatility, if he can handle it as a rookie. Going with a nickel package of Slay, Mitchell, DeJean, CJGJ and Blankenship would allow Fangio to disguise coverages very well as both DeJean and CJGJ could handle NCB or S. I think they want that versatility in the back end. 

Ringo's development this year will determine the post Slay future -- does DeJean eventually move outside, or does Ringo step up and leave DeJean as a chess piece. 

I’ll be extremely disappointed if Mitchell isn’t starting at CB. I think it’s a lock unless he looks terrible. In that case, we’re in trouble. 

The interesting part will be Dejean and Blankenship. Ultimately I think they keep Dejean inside. 

4 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Last year the Eagles 53-man roster was comprised of:

Offense -- 24  QB (3), RB (4), WR (4), TE (4), OL (9)

Defense -- 27  DE/EDGE (6), DT (7), LB (3), CB (7), Safety (4)

Special Teams 2

 

Where does Johnny Wilson slot on the WR depth chart?  1.  AJ Brown, 2.  DeVonta Smith, 3.  Ainias Smith, 4.  Parris Campbell, 5.  Devante Parker, 6.  Britain Covey, 7.  Johnny Wilson

It's possible the Eagles carry 5 WR on the 53 for this season.  Brown, Smith are locks (of course).  Ainias Smith figures to make it due to versatility.  What it comes down to is, can Wilson beat out Covey?  I don't think Parker or Campbell would be claimed by another team if they were released and brought back; Campbell got $400K guaranteed and I don't think Parker got even that much.  For roster management it's possible both could be released on final cutdowns.

Covey and Wilson would be an interesting roster decision.  Shipley was an excellent KR at Clemson, but didn't return punts.  Ainias Smith returned 82 punts in all 5 seasons at Texas A&M.  DeJean was an excellent PR at Iowa -- but do the Eagles use him there?

I honestly think Howie tries to trade Covey at some point; I don't really see a roster spot for him.  If not, he's likely a cut -- already being 27 years old.    

 

I was just looking at this. OTC and Spotrac show Parker having no guaranteed money from the Eagles, Campbell has $417,500 guaranteed. Obviously, both of them would be fully guaranteed if on the roster week 1. As you said, Brown and Smith are locks, and I think Ainias Smith is a lock as well (no chance he would clear waivers to the PS). So that leaves 2-3 spots (I think they go 5-6 WRs) for Wilson, Covey, Campbell and Parker. My guess is Wilson and Campbell make the 53 -- Wilson could get claimed based on his unique physical traits, and Campbell has the guaranteed money. Parker and Covey should clear waivers and could go to the PS and neither has guaranteed money.

2 minutes ago, EaglePhan1986 said:

I’ll be extremely disappointed if Mitchell isn’t starting at CB. I think it’s a lock unless he looks terrible. In that case, we’re in trouble. 

The interesting part will be Dejean and Blankenship. Ultimately I think they keep Dejean inside. 

I agree that it will be disappointing if Mitchell can't win the job, but I think they will at least open camp with Bradberry there and make Mitchell take it from him. I am sure they have some hope JB can look useful, but I am highly skeptical. He's a guy who was limited speed wise and seems to have lost more than a step. But they Eagles tend to treat vets with respect, so expect him to open OTAs and likely camp as the starter.

32 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

This should be pretty simple going into camp -- 2 spots in the secondary are locked with Slay and CJGJ. The CB2 competition should be wide open among Mitchell, Ringo, DeJean and Bradberry. My personal opinion is Mitchell will win that spot -- Ringo would be the primary backup at outside CB, DeJean would be more of a versatile piece at both NCB and S (similar to CJGJ), and Bradberry is just cooked. As for safety, I think they go with Blankenship and CJGJ, with DeJean sprinkled in. 

DeJean adds real value with his versatility, if he can handle it as a rookie. Going with a nickel package of Slay, Mitchell, DeJean, CJGJ and Blankenship would allow Fangio to disguise coverages very well as both DeJean and CJGJ could handle NCB or S. I think they want that versatility in the back end. 

Ringo's development this year will determine the post Slay future -- does DeJean eventually move outside, or does Ringo step up and leave DeJean as a chess piece. 

I am very much on board with this.  I personally envision them using big nickel as a base.  And big nickel is sort of a misnomer, as it would be 2 CB, 1 S, and two NCB/S.  Where, as you said, the NCB/S are CJGJ and DeJean, who would be always moving around. Further, they are both physical enough to not be weaknesses in run support. 

Slay, Mitchell, CJGJ, DeJean, and Blankeship are your five best DBs.  They are better than any LB on the roster.  Figure out how to keep them on the field.

2 hours ago, wussbasket said:

The description for the boys basically confirms all of their RBs got sniped

 

I thought they had a good draft.  They didn't reach for a player but they compounded their lack of proactivity in free agency.  

21 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

I agree that it will be disappointing if Mitchell can't win the job, but I think they will at least open camp with Bradberry there and make Mitchell take it from him. I am sure they have some hope JB can look useful, but I am highly skeptical. He's a guy who was limited speed wise and seems to have lost more than a step. But they Eagles tend to treat vets with respect, so expect him to open OTAs and likely camp as the starter.

Meh - Give Mitchell the reps.  He's far more talented than Bradberry and needs to learn the position.  

My tinfoil hat conspiracy makes me think the changes they are making to Hard Knocks this year are so they can skirt around the rules and get the Eagles on it. I think that would have to be their top choice for ratings. Plus they would focus a lot on the first game in Brazil ever, which the NFL would probably love.

53 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

This should be pretty simple going into camp -- 2 spots in the secondary are locked with Slay and CJGJ. The CB2 competition should be wide open among Mitchell, Ringo, DeJean and Bradberry. My personal opinion is Mitchell will win that spot -- Ringo would be the primary backup at outside CB, DeJean would be more of a versatile piece at both NCB and S (similar to CJGJ), and Bradberry is just cooked. As for safety, I think they go with Blankenship and CJGJ, with DeJean sprinkled in. 

DeJean adds real value with his versatility, if he can handle it as a rookie. Going with a nickel package of Slay, Mitchell, DeJean, CJGJ and Blankenship would allow Fangio to disguise coverages very well as both DeJean and CJGJ could handle NCB or S. I think they want that versatility in the back end. 

Ringo's development this year will determine the post Slay future -- does DeJean eventually move outside, or does Ringo step up and leave DeJean as a chess piece. 

Not to forget Sydney Brown if he's ready in time to start the season

3 hours ago, McMVP said:

Agreed…I rarely listen to sports radio anymore.  I’m mainly listening to books on tape or music in the car.

That being said, SiriusXM NFL radio is still worth a listen. Particularly the show Moving the Chains w/ Jim Miller and Pat Kirwan.  I think they bring a unique insight.  They at least are certainly not after click-bait topics.  They focus much more on roster building and cap management than any show out there.  

I was listening yesterday and a Bucs fan called in who was upset they let Devin White go.  Miller and Kirwan told him what they heard was there was a play (or plays) during the 2022 season where it showed White not giving full effort.  Supposedly Barrett, Vea and some other veteran guys talked to him and admonished him for it.  Then last season the same thing showed on film again, so Bowles pulled him out and K.J. Britt outplayed him when he got into the lineup. 

1 minute ago, Texas Eagle said:

Not to forget Sydney Brown if he's ready in time to start the season

I'm assuming he starts the season on PUP. Would be pleasantly surprised if he is ready week 1.

5 minutes ago, NCiggles said:

Meh - Give Mitchell the reps.  He's far more talented than Bradberry and needs to learn the position.  

I agree with you but I don't think the Eagles will do it. I can't think of the last rookie that was with the first team at the beginning of OTAs.