Posted May 17, 20241 yr Howie did a great job filling short term needs in free agency and proparing for the long term in the draft. But, like all teams there are some things than can still be improved. Here's the Eagles list - WR3 - maybe Parker, Campbell, Covey, or Smith can do the job. Fine, but I want a sure thing and he's available - Hunter Renfrow. Guard - PRoven depth is the issue. Dickerson is a fixture, the media has jumped ship on Steen, and we now have rookie 5th round pick Trevor Keegan. We could eliminate any trepidation by signing 29 year old Dalton Risner. Safety - Only 3 healthy pro safeties on the roster, Blankenship, CGJ, and Tristan McCollum and undrafted Andre Sam. I think starters are set so I;d pass on the Simmons, jackson, Diggs, Adams group. I'd go for the less touted Ryan Neil ex of Tampa Bay. TE - Our current backups might be ok but I'm not sold. Unfortunately there's nothing on the free agent horizon so what we see is what we get DT - great starters and a terrific #3, but then what. Ojomo, Tuipolotu, and Hall might be good for the rotation but I doubt Mustipher is really a back up for Jordan Davis. Like TE there's just nothing out there that makes sense, unless 38 year old Calais Campbell whant to play for much less than he's used to earning.
May 20, 20241 yr Safety is probably the only position I can see adding to BEFORE training camp. It'll be interesting to see if, and who, they'd add. Depends mainly on 2 things: Sydney Brown's recovery timeline and how they feel about him, and if they truly see Blankenship as a starter. It seems DeJean will be starting out at CB so I suppose he won't be factored into the equation at S this year, at least not initially. Otherwise, we'll have to wait until TC to see how things shake out before adding any other player(s) of substance.
May 20, 20241 yr Sydney Brown should be good to go week 1. One of the CBs will be S4. Don't see them adding another G unless they don't like what they see from Steen/Hennessy. Could definitely see a move at LB. You should be way more concerned about Dean's injury than Sydney Brown's. Dean got hurt early last year and indicated it's a possibility he's not cleared for camp. LBs right now are White coming off a faceplant year, an injured and possibly slower Dean, Trotter, and ???. Major need. DL is always an option, could definitely see a move there. Darkhorse could be WR3, but I think they want A. Smith or a mix of guys there.
May 21, 20241 yr On 5/20/2024 at 8:56 AM, EaglesAddict said: Safety is probably the only position I can see adding to BEFORE training camp. It'll be interesting to see if, and who, they'd add. Depends mainly on 2 things: Sydney Brown's recovery timeline and how they feel about him, and if they truly see Blankenship as a starter. It seems DeJean will be starting out at CB so I suppose he won't be factored into the equation at S this year, at least not initially. Otherwise, we'll have to wait until TC to see how things shake out before adding any other player(s) of substance. I hope they don't add anyone before TC. I'd rather them wait a bit to give the guys already on the roster a fair shake to allow a proper evaluation. Plus the extra reps they get will be invaluable to their development (the only way to get better is to play). If we're approaching the end of TC and no one stands out, make a move then.
May 21, 20241 yr 1 hour ago, time2rock said: I hope they don't add anyone before TC. I'd rather them wait a bit to give the guys already on the roster a fair shake to allow a proper evaluation. Plus the extra reps they get will be invaluable to their development (the only way to get better is to play). If were approaching the end of TC and no one stands out, make a move then. I agree with that philosophically, but if they think they need to add a S...and a starter-level one at that...Justin Simmons isn't gonna hang around forever. Well, to me, he's the preferred option if we do add one. Either way, if they wait too long they could miss out on the FA they'd prefer. Right now, they have who at S that can play Week 1...Blank and CJGJ? Mekhi Garner? Who knows when Brown will be ready (prob starts the year on PUP). Unless DeJean ends up getting some reps there, S is a little thin.
May 21, 20241 yr 13 minutes ago, EaglesAddict said: Right now, they have who at S that can play Week 1...Blank and CJGJ? Mekhi Garner? Who knows when Brown will be ready (prob starts the year on PUP). Unless DeJean ends up getting some reps there, S is a little thin. Obviously Blankenship and CJGJ are the starters. The thing with DeJean is he will begin preparing as the nickel, but he will see practice reps at S and CB as well. If he wins the nickel role, than Maddox is here for depth at S as well. Brown will return at some point, but even if you want to write him off for now, McCollum should be way ahead of Garner at safety. I think most Eagles fans are totally writing McCollum off prematurely. I think he'll make the 53 as a core special teamer and backup S. During the season, Brown DeJean and Maddox will provide depth. That's why the Eagles like versatile DBs.
May 21, 20241 yr 1 hour ago, brkmsn said: Obviously Blankenship and CJGJ are the starters. The thing with DeJean is he will begin preparing as the nickel, but he will see practice reps at S and CB as well. If he wins the nickel role, than Maddox is here for depth at S as well. Brown will return at some point, but even if you want to write him off for now, McCollum should be way ahead of Garner at safety. I think most Eagles fans are totally writing McCollum off prematurely. I think he'll make the 53 as a core special teamer and backup S. During the season, Brown DeJean and Maddox will provide depth. That's why the Eagles like versatile DBs. I like Hall more than maddox.
May 21, 20241 yr Yeah I suppose WR could be another position to "round out"...not that Parker was the answer, but I'm certainly not feeling comfortable with our WR corps if Brown or Smith were to miss any substantial time. That said, I'll be real curious to see/hear how the 2 drafted rookies look in TC.
May 22, 20241 yr 9 hours ago, Utebird said: I like Hall more than maddox. I know a lot of people are down on Maddox because of the injury history, but unlike Hall, Maddox is actually proven at this level. There's nothing wrong with rooting for Hall, but I just don't see how anybody can take his body of work (4 seasons, 31 games, 6 starts, 385 defensive snaps) and feel like he's superior or even more reliable than Maddox (6 seasons, 64 games, 38 starts, 2893 defensive snaps). Let's be honest, Maddox has had an extensive injury history since he's been here. But even with that, people exaggerate the issue. People joke that he's made of glass and make tons of quips regarding his availability to stay healthy. Still, through all the injuries, he has been available 2/3 of the time. He didn't miss any games to injury in 2021 (the Eagles rested their key starters in the regular season finale in preparation for the Wildcard game). Compare that to DJax' 2nd stint with us where he played in only 8 of 33 of the Eagles' games. Then there's the thing fans rarely talk about, which happens to be something the Eagles really love about Avonte. He's a team player that does whatever he is asked to do, supports his teammates however he can, works his butt off every day and just helps set the example of the culture the Eagles have been developing. He's a true professional and the younger players can still learn from his practice habits. Back to Hall ... I hope he makes an impression when he does get his chance here. If he can somehow beat out Maddox, he's a keeper. Once we re-signed Avonte, I fully expected him to be the starting nickel ... then we drafted DeJean. DeJean vs Maddox should be a fun battle to keep an eye on. Unlike Hall, DeJean has a real shot at winning the role. We signed Hall in free agency before we brought Maddox back, so it's only natural to embrace some of the positive takes regarding Hall --- especially after we failed to adequately replace Maddox on the field last season and were gashed. But once Maddox was signed, the best we could realistically expect from Hall is that he showed enough promise to be an insurance policy for Maddox. Now, after drafting DeJean, Maddox might be the insurance policy. Hall simply doesn't have much of a resume to really base any high expectations on. That requires wishful thinking.
May 22, 20241 yr 4 hours ago, brkmsn said: I know a lot of people are down on Maddox because of the injury history, but unlike Hall, Maddox is actually proven at this level. There's nothing wrong with rooting for Hall, but I just don't see how anybody can take his body of work (4 seasons, 31 games, 6 starts, 385 defensive snaps) and feel like he's superior or even more reliable than Maddox (6 seasons, 64 games, 38 starts, 2893 defensive snaps). Let's be honest, Maddox has had an extensive injury history since he's been here. But even with that, people exaggerate the issue. People joke that he's made of glass and make tons of quips regarding his availability to stay healthy. Still, through all the injuries, he has been available 2/3 of the time. He didn't miss any games to injury in 2021 (the Eagles rested their key starters in the regular season finale in preparation for the Wildcard game). Compare that to DJax' 2nd stint with us where he played in only 8 of 33 of the Eagles' games. Then there's the thing fans rarely talk about, which happens to be something the Eagles really love about Avonte. He's a team player that does whatever he is asked to do, supports his teammates however he can, works his butt off every day and just helps set the example of the culture the Eagles have been developing. He's a true professional and the younger players can still learn from his practice habits. Back to Hall ... I hope he makes an impression when he does get his chance here. If he can somehow beat out Maddox, he's a keeper. Once we re-signed Avonte, I fully expected him to be the starting nickel ... then we drafted DeJean. DeJean vs Maddox should be a fun battle to keep an eye on. Unlike Hall, DeJean has a real shot at winning the role. We signed Hall in free agency before we brought Maddox back, so it's only natural to embrace some of the positive takes regarding Hall --- especially after we failed to adequately replace Maddox on the field last season and were gashed. But once Maddox was signed, the best we could realistically expect from Hall is that he showed enough promise to be an insurance policy for Maddox. Now, after drafting DeJean, Maddox might be the insurance policy. Hall simply doesn't have much of a resume to really base any high expectations on. That requires wishful thinking. Maddox last year when he was healthy was average at best, couple with his lack of availability and theres good reason to doubt him Im sure hes a hard worker and a good example and eagles need guys that can contribute in the field, maddoxs ability to be. Cheer leader shouldnt factor into him making the roster. I like maddox and sadly he cant be counted on to be available. As for Desean what was he 34 years old, not a fair comparison really.
May 22, 20241 yr Maddox last year obviously missed 13 games. When he returned, the Eagles needed him to play safety and he looked rusty. So I can't really argue with that opinion on how he played last year (when healthy). But if you take the whole body of his "healthy" work, he's been above average. Last year was the most games Maddox missed in a single season. While I would say he's likely to deal with some injury or another during the upcoming season, I'd say he's not likely to miss a lot of time as before last season he still averaged over 12 regular season games/year. Nobody, btw, can be counted on to be available. Injuries happen. Can you guarantee what players will be available in week 10? Week 15? The playoffs? Maddox had the same injury as CJGJ last season and missed the same amount of games. In fact, over the last 3 seasons, CJGJ has missed 24 games compared to Maddox' 21 games over that span.
May 24, 20241 yr Waiting in the wings are full evaluations and injury replacements. some may not pan out and others may be shelved. Let's see how camp goes before overloading a position when another may require addressing. I think this is a period for patience.
May 25, 20241 yr 11 hours ago, PoconoDon said: Waiting in the wings are full evaluations and injury replacements. some may not pan out and others may be shelved. Let's see how camp goes before overloading a position when another may require addressing. I think this is a period for patience. We must have pro bowlers as back ups at every single position!
May 26, 20241 yr On 5/21/2024 at 8:22 AM, brkmsn said: If he wins the nickel role, than Maddox During the season, Brown DeJean and Maddox will provide depth. That's why the Eagles like versatile DBs. I've never understood the Maddox love by Eagles fans, not even taking into consideration his injury history, dude is flat out sorry, he can neither cover nor tackle, apparently you know guys know nothing about secondary play.
May 26, 20241 yr 46 minutes ago, EagleVA said: apparently you know guys know nothing about secondary play. You go, girl!
May 28, 20241 yr On 5/21/2024 at 5:22 AM, brkmsn said: Obviously Blankenship and CJGJ are the starters. The thing with DeJean is he will begin preparing as the nickel, but he will see practice reps at S and CB as well. If he wins the nickel role, than Maddox is here for depth at S as well. Brown will return at some point, but even if you want to write him off for now, McCollum should be way ahead of Garner at safety. I think most Eagles fans are totally writing McCollum off prematurely. I think he'll make the 53 as a core special teamer and backup S. During the season, Brown DeJean and Maddox will provide depth. That's why the Eagles like versatile DBs. It's not that I am writing off McCollum..it's that i do not know much about him. ..6'3'' dude who wants to be a safety but has not done much. Enlighten me what is it that you see that i am missing about this dude. What gives you so much hope that he can step up? What has he done that impressed you? I am curious.
May 29, 20241 yr 6 hours ago, Traveler Vic said: It's not that I am writing off McCollum..it's that i do not know much about him. ..6'3'' dude who wants to be a safety but has not done much. Enlighten me what is it that you see that i am missing about this dude. What gives you so much hope that he can step up? What has he done that impressed you? I am curious. He was given an opportunity to play in the regular season finale after Blankenship got dinged at the end of the 1st half (on the INT) and played pretty well overall. PFF gave him an overall grade of 76.6. That was his first real opportunity outside of special teams and I thought he did well. Obviously, this doesn't mean "he has arrived." He's a young player that was given an opportunity due to an injury and he made the most of it. I typically expect young players to keep working and keep improving in practice. I think if he does work hard to keep getting better, he can at the very least be a capable backup.
May 29, 20241 yr I’m hoping Campbell can win the WR3 job and be what was expected of Watson. My feeling is DeJean gets moved to safety… you know why I think that…
May 29, 20241 yr 17 hours ago, brkmsn said: He was given an opportunity to play in the regular season finale after Blankenship got dinged at the end of the 1st half (on the INT) and played pretty well overall. PFF gave him an overall grade of 76.6. That was his first real opportunity outside of special teams and I thought he did well. Obviously, this doesn't mean "he has arrived." He's a young player that was given an opportunity due to an injury and he made the most of it. I typically expect young players to keep working and keep improving in practice. I think if he does work hard to keep getting better, he can at the very least be a capable backup. McCollum likes to tackle and is not shying away from contact. You right. His tape looks good. Let's hope this young man gets an opportunity. Looking forward to watching him in the pre-season. If he continues playing aggressive and does not get hurt, than perhaps he will make the team and get some playing time. Thanks.
May 30, 20241 yr Don’t forget RB. If Saquon hets injured which is likely, we’ve really got no solid back-up
May 30, 20241 yr 1 hour ago, eggs said: Don’t forget RB. If Saquon hets injured which is likely, we’ve really got no solid back-up Gainwell has plenty of experience and we drafted Shipley. I understand the trend around here is to hate on Gainwell, but at the very least he's a good all-around backup that can run, catch and block. Shipley needs to learn the offense and has plenty of time to do that. We'll find out more about him in the preseason.
May 31, 20241 yr 21 hours ago, brkmsn said: Gainwell has plenty of experience and we drafted Shipley. I understand the trend around here is to hate on Gainwell, but at the very least he's a good all-around backup that can run, catch and block. Shipley needs to learn the offense and has plenty of time to do that. We'll find out more about him in the preseason. Gainwell is a below average NFL RB. Shipley is a rookie 4th round pick. If the Eagles are relying on those two because Saquan goes down, defenses can play nickel and dime packages more often and the passing game will struggle and Hurts is tempted to run too much and risk injury. We could use another veteran RB.
May 31, 20241 yr 2 minutes ago, eggs said: Gainwell is a below average NFL RB. Shipley is a rookie 4th round pick. If the Eagles are relying on those two because Saquan goes down, defenses can play nickel and dime packages more often and the passing game will struggle and Hurts is tempted to run too much and risk injury. We could use another veteran RB. The league average for RBs in 2023 was 4.1 ypc. Gainwell averaged 4.3 ypc last season. Gainwell was the backup last season and has been a backup for all 3 seasons. During those 3 seasons he has averaged 4.4 ypc, 500 yards (combined rushing and receiving) and 4TDs per year in the regular season. He has also added 304 combined yards and 2 TDs in the playoffs as a backup averaging 5 ypc in those 5 games. ... and when Gainwell has to block he's a lot more reliable than this:
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