3 minutes ago, mattwill said:

Agreed 100%, but if you and I set aside our bias, he has done an amazing job given the post-Wilson trade situation he inherited.

I'd still put O'Connell above him. 

32 minutes ago, mattwill said:

Sean Payton has Denver at 8-5 with a rookie QB

Sure, but the same can be said for Dan Quinn.

O'Connell having the Vikings at 10-2 in the hardest division in football with a two-time rejected starting QB is more impressive.  He's the clear choice IMO.

 

15 minutes ago, RLC said:

How "hurt" is he?

He got hurt in a closed practice. Has a 2024 cap hit for 4.3M and a AAV of 12M. Could argue we should get 12M back in cap space.

The insurance companies will account for the risk difference between those two payouts in the premium they charge.  Since the owners have the discretionary right to choose the level of coverage they more than likely get to let their pocketbook decide.  For Lurie, giving Howie millions more in Cap money to be able to perpetuate a SB-competitive team is almost surely a no brainer.  The capital appreciation of the franchise value with additional SB participation (win or lose) dwarfs any amount that those premiums cost.  The ROI to him is massive.

3 minutes ago, MF POON said:

I'd still put O'Connell above him. 

 

2 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Sure, but the same can be said for Dan Quinn.

O'Connell having the Vikings at 10-2 in the hardest division in football with a two-time rejected starting QB is more impressive.  He's the clear choice IMO.

 

I don't disagree with either of you. He wouldn't be my choice either, but he is in the conversation.  Nick is in the conversation as well, but he wouldn't be my choice.

I got the following response from Jason at OTC about Bradberry.

Quote

Hey Matt,

 

Most of the Eagles option decisions are due a few days before the regular season starts (I always use September 1st as a rough estimate). So the Eagles have a ton of time to make a decision as there is nothing in his contract other than a small workout bonus that would cause the Eagles to pay any type of major salary to Bradberry anytime in the offseason. So they can post June 1 him if they want. Carry him on the roster until the summer and cut him then. Carry him on the roster and try to get him to take a major pay cut...etc... They have all the leverage in this spot.

Hope that helps.

Jason

 

They should still release Bradberry early to give him the chance to catch on with another team in 2025.

Don't be the Dolphins. 

49 minutes ago, Iggles_Phan said:

Oh, I've seen them, and the "wons" (sic) that can't get it "write" (sic) between 'then' and 'than'. 

They are such loosers 

1 hour ago, Connecticut Eagle said:

For those reasons, I can't see them addressing TE with a very high draft pick.  They already have a competent pass catcher in Calcaterra that, more importantly, Hurts is willing to throw to.  He isn't very good as the in-line blocking TE, but is good as the wing/move blocking TE.  Getting a complementary TE in the Celek mold would suffice.

Expect early picks on the lines considering they didn't do it last draft.

Agreed.

I’ve started playing with some of the mock draft simulators, and in every rendition I don’t even bother looking at TEs until the 4th round. Even if we took the kid from PSU, we won’t get our money for him. We are a running team with 2 of the 10-15 best receivers in the NFL. The targets just aren’t there to justify a first or even second round pick.

As you say, we have the undersized receiving specialist who is already proven. We need a guy who is a tough SOB as a run blocker who is serviceable enough as a receiving option to keep defenses honest. There are lots of mid round guys in that mold.

One of the guys I really wanted back in the 2023 draft was current Pittsburgh Steelers TE Darnell Washington. I don’t think there is a player like him in this draft, but the thought of adding that kind of profile (6’7” 265 pounds with OL blocking skills) is absolutely salivating for me.

Pitts represents a different route, and if we are going to stick with our current identity as a power running team, then Pitts only makes sense if we are going to use 12 personnel as our base offense with Pitts as the slot receiver. That also means carrying 4 TEs, we’d still need to add a blocking TE to develop behind DG.

The only way I can justify using a top pick or bringing in a talented big name receiving TE is if we decide to change our approach on offense. Though to be fair, we have done this a bit — using a fullback, using more 2 TEs, etc. has been a direction we’ve moved over the course of the season. How much of this was due to injuries to our WRs is anyone’s guess.

38 minutes ago, mattwill said:

I tend to agree with you, but it is an Eagles-centric question.

TJ Edwards got 3 years, $19M. Eagles gave Bradham 5 years $40M over 6 years ago. I don't see why they wouldn't. 

So yeah he was never back in 6 weeks. 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, BigEFly said:

This insurance talk sent me down a rabbit hole.  I have written a boiler plate insurance clause for a player contract and then googled it.  Turns out they can insure the "unearned” portion of the signing bonus and that the club has an insurable interest in the player by contract.  @NCiggles would find this interesting.  Payments under the contract are considered an advance of any worker’s compensation award and thus any amount paid would be payable to the club.  In other words, his temporary and permanent disability awards go to the club and I suspect in essence reimburse a portion of the lost salary.  Peanuts but something is better than nothing.  

I have a call into a friend of mine.  She headed up U S claims for a large multinational that was big in entertainment insurance so she had more contact with Lloyd’s and Bermuda in this arena.  She and I are both retired now but if anyone I know has any experience in the area of NFL insurance, it’s her.  Just curious now.  That has to be a Lloyd’s type policy or surplus (less governed) lines type of policy but the amounts involved suggest some level of pooling or reinsurance.  I suspect with the worker’s compensation data available and NFL’s own data that a premium basis wasn’t hard to develop.  Now adjusting would be interesting.  Normally, with worker’s compensation a worker returns to active duty (either light or full) when released by the medical providers to do so.  I suspect a policy such as this has a medical proviso that isn’t tied to returning to playing versus being able, injury wise, to do so because of the restrictions tied to coming off IR in the NFL.  I doubt we’ll ever know fully what cap was/will be restored.  

The ESPN article has a lot of Eagles specific information in it, which I copy and paste here

"For the most part, owners who don't buy insurance think the cost of the premium isn't worth spending on a claim unlikely to fully pay out, according to a former cap executive. He said he had done due diligence on insurance policies and presented the information to three different owners for whom he worked, including one who was specifically interested after noticing Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie buying a lot of insurance. But all three thought the premiums were too high.

One club executive estimated the cost of a premium has increased around 30% to 40% in the past five years. Per insurance industry sources, if a club wanted to insure $40 or $50 million of a contract, it would cost them somewhere between $1 or $2 million per year.

That club executive said his team is only buying insurance now because of the cap credit.

Under owner Jeffrey Lurie, left, and GM Howie Roseman, the Eagles have been major insurance believers. Photo by Terence Lewis/Icon Sportswire

THE EAGLES MUST lead the league in this advanced stat -- Using insurance addendums as a guide, the club has insurance policies on at least 16 players for 2024. Philadelphia's portfolio is the stuff of legend among salary cap staff and those in the insurance business because of the sheer number of policies it buys, and the range of contract values insured.

An industry source said the majority of teams set a threshold to determine the size of the contract they'll insure, like $40 million guaranteed, and then buy insurance on any contract over that number. That is not what the Eagles do.

They've got the usual high rollers. Quarterback Jalen Hurts' contract is insured for $63.75 million for 2024 (out of the $110 million guaranteed in his deal), and receiver A.J. Brown's contract is insured for $29.8 million for 2024 (out of the $51 million guaranteed in his deal). But they also insure three players on rookie contracts for small sums between $750,000 and $2.5 million for 2024, one of whom, center Cam Jurgens, has $3.9 million in guaranteed money.

"I have no clue what the background is on why they do what they do," said another insurance industry source familiar with the Eagles' insurance-buying habits. He laughed, "I have no clue."

Through an Eagles spokesperson, executive vice president and general manager Howie Roseman said he appreciated the interest in his strategy but declined to comment.

One executive for another club described Philadelphia's tendencies as spreading risk around by insuring a variety of players for a range of amounts. The amount a club insures a contract for has to be written into the player's contract in order for the club to qualify for cap relief, so the Eagles' portfolio is there for all the league to track.

Each policy is different based on the player's position, age, injury history and career trajectory. Clubs can choose from a range of deductibles and wait time -- some expensive policies start paying cash to clubs after just one game missed, other more affordable policies don't pay until the eighth consecutive game missed.

A league source said that the management council has not discussed a change to this rule with the NFLPA.

The NFL declined to comment.

To remove the cap relief for insurance claims would require a revision to the CBA, which would also require the NFLPA's sign-off. This seems unlikely because that would eliminate money and cap room that goes directly to player salaries.

ESPN spoke to an NFL ownerwho regularly buys policies. This owner hadn't heard that insurance cap relief could be at risk but said their team would have something to say about it. "If that's true," the owner said, "That would not be good. At all."

 

 

 

25 minutes ago, TEW said:

Agreed.

I’ve started playing with some of the mock draft simulators, and in every rendition I don’t even bother looking at TEs until the 4th round. Even if we took the kid from PSU, we won’t get our money for him. We are a running team with 2 of the 10-15 best receivers in the NFL. The targets just aren’t there to justify a first or even second round pick.

As you say, we have the undersized receiving specialist who is already proven. We need a guy who is a tough SOB as a run blocker who is serviceable enough as a receiving option to keep defenses honest. There are lots of mid round guys in that mold.

One of the guys I really wanted back in the 2023 draft was current Pittsburgh Steelers TE Darnell Washington. I don’t think there is a player like him in this draft, but the thought of adding that kind of profile (6’7” 265 pounds with OL blocking skills) is absolutely salivating for me.

Pitts represents a different route, and if we are going to stick with our current identity as a power running team, then Pitts only makes sense if we are going to use 12 personnel as our base offense with Pitts as the slot receiver. That also means carrying 4 TEs, we’d still need to add a blocking TE to develop behind DG.

The only way I can justify using a top pick or bringing in a talented big name receiving TE is if we decide to change our approach on offense. Though to be fair, we have done this a bit — using a fullback, using more 2 TEs, etc. has been a direction we’ve moved over the course of the season. How much of this was due to injuries to our WRs is anyone’s guess.

We're aligned here, unless the TE is such a clear BPA you can't say no.

My ranking of positional needs.
1) EDGE
2) OT
3) RB
4) CB
5) LB

Would be floored if any combo of DE/OT weren't two of our first 3 picks. 

1 hour ago, mattwill said:

I tend to agree with TEW, which is why I took the time to put my post above together

That was a great post (the cap break down).

The more I’ve though about our big 4 free agents, the more I keep shuffling their importance.

My initial thought was keep Sweat and Baun, let Williams and Becton walk. We have no depth at EDGE and Sweat is our best pass rusher. Baun is an all pro and solves a long term weakness. Becton is a one year wonder and I think we all trust Stout to make Steen work as the RG. Then Williams is a rotational small DT who should be relatively easy to replace.

But the more I think about it, the more I prioritize Becton and Williams, and the less I care about Sweat.

Vic has proven that he’s able to manufacture production from the edge. Hunt and Smith are playing well above my expectations for the ceiling. And Sweat will cost a boatload even though he’s not a star.

Becton is the most elite, unique athlete among the group and he’s a key player for the best OL the NFL has seen in quite some time. Even though Steen could probably replace him to an adequate level, we’d lose not only a high end starter but also the depth that Steen provides.

Williams is similarly a unique athlete with his speed at the DT position. And I do agree with those who say a pass rusher next to Carter is like a force multiplier.

That leaves Baun. I absolutely want him back, but if we can only keep 2, I might be forced to let him walk.

Some thoughts on the 2025 cap - per OTC, we have $250mm in cap liabilities and $32mm in cap space. Spotrac has us at $35mm, and this includes rolling over just over $10mm. So going with the ~$35mm, we can save $4.3mm by releasing Slay with a post 6/1 designation, and cutting JB will save $4.7mm with a post 6/1. So we're working with about $44mm in cap space, assuming the cap is $273mm. So here's how I'd spend that money, using about $32mm and saving the rest for draft picks.

- Extend Cam Jurgens. His 2025 cap number is only $2.2mm, but I'm guessing we will want to get this done. Landon got 4 years/84 million with 50 guaranteed. Cam shouldn't cost that much, but Landon's cap hit this year (1st year of extension) was just under $6mm. So let's say the net cost is $4mm, leaving $28mm in cap space.

- Figure out how to handle BG. If he retires, you keep him on the books until 6/1 if you can and then release him so there is $4.5mm in cap savings in 2025. If he wants to come back, he likely costs $4mm. Let's assume you just net 0 here because he decides to come back for another 1 year/$4mm deal like he did this year. Maybe you squeeze some savings into the future, but let's conservatively assume nothing saved.

- Can you get Becton for a discount to Dickerson? We should be able to do a 3-4 year deal that has an initial year cap hit of only ~$5mm. So that leaves $23mm.

- That leaves Sweat, Williams and Baun. While I want Baun back badly, I feel like Howie might be stubborn, but hopefully he gets there. TJ Edwards signed for 3 years, $19.5mm with $7.9mm guaranteed. No chance you get Baun that cheap. Patrick Queen got a 3 year, $41mm deal with $13.8mm gteed -- the 3rd year is BS fluff to inflate the contract. All that was guaranteed was his 2024 comp - $2.25mm salary and $11.59mm singing bonus. So maybe Baun is a 3 year, $30mm deal with $15 guaranteed, and the reality is a 2 year deal with a bunch of BS in year 3. Queen has a $6mm cap hit, so using that, you're down to $17mm.

- I think we try and do another 1 year deal with Sweat that costs ~$8mm on the cap, leaving us at $9mm.

- Now, we get to the reality -- Milton Williams is going to get a bag somewhere else, and I think we try and extend Jordan Davis while giving Williams' snaps to Ojomo.

- Dean may also get an extension.

 

1 minute ago, TEW said:

That was a great post (the cap break down).

The more I’ve though about our big 4 free agents, the more I keep shuffling their importance.

My initial thought was keep Sweat and Baun, let Williams and Becton walk. We have no depth at EDGE and Sweat is our best pass rusher. Baun is an all pro and solves a long term weakness. Becton is a one year wonder and I think we all trust Stout to make Steen work as the RG. Then Williams is a rotational small DT who should be relatively easy to replace.

But the more I think about it, the more I prioritize Becton and Williams, and the less I care about Sweat.

Vic has proven that he’s able to manufacture production from the edge. Hunt and Smith are playing well above my expectations for the ceiling. And Sweat will cost a boatload even though he’s not a star.

Becton is the most elite, unique athlete among the group and he’s a key player for the best OL the NFL has seen in quite some time. Even though Steen could probably replace him to an adequate level, we’d lose not only a high end starter but also the depth that Steen provides.

Williams is similarly a unique athlete with his speed at the DT position. And I do agree with those who say a pass rusher next to Carter is like a force multiplier.

That leaves Baun. I absolutely want him back, but if we can only keep 2, I might be forced to let him walk.

Tbh i think if baun isn’t signed before the end of the season that he’s gonna go to free agency and someone is just going to give him something ridiculous. So i tend to think he’s likely gone if we don’t get something done during the season. I think becton can be re-signed based on what i said in another post. I think Williams will be valued more than sweat. I think he has more positional versatility, just scratching the surface of how good he can be and long term i don’t think they’ll have to worry about his knee potentially declining on them. 

2 hours ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

I’d never take a tight end in the first round. We had this discussion on the blog when Kyle Pitts came out and there were a lot of people who loved Pitts. The numbers showed more often than not the pick doesn’t match the value of where he’s taken. That said I’d take a chance on Pitts if Atlanta is willing to deal him for a 5th with conditions that could be more if he meets the criteria. They aren’t picking up his 5th year option. I also think they’d unload. 

The tight end that I'd have interest in is Michael Mayer. His path to success is kinda blocked with the Raiders right now with Bowers, but he could be a good fit here as a complement to Goedert, who seems to miss a half dozen games a year anyway, and also as a potential successor. He also fits the profile of the kind of player that Howie tends to go for...younger guy with a good draft grade who still has some year(s) left on his contract. I doubt he'd cost more than a third.

Disclaimer. I'm a Notre Dame fan who loved Mayer in college. The Irish have had a string of quality tight ends over the past twenty years or so, and in my mind Mayer was the best of the bunch. My biggest surprise was when he was measured at the combine, he turned out to be smaller (height/arm length etc) than expected. But he "plays" bigger than his size.

3 minutes ago, TEW said:

That was a great post (the cap break down).

The more I’ve though about our big 4 free agents, the more I keep shuffling their importance.

My initial thought was keep Sweat and Baun, let Williams and Becton walk. We have no depth at EDGE and Sweat is our best pass rusher. Baun is an all pro and solves a long term weakness. Becton is a one year wonder and I think we all trust Stout to make Steen work as the RG. Then Williams is a rotational small DT who should be relatively easy to replace.

But the more I think about it, the more I prioritize Becton and Williams, and the less I care about Sweat.

Vic has proven that he’s able to manufacture production from the edge. Hunt and Smith are playing well above my expectations for the ceiling. And Sweat will cost a boatload even though he’s not a star.

Becton is the most elite, unique athlete among the group and he’s a key player for the best OL the NFL has seen in quite some time. Even though Steen could probably replace him to an adequate level, we’d lose not only a high end starter but also the depth that Steen provides.

Williams is similarly a unique athlete with his speed at the DT position. And I do agree with those who say a pass rusher next to Carter is like a force multiplier.

That leaves Baun. I absolutely want him back, but if we can only keep 2, I might be forced to let him walk.

Just posted my thoughts. Williams is getting into Hargrave territory where someone will overpay him because he looks great next to an all-pro. Hargrave was still good for SF, but he joined another great D-line. I really think Carter makes him look better than he is, and I am high on Ojomo.

2 minutes ago, RLC said:

We're aligned here, unless the TE is such a clear BPA you can't say no.

My ranking of positional needs.
1) EDGE
2) OT
3) RB
4) CB
5) LB

Would be floored if any combo of DE/OT weren't top of our first 3 picks. 

Count me in that alignment.  If Graham comes back for one more season I can see 1) and 2) flipping.  If OT is pick number 1 then the resigning of Fred Johnson is an interesting situation.

FWIW here is what The Athletic has in their most recent Mock:

7 minutes ago, TEW said:

That was a great post (the cap break down).

The more I’ve though about our big 4 free agents, the more I keep shuffling their importance.

My initial thought was keep Sweat and Baun, let Williams and Becton walk. We have no depth at EDGE and Sweat is our best pass rusher. Baun is an all pro and solves a long term weakness. Becton is a one year wonder and I think we all trust Stout to make Steen work as the RG. Then Williams is a rotational small DT who should be relatively easy to replace.

But the more I think about it, the more I prioritize Becton and Williams, and the less I care about Sweat.

Vic has proven that he’s able to manufacture production from the edge. Hunt and Smith are playing well above my expectations for the ceiling. And Sweat will cost a boatload even though he’s not a star.

Becton is the most elite, unique athlete among the group and he’s a key player for the best OL the NFL has seen in quite some time. Even though Steen could probably replace him to an adequate level, we’d lose not only a high end starter but also the depth that Steen provides.

Williams is similarly a unique athlete with his speed at the DT position. And I do agree with those who say a pass rusher next to Carter is like a force multiplier.

That leaves Baun. I absolutely want him back, but if we can only keep 2, I might be forced to let him walk.

Howie's war chest for 2025 appears to be $72 million less $12 million for the Rookie Draft Pool.  Why do you believe Howie can only fit 2 of the big 4 under that net $60 million?

4 minutes ago, mattwill said:

Howie's war chest for 2025 appears to be $72 million less $12 million for the Rookie Draft Pool.  Why do you believe Howie can only fit 2 of the big 4 under that net $60 million?

I wouldn't bank on that $286mm cap number. Most places are using ~$273mm as an estimate.

EDIT: FWIW, here's Spotrac's breakdown of our 2025 cap space before any moves.

17 minutes ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

 

It's certainly felt that way, especially the last few games. Completely lopsided.

Hopefully this starts to even out.

Even moving to middle of the league would be a huge difference in game outcomes.

1 minute ago, Parrot Head said:

It's certainly felt that way, especially the last few games. Completely lopsided.

Hopefully this starts to even out.

Even moving to middle of the league would be a huge difference in game outcomes.

It's even worse than that. We don't commit many penalties, so teams that do commit a lot, like the ravens, see their number of penalties go way down when they play us compared to their average. 

1 hour ago, vikas83 said:

So this is for everyone who is crapping their pants about what will we do if Jalen has to lead us back from a 2 score deficit. Because...he actually did that on Sunday.

Down 9-0. 10:55 left in Q2, we get the ball on the Ravens 49 after a defensive hold. Hurts goes 3/3 for 33 yards, runs once for 8 yards. Accounts for 41 yards and throws the TD to Goedert, while Barkley ran twice for 8 yards (1 yard loss, 9 yard gain). 

Next drive, down 9-7, we get the ball at our 32. Hurts goes 4/5 for 53 yards, runs for 9 yards to convert a 3rd down and sneaks in for the TD. 63 yards on the drive, Barkley ran 2x for 10 yards (had a 5 yard penalty, hence 73 total yards). So when we needed it -- 7/8 for 86 yards and a TD, 3 carries for 18 yards and a TD. And we never give up the lead.

There's a difference between not being asked to throw it all over the field and being incapable of doing so. Since the bye, when we have had to lean more on the pass game, Jalen has delivered. 

 

Hurts is capable of getting it done in the passing game. No, he's not an elite passer. But he's led scoring drives and game-winning drives that included his passing, and even some drives that were all his passing down the field, or drives with minimal rushing from Barkley. 

Facts don't matter to some people though, they swear he "never" or "can't" do something no matter how many times he does it. Again, not saying he doesn't have flaws or that he's a great passer. But the extremes people go to are absurd.