3 hours ago, DeathByEagle said:

I still keep seeing people talk about the cap. I think at this point we have to think the Eagles are just going to take the penalties for being over the cap. We know there is no way teams like the Eagles and Saints are going to get under the cap next year "IF" the league drops the cap to the lowest possible number. Now I dont think the league will go that low. I think they will work with the owners and come up with a number that all the teams can reach. The other teams wont mind cause they will get more cap to spend. However if somehow they get screwed they will just take the consequences of being over the cap with loss of draft pick(s) and a fine. 

That will be a terrible penalty for this team.   They won't have flexibility to sign free agents, and they would lose one or more draft picks, while desperately needing to add talent.  That UDFA pool will be a major focus, and they will have to find a gem in there somehow.

1 minute ago, Iggles_Phan said:

That will be a terrible penalty for this team.   They won't have flexibility to sign free agents, and they would lose one or more draft picks, while desperately needing to add talent.  That UDFA pool will be a major focus, and they will have to find a gem in there somehow.

I doubt they do that

3 hours ago, DeathByEagle said:

They really didnt have much more success with Foles, but they had success with Foles because they did adjust there scheme for him. They ran the ball more under Foles and changed to the RPO scheme that Foles had success with. Honestly Wentz best scheme was RPO as well but for some reason Doug never uses it and for some reason wants to throw 70% of the game when Wentz is in the game. Its almost like Doug is trying to force Wentz into success by giving him more attempts instead of just letting it come naturally and putting him in the best position for him. I also think Doug is just trying to be bull headed and try to prove the media/fans wrong that his way works when it clearly doesnt. As many say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Doug has pasted by that and needs a straitjacket. 

I could be wrong here but I don't think Wentz has been so successful using the RPO? I mean he should be because actually he's more mobile than Foles so in theory it could be a RRPO? But I think he struggles with those short quick passes. He can't hit guys in the flat or on swing plays.

16 minutes ago, UK_EaglesFan89 said:

I could be wrong here but I don't think Wentz has been so successful using the RPO? I mean he should be because actually he's more mobile than Foles so in theory it could be a RRPO? But I think he struggles with those short quick passes. He can't hit guys in the flat or on swing plays.

He "can't"  isn't true, he can, but this year he struggles with almost every kind of pass. He hasn't been consistent.

9 hours ago, Westbrook#36 said:

QB1 - Wentz

RB1 - Sanders

RB2 - Rookie

WR1 - Fulgham

WR2 - Reagor

WR3 - Watkins

TE1 - Ertz

TE2 - Goedert

LT - Mailata

LG - Seumalo

C - Rookie/FA

RG - Brooks

RT - Johnson

 

DE - Barnett

DE - Graham

DT - Cox

DT - Hargrave

OLB - Rookie/FA

MLB - Singleton

OLB - Edwards

S - McLeod

S - Wallace

CB1 - Slay

CB2 - FA

 

P - Johnston

K - Elliot 

WTF in a deep CB draft in cap hell would you sign a FA CB2?  Edwards as an OLB?  Rookie at C or FA at C?  There is no way they trust a rookie at C to start the season. Either Seumalo, Herbig or Juriga if Kelce retires.  Watkins at WR3?  Is it all the snaps he has had this season that convinced you?  

Think I caught all the predictions so far. Here is what I have 

                                    Eagles.      Browns
westbrook#36.              19.              37
devpool.                          20.              28
alphagrand.                    16.              30
greend.                             9.               47
in2football.                     27.              21

2 hours ago, Dwide Schrude said:

I was one of those people, but my expectations weren’t that they would win 11 or 12 games & be a Super Bowl contender. It was more that I thought it was a realistic ceiling for this team, and there was a plausible scenario for that to happen. I felt it was similar to the 2017 season, where if so many things could go right that postseason success could happen. I still thought it was a talented team & Super Bowl window wasn’t closed. I saw plenty of winnable games, and the ability to match up to better opponents like GB, LAR, DAL, and Pit. BAL, SF, SEA, and NO were the games I expected to lose. 

First they had to be healthy. I expected normal level of play across from most starters. 

Then the biggest question marks on the team, where their performance would be the biggest contributor to how far the team could go or how fast it could stink, and there wasn’t enough certainty for them yet. Most important ones to me was Slay and his impact in the secondary and what the WR group looks like. After that: Could Dillard hold down the LT spot, will Barnett step up at DE this year, can Reagor be the true speed threat to unlock the offense, how does Mills hold up at SS, will Seumalo become consistent at LG, how does Maddox fare as CB2. 
 

realistically I figured we’d go 9-7/10-6 also, but I wouldn’t of been that surprised if we had been a 11+ win team. I didn’t expect injuries to be this bad & I definitely didn’t expect the Wentz we’ve seen in 9 games now. 

Yeah i don’t think anyone could have imagined wentz playing this bad nor the massive amount of injuries that the eagles endured at nearly every position on the football field. 

when i looked at 2020 roster when we had the discussion in the offseason i had an overwhelming amount of questions. i had questions about whether the second corner spot would be a thorn in our side even with slay because maddox imo isn’t an outside corner and they really didn’t bring in anyone to compete with him. I had a feeling teams would just continue to pick on him and stay away from slay because he wasn’t good enough to be playing outside. Also i disliked the depth they had at the position. Jones was unreliable to stay on the field. I’d argue He fell out of favor with Schwartz so he was never a realistic option. douglas didn’t fit our scheme. I questioned jalen mills would be able to play at a starting caliber safety level in his first year really transitioning to the position. And if he failed i didn’t think parks was good enough to start. He’s a quality backup but more snaps he plays the more he gets exposed. I also question if Rodney mcleod was still good enough to playing as the single high safety at this stage of his career. At linebacker i think we all figured it would be bad. They set themselves up to be an issue all season. I also questioned whether or not malik jackson would be the player he was in 2017 again after the injury and he wasn’t great in 2018. Could even question if this was the year Graham would finally decline at 33 and Barnett would have to step up due to that decline  

On offense, i didn’t like what they did at WR. Just relying on desean was a mistake. At 34 and being injury prone you knew he was a ticking time bomb. It wasn’t if but when. Add on they brought in 3 rookies during a pandemic offseason and just expected they’d hit the ground running was a flawed plan even if reagor didn’t get hurt. I said before week one just cause you added more talent doesn’t mean you are better. You have the potential to be better but relying on rookies is a bumpy road and it isn’t always pretty week to week. Then i thought LT could go either way. I wasn’t sold as much as others were with dillard. He has upside and potential but i didn’t think it was a lock he’d just be good. And the rumors surrounding him didn’t exactly make the situation better. once Brooks got hurt that just made for another question mark if peters could make the transition to guard smoothly or if pryor was actually good enough to be a starter. Pryor has proven not to be but herbig has been better than I thought he would. 

Wentz performing like he has i don’t think anyone saw that coming which really hurt any expectations people could have had. the coaching imo has been about where it has over the last two years. We’ve complained the last two years this team for whatever reason we can’t figure out their personnel and how to utilize it properly until around December when they finally figure it out. that’s become a trend. The injuries clearly have hurt the eagles. 

nevertheless if this roster stayed healthy and some of the question marks went the eagles way i thought they could get to 10 wins as a max, which i didn’t count on them staying completely healthy. realistically i thought the construction of the roster looked more like a 8/9 win team if wentz played like he did down the stretch last year. but i also thought the eagles run at the end of last year was fools gold with a much more difficult schedule. i actually thought the eagles would go 4-2 inside the division and either Washington or the giants improved enough and it being a divisional game where they’d surprise the eagles with a loss they didn’t have the previous couple years so that also went into my thinking. 

2 hours ago, EagleJoe8 said:

He was really only great in his first game back for us against the Redskins. Since then, he’s done nothing of significance in the games he has played. Best to cut ties and not even think of bringing him back. 

Djax is done here.  For 2 seasons, he resides in IR and has not been healthy.  He won't be better health-wise next season.  So let him go.

For a long time, the team does not have a strong pipeline of young and rising players.  They have held on to older players too long and taken the game snaps away from young players, critical element of their development.  Expect a major make-over in the off-season.

Coaching staff also needs some changes.  They should have an OC to streamline the inputs from different offensive coaches and let Doug have a focus game approach.  The execution of play has been poor and inconsistent.  Simplify the plays and more repetitive practices could help. 

1 minute ago, Penn7980 said:

Djax is done here.  For 2 seasons, he resides in IR and has not been healthy.  He won't be better health-wise next season.  So let him go.

For a long time, the team does not have a strong pipeline of young and rising players.  They have held on to older players too long and taken the game snaps away from young players, critical element of their development.  Expect a major make-over in the off-season.

Coaching staff also needs some changes.  They should have an OC to streamline the inputs from different offensive coaches and let Doug have a focus game approach.  The execution of play has been poor and inconsistent.  Simplify the plays and more repetitive practices could help. 

Yeah they definitely need a major makeover in a number of areas. Coaching staff for sure, but also it has to start with Howie. Until he is replaced, I don’t see much changing. 

9 minutes ago, EagleJoe8 said:

Yeah they definitely need a major makeover in a number of areas. Coaching staff for sure, but also it has to start with Howie. Until he is replaced, I don’t see much changing. 

How many years have we been saying that?

14 hours ago, eagle45 said:

Alright, change of pace...predict the starting lineup for 2021.  Not what you want...what you expect.

My prediction to start the season:

QB: Wentz, Hurts

RB: Sanders, Scott, Rookie, Clement

OL: LT: Mailata  LG: Seumalo OC: Kelce  RG: Brooks  RT: Johnson.  I think Dillard is moved this offseason probably for a 4th round pick. They looked into trading him last offseason.  I don't think they would hesitate to pull the trigger.  I think it's entirely possible that Kelce retires especially if he views the next season as a rebuild which it may look like for cap reasons.  If that's the case, I think they will add a OG through FA and the draft.

WR: Reagor/Fulgham/Hightower/Ward/Watkins

TE: Goedert/Dick Rod - I think Ertz likely is a June 1st release or trade for a 2022 pick

DE: Graham/Barnett/Sweat/Rookie (1st Round pick)

DT: Cox/Hargrave/Rookie (1st or 2nd Round pick) Jackson is going to be a cap casualty.

LB: Edwards/Bradley/Taylor/FA/Draft Pick

CB: Slay CB: Maddox CB: Rookie 2nd or 3rd round pick

S: McLeod/Wallace Mills. Epps - I think Mills will probably be back again because of his flexibility.  I think Wallace will be given a chance to beat him out and will. 

14 hours ago, bpac55 said:

The question was what do we expect....not what we want.  I don't expect the Eagles to make wholesale roster changes unfortunately.  Their hands are going to be tied with their cap too.

The last thing I WANT is any of these linebackers back let alone starting.

You're right - I read the question wrong.  I feel traumatized by him but still he's in his last year and I can't see them bringing him back. 

9 hours ago, eagle45 said:

What I'd *like* to see...again, this is not the best 22 possible, just a repositioning 22:

QB: Wentz

RB: Sanders

LT: Dillard LG: Driscoll OC: Seumalo RG: Brooks RT: Lane (Mailata after trade deadline, yup, I went there)

WR: Reagor/Fulgham/high draft pick

TE: Goedert

DE (rotation): Sweat/high draft pick/vet FA or Barnett on the cheap

DT (rotation): Hargrave, mid-round pick, cheap vet FA (Yup, trade the big guy).

Yes, I blew up the DL.  Better to do it this offseason while they are the perceived strength of the team and get some value.  They are criminally overpaid and it will get worse with each passing year.  

LB: Edwards/Taylor/Bradley.  Fish or cut bait on these young draft picks.

CB: Slay/draft pick/LeBlanc

S: McLeod/Wallace

 

Not a good starting lineup, not at all.  But they face the music with their young players and they'll know what they have (or don't have in them).  With the way they run things now, we'll be entering 2022 not knowing what we have in Mailata, Wallace, or Taylor.

It still gives Wentz enough stability on the OL and another weapon at WR to prove himself.  So despite the youth movement, it doesn't hang him out to dry in his make or break year.  

I agree with you but the thing is they have the perfect opportunity to do it this year too.  They have to be serious with themselves and realize this is not a SB contending or even a playoff team.  

Why Mailata, Hightower, Watkins, Taylor, Bradley, Wallace and other young guys are not getting significant snaps is beyond me.  They could be getting serious looks and letting coaches know if they have a player or not.  There's absolutely no excuse to not play them now.  It would help them facilitate offseason trades, set their draft board and know who needs to be coached up better.  This is one of the more infuriating things with this team right now.

6 minutes ago, NCiggles said:

My prediction to start the season:

QB: Wentz, Hurts

RB: Sanders, Scott, Rookie, Clement

OL: LT: Mailata  LG: Seumalo OC: Kelce  RG: Brooks  RT: Johnson.  I think Dillard is moved this offseason probably for a 4th round pick. They looked into trading him last offseason.  I don't think they would hesitate to pull the trigger.  I think it's entirely possible that Kelce retires especially if he views the next season as a rebuild which it may look like for cap reasons.  If that's the case, I think they will add a OG through FA and the draft.

WR: Reagor/Fulgham/Hightower/Ward/Watkins

TE: Goedert/Dick Rod - I think Ertz likely is a June 1st release or trade for a 2022 pick

DE: Graham/Barnett/Sweat/Rookie (1st Round pick)

DT: Cox/Hargrave/Rookie (1st or 2nd Round pick) Jackson is going to be a cap casualty.

LB: Edwards/Bradley/Taylor/FA/Draft Pick

CB: Slay CB: Maddox CB: Rookie 2nd or 3rd round pick

S: McLeod/Wallace Mills. Epps - I think Mills will probably be back again because of his flexibility.  I think Wallace will be given a chance to beat him out and will. 

You're right - I read the question wrong.  I feel traumatized by him but still he's in his last year and I can't see them bringing him back. 

It would be funny that the f.o. offered Ertz a decent contract which he turned down and then he plays so bad he's gone

Just now, bpac55 said:

I agree with you but the thing is they have the perfect opportunity to do it this year too.  They have to be serious with themselves and realize this is not a SB contending or even a playoff team.  

Why Mailata, Hightower, Watkins, Taylor, Bradley, Wallace and other young guys are not getting significant snaps is beyond me.  They could be getting serious looks and letting coaches know if they have a player or not.  There's absolutely no excuse to not play them now.  It would help them facilitate offseason trades, set their draft board and know who needs to be coached up better.  This is one of the more infuriating things with this team right now.

They still have a chance at the playoffs and until they don't they will play what in their mind is the best team they can field. It's really not all that mysterious.

1 minute ago, greend said:

They still have a chance at the playoffs and until they don't they will play what in their mind is the best team they can field. It's really not all that mysterious.

Sorta kinda. Since this year is a bust at the gate, isn't it the ideal time to play the young guys? It doesn't really matter what the product looks like; it's in 2021 (hopefully) that it will matter again.

8 hours ago, EaglePhan1986 said:

Alshon is the only one I think is definitely gone. Wouldn’t be shocked at all if Desean is released then brought back on a real low contract. He’s made of glass but if he doesn’t get touched or falls down he’s great. 

0% chance DJack is back.  What's the last meaningful snap he's played?  They absolutely can't keep having players on the team who you know are going to be injured just eating up roster spots.  He offers nothing.  It stinks.  Much like JP, DJack offered some of the best years of his career as an Eagle.  Fan fav for many of us at times.  It's just time.

 

Just now, justrelax said:

Sorta kinda. Since this year is a bust at the gate, isn't it the ideal time to play the young guys? It doesn't really matter what the product looks like; it's in 2021 (hopefully) that it will matter again.

Maybe in your eyes, but I assure you the f.o. and coaching staff don't agree or it would be happening, right? Personally I think most of the young guys are better than the old ones at certain positions so I would field them and tell guys like Alshon to go sit on the bench. 

1 hour ago, greend said:

I doubt they do that

Agreed.  But, that is the penalty if they don't get under the cap.  And it would be a harsh one for a team trying to rebuild.

 

But, Howie will likely kick the can into 2022, where there is a better cap situation, and he'll just make the future worse, as he has for a while now.   What he really needs to do is be kicked to the curb a bit and they need to clean house a bit.   And some of these guys will need to either retire, be traded (for peanuts, or for 'conditional' picks, and/or swap picks) or just be let go. 

 

The amazing thing is the way that Howie has structured some of these guys' contracts to lower the number in past years... Let me give you some examples.
You look at 2022, and there's $50M in cap space, but that's with only 29 players 'under contract'. (Marquise Goodwin is counted as well, but with no cap hit, so let's ignore him....) 

But, here's a bunch of them that count as 'under contract'.

These are guys with 'voided' years, that spread their cap hits out over a wide margin.  That's over $19M in 'dead' money to 6 guys that have no business being on this team in 2022.  You can add Rodney McLeod to that list as well, but he 'only' costs $1.8M.   That makes the grand total about $21M in dead money to 7 aging vets that won't be on the team, but that Howie has kicked down the road for so long.  And multiples of these guys never should have been signed like this: Desean, Jeffery, Malik Jackson... just horrible mis-management.   And, so when you remove these names from being 'under contract' it means, it's really only 22 players under contract, with only $50M available.   

 

In 2022, they have 6 guys slated to count more than $14M on the cap for that season.   1 of which is over $20M (Slay comes in under $20M by just $250k), and the QB at over $30M.   Those 6 players count for over $120M on the cap in 2022!   (Wentz - $31.2M, Cox - $23.8M, Slay - $19.8M, Brooks - $17.5M, Hargrave - $14.5M, Johnson - $14.0M)

 

Just a terrible situation.  Which of those guys is playing on the field near that level of money, and more importantly, will be TWO years from now?

7 minutes ago, greend said:

Maybe in your eyes, but I assure you the f.o. and coaching staff don't agree or it would be happening, right? Personally I think most of the young guys are better than the old ones at certain positions so I would field them and tell guys like Alshon to go sit on the bench. 

I'd give Alshon a one-way bus ticket to the destination of his choice.

10 minutes ago, Asg 15 said:

How many years have we been saying that?

So he took over as GM in 2010.  I think everyone was happy with him as a replacement for Banner and our ire was more directed at Reid.  In 2011, everyone loved him because it was the dream team season.  2012 people generally liked the draft but they were done with Reid and especially his disastrous decision to make Juan Castillo the DC.  2013 he added Chip Kelly.  He had a solid draft. In 2014, no one was really that happy with him and everyone WTF'd the Marcus Smith pick. He did add Malcolm Jenkins as a FA although people thought he wasn't the FA safety he should have targeted.  In 2015, Chip fired Howie.  Howie returned triumphant in early 2016.  People did not like the Pederson hire.  He added Brandon Brooks as a FA.  Everyone wanted on the Gus Bus or Adam Gase.  People, though, thought the trades to get up to the 2nd pick were genius.   They Then moving Bradford for a 1st round pick was considered just the best trade the organization has ever made. In 2017, he signed Alshon and added Torrey Smith.  Both were very good moves and moves that Banner should have made early in McNabb's career. They added Chance Warmack who was very good pick up.   People were meh about the Barnett pick. He then added Chris Long and Blount. He traded Matthews for Darby which seemed like a very good move.  We won the Super Bowl.  2018 we still thought Howie was a genius but people did not like the Tate move. Wallace was added a FA and that was questionable move given the team could have kept Smith or signed John Brown.   The Malik Jackson signing seemed out of nowhere and expensive. 2019 the Dillard pick seemed smart but maybe a little too smart.  The Sanders pick was OK but it's not like Sanders was a consensus 2nd round pick.  People had mixed reaction to JJAW given DK's availability and the need at Safety. They traded for Desean and while people nostalgically were enthusiastic there were reservations given his age and injury history.  2020 has been kind of a WTF year.  

So to answer your question, the last 2 seasons but that is due in large part because of poor decisions since 2017. 

39 minutes ago, Asg 15 said:

How many years have we been saying that?

Eleventeen? 🤔

17 minutes ago, greend said:

Maybe in your eyes, but I assure you the f.o. and coaching staff don't agree or it would be happening, right? Personally I think most of the young guys are better than the old ones at certain positions so I would field them and tell guys like Alshon to go sit on the bench. 

So, personally we agree but it doesn't matter since the f.o. and coaches don't. They'll say, "Hey, we're in first place!"

6 hours ago, Saltpeter said:

The weirdest part of this season is that outside of LB the Eagles "fixed" most of their perceived major needs going into the season.

1. Speed at WR -- Hightower and Reagor both have stretched defenses this year. Speed hasn't been an issue.

2. Big pass plays on defense/getting a #1 CB -- Slay has been excellent. Hardly any X plays over the top.

3. Edge rush improvement -- Graham, Barnett, and Sweat are all having the best years of their career. No issues with that unit at all.

Really goes to show how deep the Wentz and coaching issues really are.

And the LBs, my goodness. Rodney McLeod was asked a question today about the Giants purposely running a bunch of 12 personnel to keep the Eagles in base, and he tried so hard not to throw that unit under the bus lol. 

I understand your points and agree but I'm going to add the other side of the story.

1. For all that speed they added, when was their last deep pass play?  Any long TD passes? 

-Hightower had a 59 yard catch in week 7, 50 yard in week 6.  It's been 4 weeks since his last catch.  No TD's

-Reagor had his 55 yard catch in week 1.  His long since returning has been 16 yards.

-Fulgham had a 40 yard catch in week 7.  4 weeks ago.

 

2. Yes, big plays aren't being given up and that's great but where are the INT's?  

-The Eagles CB's have ZERO INTERCEPTIONS. 

-Their corners, Slay, Maddox, NRC and LeBlanc (including MIlls) have 11 PBU on the year.  Sidney Jones has 9 for the Jags!!!  Bradberry has 14 for the Giants. 

 

3.BG is playing well.  Didn't do anything against the Giants.

-I love Josh Sweat and want him to succeed and hopefully start next year but he hasn't had a sack since week 4.  He also crashed hard on Daniel Jones TD.

-Barnett gets sacks but they just seem like stat fillers, not sacks that affect the outcome of the game.

 

What this tells me is that the Eagles still  lack playmakers, game changers guys that can really put their footprint on the game.  They may have added speed but it isn't creating big plays.  They added Slay but they are not forcing turnovers at all.  This defense sorely lacks in that department.  They get sacks but besides BG, which DE is making a difference in a game?  I've been pounding the table for playmakers.  The Eagles lack them in the worst way. 

2 minutes ago, bpac55 said:

I understand your points and agree but I'm going to add the other side of the story.

1. For all that speed they added, when was their last deep pass play?  Any long TD passes? 

-Hightower had a 59 yard catch in week 7, 50 yard in week 6.  It's been 4 weeks since his last catch.  No TD's

-Reagor had his 55 yard catch in week 1.  His long since returning has been 16 yards.

-Fulgham had a 40 yard catch in week 7.  4 weeks ago.

 

2. Yes, big plays aren't being given up and that's great but where are the INT's?  

-The Eagles CB's have ZERO INTERCEPTIONS. 

-Their corners, Slay, Maddox, NRC and LeBlanc (including MIlls) have 11 PBU on the year.  Sidney Jones has 9 for the Jags!!!  Bradberry has 14 for the Giants. 

 

3.BG is playing well.  Didn't do anything against the Giants.

-I love Josh Sweat and want him to succeed and hopefully start next year but he hasn't had a sack since week 4.  He also crashed hard on Daniel Jones TD.

-Barnett gets sacks but they just seem like stat fillers, not sacks that affect the outcome of the game.

 

What this tells me is that the Eagles still  lack playmakers, game changers guys that can really put their footprint on the game.  They may have added speed but it isn't creating big plays.  They added Slay but they are not forcing turnovers at all.  This defense sorely lacks in that department.  They get sacks but besides BG, which DE is making a difference in a game?  I've been pounding the table for playmakers.  The Eagles lack them in the worst way. 

They keep adding players each year but they dont pan out here. This is not a playmaker issue, its a coaching/scheme issue. Both sides of the ball

5 minutes ago, DeathByEagle said:

They keep adding players each year but they dont pan out here. This is not a playmaker issue, its a coaching/scheme issue. Both sides of the ball

I think it's both.  When you depend on 3rd day lottery picks to be your gamebreakers that's a problem.  When your CB2 is a 5-9 slot corner that's a problem.  When you continually add the same type of defensive end, that's a problem.  Sweat is the outlier as a physical specimen but has the injury past.  

To your point, the coaches aren't getting the best out of their players both by progression and scheme.  Looking at Jones/Douglas having success is the perfect example.  

It's across the board which makes the future seem so dim.