10 minutes ago, CaliEagle said:

I think we CB and OL will be most of our draft. I expect us to draft 2 or 3 OL and two CBs. The rest of the picks will be used to fill in whatever else we can.  I'm just thinking we might not go OL in Round 1 unless there is a pick worthy where we are drafting or unless we get a big haul in a trade.

There's literally one O-lineman worthy of a top ten pick. That's Sewell, and he should go top 4 easily. 

1 hour ago, ManuManu said:

No. 

Geez John it's been an hour and already the best option is evelating from within?  What GREAT sports reporting my goodness.  Don't even bother to give us a list of who's available, who's a hot college name or anything else.  How can I be a freaking reporter.  Pathetic.

2 minutes ago, DeathByEagle said:

His contract is expiring after this season. Not sure that means hes stepping down and being claimed as a fall guy. 

Also if he were being used as a fall guy I doubt he'd be considering retirement, as is the rumor now. He'd probably just carry on coaching somewhere else after taking a break.

1 hour ago, ManuManu said:

 

How do you lose a huge portion of your fanbase?  By doing this.  This wasn't a freak off track season.  This was year after year of bad contracts, bad drafting, bad personnel decisions, bad coaching.  This is so disheartening yet not surprising.  Newsflash, current leadership is the problem and why we are here.

2 minutes ago, bpac55 said:

Geez John it's been an hour and already the best option is evelating from within?  What GREAT sports reporting my goodness.  Don't even bother to give us a list of who's available, who's a hot college name or anything else.  How can I be a freaking reporter.  Pathetic.

What's concerning is that there are some awesome college DCs who are not going to want to come here under Doug in these circumstances. Leonard or Freeman are better off staying.

Raheem Morris is going to be the best external DC option. Watch us end up with Kris Richard though.

1 hour ago, CaliEagle said:

Press Taylor will probably be the only one who will be shown the door.

That and they'll rejigger their passing whatever-they-have. Sounds about right.

1 hour ago, LeanMeanGM said:

More significant staff changes!
 

AKA firing Dave Fipp.

or naming Duce Staley Assistant TO the Head Coach rather than his Assistant HC title.

12 minutes ago, Sack that QB said:

If this wasn't Schwartz idea, could give credence to them making Schwartz the fall guy for all this. Which would be so lame.

To be honest I just thought this was a way that the Eagles just didn’t want to retain him and he was ready to move on (maybe he knows doug is coming back and he doesn’t see a chance at ever becoming a HC staying here). the eagles didn’t want him to look bad cause they appreciate and like Schwartz. if they said they just didn’t want to extend his contract then it looks optically poor for Schwartz. Furthermore Schwartz can say he’s mulling retirement and then can come back and say he’s rejuvenated later on and even more committed after spending time away from the game. This seems like the eagles typical mutual parting of the ways spin

1 minute ago, bpac55 said:

How do you lose a huge portion of your fanbase?  By doing this.  This wasn't a freak off track season.  This was year after year of bad contracts, bad drafting, bad personnel decisions, bad coaching.  This is so disheartening yet not surprising.  Newsflash, current leadership is the problem and why we are here.

Lurie isn't hearing chants in the Linc. You can bet he isn't  listening to talk radio or checking message boards. He probably has assistants who handle his mail.   So, he is probably disconnected to the public's perception and he probably is only influenced when it is aired over TV such as chants during games or fans wearing bags over their heads. With no fans in attendance, it makes it easier for him to disregard how fans feel about Howie and talent evaluation.

1 minute ago, bpac55 said:

or naming Duce Staley Assistant TO the Head Coach rather than his Assistant HC title.

Yep. Duce will get a fancy new title, maybe even in calligraphy! 

What reporters have an inside source on the Eagles? None that I can think of. So relax and wait and see what happens.

Howie already hired his personnel guy, forget his name, but his reputation was a good personnel guy over his head with other GM duties.

Pederson has to go, can't see a good HC prospect wanting to work with a HC who wants to call plays, it's not like learning under Big Red - plus Peddy seems to be tied to the RPO, so unless you're drafting Lawrence, Fields or another ultra-athletic QB with a big arm, can't see it working with Wentz and don't see Hurts as a great fit in that role.

With Schwartz gone, moves may have to wait until they hire a new DC, and find out what he wants - doubt any DC will want as many resources committed to the DL as Schwartz demanded.

1 minute ago, CaliEagle said:

Lurie isn't hearing chants in the Linc. You can bet he isn't  listening to talk radio or checking message boards. He probably has assistants who handle his mail.   So, he is probably disconnected to the public's perception and he probably is only influenced when it is aired over TV such as chants during games or fans wearing bags over their heads. With no fans in attendance, it makes it easier for him to disregard how fans feel about Howie and talent evaluation.

Yep. Duce will get a fancy new title, maybe even in calligraphy! 

Lurie shouldn't give a fig about fan opinions, in the end, if you win all is forgiven, if you bring in someone new and they fail, fans will be just as pissed off.

Just now, austinfan said:

Lurie shouldn't give a fig about fan opinions, in the end, if you win all is forgiven, if you bring in someone new and they fail, fans will be just as pissed off.

He should care about fans' opinions if the fans are right.  If the fans are wrong, then yeah, he shouldn't listen.

1 hour ago, CaliEagle said:

I think we CB and OL will be most of our draft. I expect us to draft 2 or 3 OL and two CBs. The rest of the picks will be used to fill in whatever else we can.  I'm just thinking we might not go OL in Round 1 unless there is a pick worthy where we are drafting or unless we get a big haul in a trade.

I don't think we need that many OL in the draft.  Our OL was mostly bad because we were playing backups to the backup and every week (except for the last 2) we had a different OL combination playing so zero cohesiveness.  That part plays a big factor in how the entire OL plays.  One bad player (Brown/Pryor) and the whole thing goes to ish.

Let's see what we have on OL for 2021.

LT:  Mailata/Dillard

LG:  Seumalo/?/Driscoll

C :  Kelce/Seumalo

RG:  Brooks/Herbig/Driscoll

RT:  LJ/Mailata/Driscoll

Pryor should be let go.  We also have Toth, The Prince and Juriga.  How who knows what we have in those 3, but the above lineup is not bad.  Of course a lot of that depends on the fitness of both Brooks and Lane.  Brooks seems on target to be back to form and when he is fit he's one of the best at his position.  Lane is sort of the ? at this point.  Kelce is also a ? as to whether this is finally the season he decided to call it quits.  Maybe he doesn't feel like getting beat up for a couple more season during a rebuild/reset? 

This is one reason I'm cool with the idea of a team offering to trade up and fall back to the 12-15 range and pickup extra picks (another 2nd this draft and/or a 1st/2nd in 2022) and draft Wyatt Davis.  Adding him would really help this OL and give us options now and moving forward.

Here's some OL combinations we could see next season:

If Lane is still out:   Dillard/Mailata - Seumalo - Kelce - Brooks/Davis/Herbig - Mailata/Driscoll

If Kelce retires:  Mailata/Dillard - Davis - Seumalo - Brooks/Herbig - Lane/Mailata/Driscoll

IMO, they should at least let Mailata and Dillard battle it out for the starting LT position and my money would be on Mailata.  His ceiling is higher, he's only getting started and he looked very competent this season playing in his FIRST NFL games.  The more he plays the better he'll get.  He should be given every opportunity to reach his potential.  Herbig has been rated the 4th best OG pass blocker the past 4 weeks (something like that).  He needs to get better fitness, get his body in better NFL shape, and if he does then he's at worst a very capable and reliable backup.  Driscoll showed some promise and could be versatile playing either T/G.  He needs to add more strength and bulk and if he does then like Herbig he's at worst a very capable/reliable backup.  I don't think the OL is as bad as some believe.  They need more reps together and better cohesion, which after this season I think they'll have more of going into next season.  This season you had guys who had never played side by side before where next season, not so much of that.  Even with an injury or two I think they should be a better unit next season.  This season was the 'thrown into the deep end of the pool' season for too many of our OL players.  Won't be the case next season.

 

1 hour ago, phil77 said:

Doug back at HC

Will be forced to hire an official OC

 Press Taylor is gone

Gym Shorts gone

Howie will be forced to hire a draft guy

 

That is what I said will be done a while ago and that is what looks like will be gone still unsure on Press Taylor and I hope to the OC isn't Duce we need an outside voice.  And I still think Wentz and Hurts both can't be back. 

But the draft guy needs to have final say, Howie can't override him. I would think the draft guy would be the final authority on UDFAs. Who has final say on free agents? Of course Lurie is going to try to sell whatever arrangement as collaborative.

2 minutes ago, CaliEagle said:

Lurie isn't hearing chants in the Linc. You can bet he isn't  listening to talk radio or checking message boards. He probably has assistants who handle his mail.   So, he is probably disconnected to the public's perception and he probably is only influenced when it is aired over TV such as chants during games or fans wearing bags over their heads. With no fans in attendance, it makes it easier for him to disregard how fans feel about Howie and talent evaluation.

Yep. Duce will get a fancy new title, maybe even in calligraphy! 

Covid is the best thing to happen to Lurie and the worst thing to happen to the fans.  If fans were allowed this year, the boos that would have reigned down for 3/4 of the season would have been deafening.  Fans not showing up when if they were allowed would have been huge.

Nope, Covid is hiding the fans displeasure and the embarrassment we could have caused from the stands.

I'm a natural optimist but I'm feeling pretty pessimistic about the Eagles' expected moves and non-moves.

For a week or two I've felt like they'll stick with both Doug and Howie, which looks probable at this point. I think this is a mistake.

Swartz isn't perfect but he's far down on my list of improvements to be made. If he's leaving on his own accord then that's unfortunate. If he's being forced out or scapegoated, then we're in a bigger hole than I realised. I view Swartz as above average - which in 2020 is fine. You'd rather have a top O and average D than top D and average O. Top D is relative. The rules are set up for scoring. A top D just doesn't shut down an O like it used to. I think the chances of hiring someone better than Swartz are less than 50/50.

I could be completely wrong on this but I actually think they'll even keep both Wentz and Hurts. But we'll see.

8 minutes ago, RLC said:

What's concerning is that there are some awesome college DCs who are not going to want to come here under Doug in these circumstances. Leonard or Freeman are better off staying.

Raheem Morris is going to be the best external DC option. Watch us end up with Kris Richard though.

Falcons defense, especially the secondary, has been god-awful since 2015 when Morris took the job there — but, sure, he’s the best option available 

2 minutes ago, bbabraham said:

I'm a natural optimist but I'm feeling pretty pessimistic about the Eagles' expected moves and non-moves.

For a week or two I've felt like they'll stick with both Doug and Howie, which looks probable at this point. I think this is a mistake.

Swartz isn't perfect but he's far down on my list of improvements to be made. If he's leaving on his own accord then that's unfortunate. If he's being forced out or scapegoated, then we're in a bigger hole than I realised. I view Swartz as above average - which in 2020 is fine. You'd rather have a top O and average D than top D and average O. Top D is relative. The rules are set up for scoring. A top D just doesn't shut down an O like it used to. I think the chances of hiring someone better than Swartz are less than 50/50.

I could be completely wrong on this but I actually think they'll even keep both Wentz and Hurts. But we'll see.

I think they will keep them both, too. There is no proof that both can't get along. It's just media speculation that they can't be on a roster together.  I don't think Howie will want to risk trading Wentz and have him possibly rebound into an elite player.  Also, the money invested is the other key reason.  And, with Wentz having a really terrible year, they won't get as much trade value for him as they would if he were playing at a decent level.  And, if you trade Hurts, then you might not get the 2nd round value that you spent to get him in the first place or at best maybe you equal it.  Then, it brings up why did you draft him in the first place?

Just now, CaliEagle said:

I think they will keep them both, too. There is no proof that both can't get along. It's just media speculation that they can't be on a roster together.  I don't think Howie will want to risk trading Wentz and have him possibly rebound into an elite player.  Also, the money invested is the other key reason.  And, with Wentz having a really terrible year, they won't get as much trade value for him as they would if he were playing at a decent level.  And, if you trade Hurts, then you might not get the 2nd round value that you spent to get him in the first place or at best maybe you equal it.  Then, it brings up why did you draft him in the first place?

Who’s the starting QB, then?  Bigger question, how do you get the entire locker room behind that choice?

What the media says and thinks isn’t important.  What and who the players get behind and view as their leader on the field is crucial, though.  Can’t have ambiguity there.

Has anyone seen or done an analysis or "rooting guide" to figure out what wins the Eagles need to jump above the Bengals with an easier strength of schedule? If not, I think I'll do one. Sounds fun.

 

My expectation is that we lose to WAS, CIN lose to BAL, ATL lose to TB and HOU lose to TEN. So I want to figure out if its possible/probable to jump ahead of CIN from #6 to #5 pick.

23 minutes ago, DeathByEagle said:

His contract is expiring after this season. Not sure that means hes stepping down and being claimed as a fall guy. 

I wonder if his agent was rebuffed at some point when he tried to discuss an extension.  

6 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Who’s the starting QB, then?  Bigger question, how do you get the entire locker room behind that choice?

What the media says and thinks isn’t important.  What and who the players get behind and view as their leader on the field is crucial, though.  Can’t have ambiguity there.

The players have to respect the decision. If they don't, then that means they don't respect the head coach and that would be the bigger issue. And, that is the problem with Doug coming back. 

16 minutes ago, CaliEagle said:

He should care about fans' opinions if the fans are right.  If the fans are wrong, then yeah, he shouldn't listen.

Lurie should not listen to any fan that disagrees with me.  

2 minutes ago, CaliEagle said:

The players have to respect the decision. If they don't, then that means they don't respect the head coach and that would be the bigger issue.

Sure, but that decision can change week to week.  Neither QB will function at their best while looking over their shoulder, players are required to make themselves available to the media and will say stupid things, or have their words used out of context, and the offense as a whole doesn’t function if you’re using the Trubisky/Foles model.

2 minutes ago, Alphagrand said:

Sure, but that decision can change week to week.  Neither QB will function at their best while looking over their shoulder, players are required to make themselves available to the media and will say stupid things, or have their words used out of context, and the offense as a whole doesn’t function if you’re using the Trubisky/Foles model.

If you play QB in Philly, you have to have the mindset and thick skin to do it.  They shouldn't be worried about looking over their shoulder. They should be competitively driven regardless of who is on the roster.  If they don't have that makeup, then yeah they should be traded but they should've never been drafted to begin with if they don't have those qualities.