Upcoming Off-Season Thread

[PhillyPhreak54]

I'll send you a Tebow jersey...with a goPro camera in the box to capture your reaction when opening it 

[Eagles_Legendz]

Eskin is a hack.  He's worse than Missanelli. 

I don't listen to Angelo but his schtick is moderately entertaining so long as you take it for what it is.

[SD]

Angelo's a goofball, he knows he is, his schtick works great for a morning drive when peoples brains aren't thinking about sports seriously.

Eskin I never understood the love for. He's a wanna be know it all who thinks his opinion should be the end all be all. He was somewhat entertaining in the late 80's when he'd get athletes on for interviews when they were the subject of criticism. That got to his head and he's been awful since.

Mike Miss is like Bud Light. Not my favorite beer but I can drink it and he's an easy go to show. His civil rights schtick and Lebron Lebron Lebron stuff gets old. He gets bonus points for his choice in movies and his love for shows like the Wire and the Sopranos.

[phattymatty]

also for hosting philly feud. that show is amazing.

[smeags]

i almost want to see tebow get signed just for romey's reaction.

[Zanshin]

Oh, I'm totally rooting for it now. Eagles are already in drama queen mode. Let's just go for the sideshow factor.

[Eagaholic]

Teams have made trade inquiries about the availability of Jets' 2013 first-round pick Dee Milliner in the wake of the cornerback upgrades, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports.

On the surface, Milliner, who is rehabbing a season-ending torn Achilles tendon he suffered five months ago, appears expendable.

Milliner, the ninth pick and consensus top cornerback of the 2013 draft, has missed 16 games in his first two seasons due to four different injuries after undergoing five surgeries at Alabama

So who wants to start the Dee Milliner, Philadelphia Eagle thread?

[smeags]

sounds like a job for a temple grad with horrible grammar.

[Rome]

i almost want to see tebow get signed just for romey's reaction.

Seconded

[Eagaholic]

sounds like a job for a temple grad with horrible grammar.

Lol, but Dee Milliner isn't white, so that takes some wind out of the sails

[smeags]

sounds like a job for a temple grad with horrible grammar.

Lol, but Dee Milliner isn't white, so that takes some wind out of the sails

excellent point.

[hbionic]

Tebow signed. 2-yr 5 Million, 3 million guaranteed.

[ice grillin you]

Eagles sign CB Walter Thurmond (1 year, $3.25M; $2M bonus):  C+ Grade 

Chip Kelly sure loves his injured players. Walter Thurmond hasn't been able to stay healthy at all in his career. In five seasons, he has played just 36 of 80 possible games. He makes Sam Bradford look like Bruce Willis in Unbreakable.

Having said that, I don't mind this signing very much, though the grade would be much better if the Eagles didn't unnecessarily give Thurmond a $2 million signing bonus. There is definitely upside in this acquisition, as Thurmond will provide an upgrade in the secondary, if healthy. That probably won't happen though, as Thurmond's legs and knees are shot. Still, there isn't too much risk in this transaction.

Eagles sign RB Ryan Mathews (3 years, $11.5M; $5M guaranteed):  B Grade 

Most injury-prone backfield of all time, confirmed. In a shocking move, the Eagles signed Ryan Mathews to go along with DeMarco Murray. Mathews has to feel disappointed that he won't be Philadelphia's featured back at the start of the season, but he can be content in knowing that he'll start once Murray inevitably gets hurt. And then Mathews will get injured, too.

Mathews is made of glass and can't be counted on to stay healthy. He's a nice player when on the field - he rushed for 1,255 yards in 2013 - but he's just not reliable at all. However, he won't be counted on to carry the workload at the start of the season, and really, the odds are that either he or Murray will manage to stay healthy. That, along with Mathews' cheap price tag, is why I don't mind this transaction as much as the Murray signing. Mathews is very affordable and offers Philadelphia a solid insurance policy.


Eagles sign RB DeMarco Murray (5 years, $42M; $21M guaranteed):  C Grade   

When the Eagles appeared to sign Ryan Mathews yesterday, I wrote that the team had the most injury-prone backfield in NFL history. Mathews apparently didn't sign with Philadelphia after all, but it still applies: Even with the addition of Murray, the Eagles have the most injury-prone backfield the league has ever seen.

Paying Murray this sort of money - or any running back with a large workload under his belt, for that matter - is a big mistake. Murray had a whopping 498 touches last year, including the playoffs. That's crazy. Murray, who led the NFL in carries by a wide margin during the regular season (393), is bound to regress. A fantasy football-related study I've been posting over the past six seasons shows that running backs who lead the NFL in carries decline the following year. There have only been a handful of exceptions. Perhaps Murray will be one, but history is against him.

There are three other reasons why this is a sketchy signing. First, Murray has an extensive injury history. Prior to the 2014 campaign, Murray had failed to play a full season in his professional career, having missed 11 games in three years. Given how many times he handled the ball in 2014, it's likely that he'll be banged up next season. Second, this incoming running back draft class is loaded, so Philadelphia could've easily found a cheaper replacement for LeSean McCoy next month. And third, some of Murray's success last season came because of the offensive line. Murray is an outstanding player, no doubt, but his numbers were definitely inflated. Some people who have no idea what they're talking about are trying to argue that the Eagles have just as good of an offensive line as Dallas, but with Evan Mathis reportedly on the trading block and Jason Peters turning 33 this offseason, that's simply not the case.

This is not an awful signing because Murray will be a dynamic play-maker when he's on the field for the Eagles. However, he's too expensive, he's going to miss time, and he won't be as effective as he was last year, given that he's bound to wear down.


Eagles acquire QB Sam Bradford, 2015 5th-round pick, 2016 3rd/4th-round pick from Rams for QB Nick Foles, 2015 4th-round pick, 2016 2nd-round pick

Apparently, some NFL teams didn't get the memo that this was the beginning of free agency. The Rams and Eagles are among those that believe that this is the trade deadline, apparently.

The Rams are easier to analyze. They've shed Sam Bradford's awful contract and obtained Nick Foles in return. They even improved their positioning in the 2015 and 2016 NFL Drafts on top of it to sweeten the deal. Bradford has not been able to stay healthy at all, and while Nick Foles is somewhat of a limited quarterback, he's more reliable in terms of staying on the field. He has also posted better numbers than Bradford thus far, though, to be fair, he has enjoyed better weapons at his disposal. He'll have more trouble being effective in St. Louis, though the Rams will be able to move on from him much easier than they could have from Bradford, otherwise.

As for the Eagles, this move is puzzling, to say the least. It was initially reported that the Eagles and Rams would swap first-round picks, which made sense because it gave Philadelphia ammunition to move up for Marcus Mariota. However, the first-round swap wasn't even close; Philadelphia actually worsened its draft position this and next April in this deal. Making matters worse, it basically guarantees that Bradford will be the starter in Philadelphia this upcoming season.

With that in mind, Philadelphia deserves an "F" grade (Duck Kielbasa?) for this trade. Bradford is highly overpaid and extremely injury-prone, and he doesn't fit Chip Kelly's offense any better than Foles did. Bradford will be hurt by the middle of October, meaning Sanchez will have to start again. Perhaps that's why Kelly overpaid Sanchez.

My condolences to all Philadelphia fans. I've gotten many frustrated texts this evening, and I can understand why. One such Eagles' fan, my friend Body Burner, texted me, "Is Chip Kelly playing Madden?" I replied: "No, because the Madden computer would've rejected this trade."

Grade for Rams - A
Grade for Eagles - F


Eagles re-sign DE/OLB Brandon Graham (4 years, $26M; $14M guaranteed):  A- Grade
 
Philadelphia's offseason has been a disaster thus far, but at least the team did something right with this re-signing. Losing Trent Cole and Brandon Graham would've been too much for the team to handle, as the pass-rushing depth was looking completely depleted.

I'm surprised Graham came back to the Eagles, as he expressed interest in playing in a 4-3 scheme. He would be better as a defensive end instead of an outside linebacker, but he proved last year that he can be extremely productive standing up. He was strong in run support all while registering 5.5 sacks in very limited snaps behind Cole and Connor Barwin. He'll obviously take on a larger role this upcoming season with Cole gone.

Eagles re-sign QB Mark Sanchez (2 years, $9M; $5.5M guaranteed):  C- Grade   

It's almost like Chip Kelly robbed a bank and is throwing away all of the money out on the street to cause mayhem. Mark Sanchez is a solid backup quarterback, as he proved last year that he can win some games when called upon. However, he's getting more than backup money. As a point of reference, the Browns paid Josh McCown $14 million over three years with $6.25 million guaranteed to be their starter. That's just about as much overall and less guaranteed per year than what Sanchez received to be the No. 2 signal-caller.

I suppose Kelly wanted a viable option in case he can't trade up for Marcus Mariota - whom I have going No. 2 overall in my 2015 NFL Mock Draft - but he still could've found a comparable backup quarterback for less money. It's possible that Kelly envisions Sanchez as next year's starter as a bridge to Brett Hundley, but it's not like the former Jet is going to take the Eagles to the playoffs. Thus, there's no real reason Kelly should've given Sanchez this type of contract.




  Eagles reportedly sign CB Byron Maxwell (6 years, $63M; $25M guaranteed):  D Grade   

Kareem Jackson received a 4-year deal worth $34 million on Saturday. Brandon Flowers inked a 4-year, $36 million contract earlier today. Both Jackson and Flowers are better and more proven than Byron Maxwell. So, with that in mind, why in the world is Maxwell getting a 6-year, $63 million deal with $25 million guaranteed from Philadelphia?

This contract makes no sense. Maxwell is physically gifted, but he has never been a No. 1 cornerback in the NFL. Richard Sherman was on the other side of the field in Seattle, but Maxwell won't have that sort of luxury in Philadelphia. He also won't have two excellent safeties like Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor aiding him. Asking him to do everything in Philadelphia's secondary is a bit ridiculous, and it's almost certain to backfire.

There's a slight chance this signing works out. As mentioned, Maxwell has lots of talent, and at 27, he'll be in his prime for most of the duration of this contract. He also fits into the defensive scheme well. However, the Eagles are overpaying a player who has never proven that he can cover No. 1 receivers, so there's too much of a risk involved.


Bills acquire RB LeSean McCoy from Eagles for LB Kiko Alonso

LeSean McCoy is the more prominent player, but Buffalo is definitely the loser in this trade. McCoy is only 26 (27 in July), but he already has 1,463 carries under his belt, and that doesn't include all of the receptions he has secured over his career. His numbers were down this past season (4.2 YPC), as his 2013 figures (5.1 YPC) were inflated because teams paid so much attention to DeSean Jackson. McCoy will have the same luxury in Buffalo with Sammy Watkins serving as a downfield threat, but the Bills won't be getting the best of McCoy for very long, as he'll undoubtedly be crossing 2,000 career carries after the next two seasons.

As you can tell, I don't like this move very much for Buffalo. The running back class entering the 2015 NFL Draft is a very talented one, so why trade a stud defensive player for an aging back? Why not just select a running back in the second or third round?

The Eagles, meanwhile, are getting a very talented linebacker in Kiko Alonso. The former Duck - no shock that Chip Kelly traded for him - had a superb rookie year, especially in coverage. He was a three-down player who will serve as an upgrade over DeMeco Ryans, who didn't play as well in 2014. Alonso is coming off a torn ACL, but that happened before the season, so he's had plenty of time to recover. Alonso is only 24, so there's no reason to think that he won't be 100 percent by the start of the season.

Philadelphia now has a major hole at running back, but that's not a huge deal. As mentioned, the running back class is a great one, and running backs effectively grow on trees, so Kelly will be able to land a replacement.

Grade for Bills - C
Grade for Eagles - A-

[Dillen]

I'm not reading that wall of text but giving the Maxwell signing a D grade is dumb as hell. Yeah he is overpaid and has never had to be the leader of a defense, but this team had half of a cornerback and signed the best one on the market, in his prime. Just lol.

And an A for bringing back Brandon Graham? It's Brandon Graham.

[Rome]

I don't know where that slop came from but some of it is LOL hilarious.