The Mini-Camp Thread

[PhillyPhanInDC]

Brookover with a bit about Smith:

Eagles' Smith ready to step up
The tight end figures to make an impact after the departure of Terrell Owens.
By Bob Brookover
Inquirer Staff Writer

L.J. Smith knows the skeptics will be out in force after the Eagles' 2005 descent to the bottom of the NFC East standings.

"Oh, yeah," the Eagles tight end said after a minicamp workout this week. "They figure you're taking away somebody who took up a lot of chunks of the stats on offense. Who's going to replace him?"

So who will replace the dearly departed Terrell Owens?

"The answer is everybody," Smith said. "We work best when everybody is touching the ball. You look at our games when we're blowing people out and everybody is touching the ball. It's not one person."

It's a valid point.

The Eagles won a lot of games before T.O. arrived, and quarterback Donovan McNabb did not exactly have a who's who of NFL targets.

"Who did they have when I came here?" asked Smith, a second-round draft pick in 2003. "When I first got here, they were talking about James Thrash and how they needed a top-echelon receiver. But they got it done even before I got here because it was a balanced attack. I think that's the best way to get where we need to be."

There's little doubt that the Eagles' passing attack will be more spread out with the departure of Owens. There's also a strong feeling that for the Eagles' offense to be successful, Smith will have to play a prominent role.

"That's nothing but a compliment," Smith said. "Every tight end isn't mentioned in every offense. There are only about 10 tight ends in the league who you might say are a big part of a team's offense."

There were only eight tight ends in the NFL last season who had more catches than Smith. Unfortunately for him, three of the eight - Dallas' Jason Witten, Washington's Chris Cooley, and the New York Giants' Jeremy Shockey - played in his team's division.

Smith, however, was one of only five tight ends who led his team in receptions. He tied running back Brian Westbrook for the team lead. Smith believes he can improve on his 61 catches for 682 yards and three touchdowns, which weren't bad numbers for a guy in his first season as a starter.

"I think you saw signs of what I can do as a starter, but it's definitely different than coming off the bench," Smith said. "As a starter, you get more opportunities, and that's all I ask for."

Smith averaged nearly five catches per game through the first 10 games of the season but caught just 12 passes in the Eagles' final six games.

"To me, it didn't seem like I was getting as many opportunities in the second half of the season," Smith said. "With all the stuff going on and with us trying to balance the offense out, I didn't see as many opportunities coming my way."

It's possible that Smith could see the ball less in 2006 because the Eagles feel as though they added a viable second option at tight end in free agent Matt Schobel.

"I think we're going to complement each other," Smith said. "There are a lot of formations in this offense where you line up two tight ends, and you can do a lot with that. We're definitely going to help each other, especially in the red zone. They can't just key on me because he's a threat also. You have to respect both of us."

And Smith thinks people will eventually respect the Eagles' offense, too, even if it is missing its most lethal weapon from the last two seasons.

"We have a mix of young guys and veterans who are ready to do the job," Smith said. "Reggie [Brown] is a young guy, but he got a lot of experience last year. Whether or not people pick us last, that doesn't really concern us. If anything, it's going to motivate us."

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

L.J. better step up.  That homo.

[ice grillin you]

nhl schedule is normally released on or about july 15th

[ice grillin you]

<-----------idiot

[JTrotter Fan]

Gotta love Howard's attitude.  He's ready to eat him some Eli.

[The BIGSTUD]

The same was said about Peppers in his first offseason. Bunkley will be fine.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

So sayeth the Iraqi minister of defense.

[BigEd76]

For those that still have an opportunity to catch Sportscenter this morning or this afternoon, there's a great Make-a-Wish segment starting around 55 minutes into the show where a New York kid with sickle cell anemia gets to help Andy Reid at minicamp for a day...

11:25AM ET
12:55PM ET
02:25PM ET

Charlie's mom talks about it