Time to look forward to the draft again...

[ice grillin you]

List your top 5 defensive players on the team in terms of value to the team in 2007.

i have no idea what you mean by value but the five BEST players going into next year are

1. lito
2. sheldon
3. dawk
4. howard
5. patterson

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

4. howard
5. patterson

I am extremely surprised that you would put those two ahead of "killa Cole".

I'm not saying it's not a valid opinion, but it's a surprise coming from Cole's biggest fan.

[ice grillin you]

well truth be told i think cole is a better player than patterson but patterson is all they have at DT and thus more important...so i kind of cheated on that one

[MadMarchHare]

Sheldon the corner has been adequate this season.
Sheldon the tackler, however, has been a piece of donkey shtein.

[rjs246]

Sheldon the corner has been adequate this season.
Sheldon the tackler, however, has been a piece of donkey shtein.

Very well put.

[Feva]

I'm with IGY on this one fellas.

Sheldon has had his issues this year... especially with his tackling.  But Sheldon is easily a good enough player that he gets a chance to correct them before you think about replacing or "challenging" him.  When he and Lito are on their games... they're an excellent tandem and nowhere near a weakness on this defense.

[PhillyPhreak54]

Agreed.

Nothing needs to change at the CB position except which rookie they bring in to be the 5th CB next year (assuming they sign James again and they really love him)

Sheppard
Brown
James
Hanson
rookie

Sheldon's tackling has been poor. So has Rod Hood's. He has missed just more than one tackle, IGY. It started in the Indy game so I wonder if he mailed it in as far as giving his body up for the season.

[Drunkmasterflex]

This pretty much has to address every position on defense imo.  They need a fat run stuffer in there, I just don't think with the current regime we will every see that in there.  They also need a stud DE.  At least two more LBs.  They will need a nickel back once Hood leaves.  The safety position is pretty much self explanatory. 

[PhillyPhreak54]

They will need a nickel back once Hood leaves.

Will James

[Quasimoto]

William James aka the cheap route. 

[PhillyPhreak54]

Not really. He's a good player and has size. Put him outside in nickle and slide Sheldon to the inside guy (what they do now with Hood) and thats good.

[Drunkmasterflex]

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't he a FA as well? I would think that he will draw some interest.

[Eaglez]

Yeah, he is. The Eagles only signed him for this year. I'm assuming they brought him in with the idea of signing him long term, so I'll sure they'll offer him some sort of deal probably during the FA period. Whether you like it or not is a whole seperate issue.

I don't think Will James played last week. I just looked at the injury report and he's listed as probable.

It will be interesting to see how many snaps he gets this week, and whether Rod Hood will play at all; Hood is listed with a hamstring injury and is Questionable. Hmm...

[ice grillin you]

Paul Domowitch | Report: Birds' extra cap space in declineby Paul Domowitch
IF YOU'RE HOPING the Eagles are going to go on a wild spending spree when the 2007 free-agency signing period commences in March, you're probably going to be very disappointed.

The Eagles have made it clear for a while now that the draft is and always will be their primary source of talent. Since Andy Reid's hiring in 1999, they've signed a few big-ticket free agents, but not many.

Even if they were inclined to change that approach next year, they're not going to have the salary-cap space to be big spenders. That's right. You heard me.

Alex Marvez, of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, compiled a list of the projected '07 cap space for the NFL's 32 clubs. The Eagles are 25th on the list, just $12.4 million under the league's '07 cap of $109 million.

Nineteen of the league's teams will have at least $21 million in cap space. The San Francisco 49ers top the list with $42.1 million in projected space, followed by Buffalo ($39.7), Arizona ($36.7), Tennessee ($36.0) and Cleveland ($33.3).

The Cowboys are 19th on the list, with $21.5 million in projected space. The Giants are 21st with $15.7 million and the taterskins are 31st, ahead of only Pittsburgh, at $951,000. How will Dan Snyder ever get through the month of March?

Eagles president Joe Banner did not return phone messages.

That doesn't mean the Eagles won't be able to sign any free agents. You can do a lot with $12.4 million, though about $5 million of that amount will be reserved for their draft picks.

Still, they can increase that space by unloading expendable veterans. Linebacker Dhani Jones, who still has 2 years left on his deal, almost certainly won't be back. He's scheduled to make $2.35 million next year. Defensive tackle Darwin Walker, whose contract also runs through '08, will make $1.3 million next year.

And then there is left tackle William Thomas. The 32-year-old Thomas, whose deal also expires after '08, is scheduled to earn $4.55 million next year. He's having a surprisingly good season. But the Eagles are hoping rookie Winston Justice will be ready to step in and start next year.

[Drunkmasterflex]

I hope that Jones and Walker are gone that alone would make for a strong offseason.  As far as James goes, I have no problem with him being a 3rd corner, the only thing I am saying is that he will draw interest.  He is a guy that has always been talented, he could just never stay healthy.