The Eagles Offseason Thread(all aboard the Brian Finneran bandwagon)

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Torry Holt stole my girl in middle school.

How many of his babies did she birth?

[Feva]

81, naturally...

[Sgt PSN]

ha!

[SD_Eagle5]

There's being critical of the Eagles - which most of us are - then there's straight up hatin. Eckel has some issues he needs to resolve:

http://www.nj.com/columns/times/eckel/inde....xml&coll=5


Eagles trades are offensive all right
Sunday, March 09, 2008
BY MARK ECKEL
TIMES COLUMNIST

It was just about a year ago the Eagles made the trade with Buffalo that brought linebacker Takeo Spikes and quarterback Kelly Holcomb to the team in exchange for defensive tackle Darwin Walker and a draft pick.

Let's hope that draft pick worked out for the Bills, because nothing else did.

Walker never played a down for Buffalo and was sent to Chicago for another pick.

As far as the Eagles, who were puffing their chests out after getting Spikes, uh, not so good, either.

Holcomb never threw a pass for them and left for Minnesota where he was not very good. Spikes, who has never played in playoff game, missed the postseason again last year and was unceremoniously cut this past week.

Don't you love the stock quote the Eagles pull out when they cut a player who didn't work out.

"We want to thank Takeo. He did a great job for us. We wish him well. Now, just get him the hell out of here."

Spikes followed another big-time Eagles acquisition, Jevon Kearse, through the NovaCare Complex's revolving door. Darren Howard's time will come a year from now, after he fails to become the inside third-down pass rusher the coaches think he is.

Which has to make you wonder just a little bit about cornerback Asante Samuel, doesn't it?

I mean people around the league aren't calling Lincoln Financial Field, "The place where Pro Bowl players go to die" for nothing.

Next up for the Eagles is getting rid of cornerback Lito Sheppard, since they handed his job and a whole bunch of Jeffrey Lurie's money to Samuel.

While the smart move would be to pair Sheppard and Samuel at cornerback and slide Sheldon Brown to safety to fix another hole on the team, nobody, at least nobody in this space, ever said the Eagles do the smart thing.

So they will trade Sheppard. Both head coach Andy Reid and team President Joe Banner told their favorite mouthpieces this week they are getting plenty of offers.

One could only hope those offers are as good as Spikes and Holcomb, or Kearse and Howard.

"I'm not sure what they can get for (Sheppard)," one personnel man, whose team is not interested, said. "He makes plays, but he gambles a lot and he gets hurt a lot. But you never know."

Sheppard has value. It's a matter of trusting the Eagles to know what value is and recent history says that's not easy to do.

Anyone who thought Sheppard and a second-round pick could land Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald probably thought Spikes was going to be a Pro Bowl player last year and Kearse was going to lead the league in sacks.

If the Eagles really want Fitzgerald (and here's a tip, he's really good and he's really young and he would really help) give the Cards whatever they want: Sheppard, the 19th pick in the draft, next year's No. 1 pick. See if they'll take Howard, too.

Or Jerome McDougle.

Or Winston Justice.

Or Greg Lewis.

If Arizona refuses to budge -- and the Cards would be crazy to move Fitzgerald, then again there's a reason they have been to the postseason once in about the past 100 years -- then what?

A quick look around the league shows that most of the teams that need help at cornerback are in the NFC East, and the Eagles wouldn't, they wouldn't, right? No.

Other teams who might bite include New Orleans, Detroit, Tampa Bay, Atlanta (if it trades DeAngelo Hall), Houston, the Jets and New England. The question remains what the Eagles get in return.

Detroit wide receiver Roy Williams would be the most attractive piece from that lot, but it would take more than Sheppard to land him.

The Eagles best bet is probably to use Sheppard and the 19th pick and move up in the draft.

New Orleans (No. 10), the Jets (No. 6) and New England (No. 7) all own top 10 picks.

Trade Sheppard to New England to replace Samuel and maybe get the Pats to throw in wide receiver Jabar Gaffney. He worked out pretty well for the Eagles in the past.

Contact Mark Eckel at meckel@njtimes.com

[ice grillin you]

ha....everything he says is true but he sounds like me not a reporter

[Rome]

So they will trade Sheppard. Both head coach Andy Reid and team President Joe Banner told their favorite mouthpieces this week they are getting plenty of offers.

Hahaha.  Poor wittle Markie.  He's not one of them so he lashes out like a four year-old.

And this...

Eckel has some issues he needs to resolve.

Here's my recommendation: 

[reese125]

"I'm not sure what they can get for (Sheppard)," one personnel man, whose team is not interested, said. "He makes plays, but he gambles a lot and he gets hurt a lot. But you never know."

I love when reporters throw these fantasy quotes in their articles to make it more believable, like they had a conversation with someone...one NFL executive, one personnel man, one scout....makes you sound even less credible

[Seabiscuit36]

it's hilarious how angry he is

[Sgt PSN]

I'm trying to figure out this whole "place where pro bowlers go to die" bit.  How many pro bowlers have the Eagles brought in over the years?  Kearse is the only player I can think of and he was already on the decline coming in.  

Spikes has been a pro bowler but he wasn't one in the previous couple of years before the Eagles got him.  

Not sure if Howard was ever a pro bowler but he had consistancy issues as well.  

I think TO is probably the only legit pro bowler the Eagles have brought in since Reid's arrival.  Everyone else that I can think of was at least 2 years removed from their last pro bowl appearance.  

[Don Ho]

I'm trying to figure out this whole "place where pro bowlers go to die" bit.  How many pro bowlers have the Eagles brought in over the years?  Kearse is the only player I can think of and he was already on the decline coming in.  

Spikes has been a pro bowler but he wasn't one in the previous couple of years before the Eagles got him.  

Not sure if Howard was ever a pro bowler but he had consistancy issues as well.  

I think TO is probably the only legit pro bowler the Eagles have brought in since Reid's arrival.  Everyone else that I can think of was at least 2 years removed from their last pro bowl appearance.  

Agreed on the pro bowl graveyard comment .  Bad call by Eckell.  How many FA's make a huge impact?  Other than Owens in recent years???  You could call 3/4 of the NFL franchises the same thing.

Wasn't Spikes in the Pro Bowl?  It may have even been with Buffalo.  Howard?

[pinoyboy2pt0]

same shtein different day

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20080310_A_trade_for_Larry_Fitzgerald__Dont_count_on_it.html

A trade for Larry Fitzgerald? Don't count on it

By Bob Brookover

Inquirer Staff Writer
Larry Fitzgerald is a lot like a $1 million luxury car.

A lot of us would love to wake up tomorrow morning and find one in our driveway, but the chances of it happening are about the same as Randy Moss catching a pass from Donovan McNabb this fall.

Fitzgerald, of course, is the Arizona Cardinals wide receiver on the wish list of just about every Eagles fan. Over the weekend, some media reports surfaced that coach Andy Reid's team had made trade offers in an attempt to pry the former Valley Forge Military Academy star away from the desert.

It's not happening.

A league source said Saturday night that the Eagles have talked to the Cardinals about Fitzgerald, but the discussions have never gone beyond an inquiry as to whether Arizona planned to trade its star wide receiver. The answer has always been the same - absolutely not.

The story, however, has not gone away, and that's because the Cardinals have not been able to restructure Fitzgerald's contract, which is worth $14.6 million in 2008 and $17.4 million in 2009, thanks to some ill-advised escalator clauses that Arizona inserted in the receiver's rookie contract.

An article in Saturday's Arizona Republic said that the Cardinals and Fitzgerald's agent, Eugene Parker, are not making any progress in negotiations to restructure the receiver's deal. That story fueled speculation that the Cardinals are going to have to trade Fitzgerald.

But the league source who said the Cardinals are not going to trade Fitzgerald also noted that Arizona does not have to trade him now. The Cardinals, in fact, have said all along that they will keep Fitzgerald even if they have to pay him $14.6 million in 2008.

The league source said that even if the Cardinals had a desire to deal Fitzgerald, ridding themselves of the frustrating negotiations and his huge salary-cap number, the urgency is gone now. The source noted that the best free agents are off the market and that freeing up salary-cap space won't help the Cardinals a bit for the 2008 season.

The counter-argument is that the Cardinals could help their cap situation for the future and get better by dealing Fitzgerald for quality players and draft picks. According to that same Arizona Republic story, however, the Cardinals are not interested in either cornerback Lito Sheppard or wide receiver Reggie Brown.

Sheppard, who is almost certainly going to be traded, is the Eagles' best bargaining chip right now. If the Cardinals don't have an interest in him, it seems unlikely that the Eagles could make a deal for Fitzgerald even if Arizona wanted to make one.

And as the Eagles have been told, the Cardinals do not want to deal Fitzgerald. If, at some point, the Cardinals change their mind, they're almost sure to contact the Eagles.

[Sgt PSN]

Wasn't Spikes in the Pro Bowl?  It may have even been with Buffalo.  Howard?

I'm almost certain Spikes has been to the pro bowl but it was with Cincy.  He def wasn't voted in while he played in Buffalo. 

But the article was talking about how Spikes has never played in the playoffs during his career.  Which is true. 

[phattymatty]

ha.

As a winner in our Stars and Cars sweepstakes, you have the opportunity to attend a VIP Punt,
Pass and Kick event at the Eagles practice facility with four of your friends. Join us for an
evening of football and fun as you show your skills on the field and enjoy a catered buffet
dinner at Lincoln Financial Field.
You will have the opportunity to meet Eagles players and tour the stadium!

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Eagles players on-hand for such an event likely include Tony Hunt and Scott Young!

[Rome]

ha.

As a winner in our Stars and Cars sweepstakes, you have the opportunity to attend a VIP Punt,
Pass and Kick event at the Eagles practice facility with four of your friends. Join us for an
evening of football and fun as you show your skills on the field and enjoy a catered buffet
dinner at Lincoln Financial Field.
You will have the opportunity to meet Eagles players and tour the stadium!

What time should we be there, matty?