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** Official 2014 Philadelphia Eagles Thread ** (3 Viewers)

I don't think Matt Barkley should make this team
Marcus Smith doesn't look like he should make the team. And that pisses me off bad. Your first round pick should contribute something from week 1, if he's inactive for the opener, then it's a fail from the front office.
Was hoping to see more from him, too. But honestly, they were in no man's land with that pick. Everyone they wanted was gone.
The best rookie corner Marvin Lewis ever seen was available. :shrug:

 
I don't think Matt Barkley should make this team
Marcus Smith doesn't look like he should make the team. And that pisses me off bad. Your first round pick should contribute something from week 1, if he's inactive for the opener, then it's a fail from the front office.
Was hoping to see more from him, too. But honestly, they were in no man's land with that pick. Everyone they wanted was gone.
The best rookie corner Marvin Lewis ever seen was available. :shrug:
I'm not going to kill them until he does nothing all season and into next year.

 
So yes I know this is preseason game 4, and we're watching 3rd and 4th stringers trying to get some stuff on film in case the Eagles cut them - but damn this team is fun to watch. And Josey's going to be on some NFL team.

 
So yes I know this is preseason game 4, and we're watching 3rd and 4th stringers trying to get some stuff on film in case the Eagles cut them - but damn this team is fun to watch. And Josey's going to be on some NFL team.
Yep. No way he sneaks to the practice squad. I personally would keep Tucker and Josey. Polk has shown nothing.

 
This is my 53-man guess.

OFFENSE (25)

QB - Nick Foles, Mark Sanchez, Matt Barkley (3)

RB - LeSean McCoy, Darren Sproles, Chris Polk, Henry Josey (4)

WR - Jeremy Maclin, Riley Cooper, Jordan Matthews, Brad Smith, Josh Huff, Damaris Johnson (6)

TE - Brent Celek, Zach Ertz, James Casey (3)

OT - Jason Peters, Allen Barbre, Andrew Gardner [Lane Johnson] (3)

OG - Evan Mathis, Todd Herremans, Matt Tobin, Dennis Kelly (4)

C - Jason Kelce, David Molk (2)

DEFENSE (25)

DE - Cedric Thornton, Fletcher Cox, Vinny Curry, Brandon Bair, Taylor Hart (5)

NT - Bennie Logan, Beau Allen (2)

OLB - Trent Cole, Connor Barwin, Brandon Graham, Marcus Smith, Bryan Braman, Travis Long (6)

ILB - DeMeco Ryans, Mychal Kendricks, Najee Goode (3)

CB - Cary Williams, Bradley Fletcher, Brandon Boykin, Nolan Carroll, Jaylen Watkins (5)

S - Malcolm Jenkins, Nate Allen, Earl Wolff, Chris Maragos (4)

SPECIAL TEAMS (3)

P - Donnie Jones

K - Cody Parkey

LS - Jon Dorenbos

 
So here's my roster thoughts, this is not so much me trying to predict what the team would do, but what I think they should do.

OFFENSE (25)

QB (3) - Foles, Sanchez, Barkley

This one writes itself, Kinne can move but just doesn't have NFL passing skills. About this time last year I said the 3 things I wanted to see from Foles was the ability to hit the deep ball (check), read progression (big check), and mechanical consistency due to occasional accuracy issues (mostly check). Foles showed some veteran traits last year, building on some of the promise from those rookie starts. Showed a strong ability to throw with anticipation and use pump fakes and eye movement to manipulate coverage. There was a play in the Steelers preseason game this year where he pump faked deep to shift Polamalu away from where he wanted to hit Maclin underneath. That and his ball placement / turnover avoidance are both impressive veteran type traits. What I want to see from Foles this year is a better internal clock, eliminating those bad coverage sacks, and better ability / willingness to just work underneath and move the ball. At times he still ignores or misses open targets underneath looking for bigger plays.

Sanchez has mostly been impressive, there seems to be genuine tempo and energy when he's in the game. He won the backup job early and kept it going away.

Barkley to me just looks like a career backup. When he can't plant his feet and generate velocity from his lower body his ball is decidedly different. There were some absolute ducks tonight, poor velocity and wobbly in the air (which are harder to catch). Seems to be pressing for big plays a bit, I don't think he's come to terms with his limitations yet. Does seem to have a command of the offense and at times gets into a rhythm and looks good.

RB (4) McCoy, Sproles, Polk, Josey

McCoy and Sproles are obvious. Polk I'm keeping beause he's well rounded; a physical runner, good in pass pro, effective receiver and plays ST. If they are worried enough about his durability Tucker could take that spot, but you lose a bit there. Tucker is not a good receiver and has below average change of direction / agility type skills. He's a tough downhill runner who'll get the yards that are there then a couple more, but he's not going to save bad plays or make much in the way of big plays.

Josey I think has earned a spot, he has good quickness, decent long speed, he's shifty and seems to be natural and comfortable catching the ball. Could stand to be a little stronger but there's a comparison to Sproles style wise at least.

Barner I don't think has done enough to earn a spot, I'll call #DuckBias if he makes it over Josey.

WR (6) Cooper, Maclin, Matthews, Huff, Johnson, Benn

The top 4 are obvious, I'll explain the last 2. Every roster projection I see has Brad Smith as a lock, but I don't see why. He hasn't been on the field this preseason and had no more than a few plays last year. Johnson's had one bad drop but otherwise I think has been really impressive this preseason. Versatile player who can PR, doesn't contribute much on coverage teams which probably does count against him. Still, I think somebody who can make people miss like he can is worth keeping and can be used a lot of ways. If not here, he'll be on another team for sure.

Benn came along as well, has flashed a bit both as a WR and on ST. If they're committed to keeping Matthews in the slot this year, then they need depth outside and I think Benn is the best option for that. They may decide to go with Maehl as a better ST option but I think he has limited value as a WR, take a chance on the better player.

TE (3) Celek, Ertz, Casey

Actually think Celek as well as Ertz will have good years, Casey is unlucky as he's a solid #2 guy but doesn't get many opportunities. Would like to see them make more use of his versatility but there's just so many skill guys to target. Trey Burton has done some good work the last couple of games, would like to see him on the PS and get a little bigger and develop his run blocking game.

OL (9) Peters, Mathis, Kelce, Heremanns, Babre, Tobin, Molk, Kelly, Gardner [Johnson - suspended]

Mostly obvious. I've got concerns about Babre in pass pro, he's a very good run blocker though. Tobin has been good overall, Kelly is good in pass pro, up and down as a run blocker. Either Kelly or Gardner would go when Johnson comes back.

DEFENSE (25)

DL (7) Cox, Logan, Thornton, Curry, Allen, Bair, Hart

Curry has had a really strong preseason, although still possibly plays outside the system somewhat. Penetrates driving his man back consistently, but you wonder if that's what Davis wants to see. Beau Allen just has the look of a future starter, very strong lower body and has flashed better hand skills and an OK swim move in the last couple of games. Bair and Hart are kind of similar, technically sound 2 gap players. Bair probably is as good as he'll get, a solid backup but if Hart can get stronger and develop his technique he can challenge for a starting spot in future.

ILB (3) Ryans, Kendricks, Goode

Like the rest of the world I think Kendricks can have a big year. Ryans is still a steady vet and very good vs. the run but was being targeted in the passing game by late last year. Will help to have him off the field on obvious passing downs. Neither Goode or Acho has been outstanding, so I think they go with Najeh who they seem a bit more comfortable with.

OLB (6) Barwin, Cole, Graham, Smith, Braman, Long

I think they would like to have moved on from Graham, but he can pass rush and that's a rare commodity on this team. How rare is demonstrated in that a guy with 11.5 sacks in 48 games will keep a roster spot because he's one of the team's top 3 pass rushers (Cole and Curry are the other 2). Smith has flashed, mostly in coverage and against the run but he needs more time to develop as a pass rusher. I'm hoping they give him regular work (20% snaps maybe?) to start the year and keep coaching him up, the tools are there, he just needs to develop physically and improve his pass rush techniques. Long is OK depth and would be the 4th ILB as well. Braman looks like a purely ST player.

Overall still a relatively weak group until Smith makes some strides. SMH at Twitter peeps calling him a bust already. Jesus, give him an actual game at least.

CB (5) Williams, Fletcher, Boykin, Carroll, Watkins

Pretty obvious group, Watkins has flashed some decent tackling and coverage skills at times, but has also been burned deep twice. Potential but not ready to play.

S (4) Jenkins, Allen, Wolff, Maraogos

Allen has played into the job opposite Jenkins by being steady and eliminating mistakes. Wolff flashes big play ability and has a higher ceiling but still makes some mistakes in pursuit angles and missed tackles and isn't as strong in coverage. Maragos is an OK 4th guy but here for ST. Just don't think Ed Reynolds has done enough to make the team but he could make the PS

ST (3) Dorenbos, Jones, Parkey

Parkey beat Henery's career long twice in one game. He may be patchy during the season but we're looking at that with Henery anyway and it seems Parkey may have some long term potential. Henery has been on a downward trajectory for a couple of years. I say bite the bullet.

 
I don't think Matt Barkley should make this team
Marcus Smith doesn't look like he should make the team. And that pisses me off bad. Your first round pick should contribute something from week 1, if he's inactive for the opener, then it's a fail from the front office.
He doesn't even show in the box score, not even a tackle?
Nope.
FWIW, third-worst grade among 1st-round picks from PFF in the preseason: http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=711939#entry17155246

 
I think Smith is getting a bad rap early on. Obviously being a rookie doesn't help especially when he's a suprise 1st round pick but he's also learning Barwin's role which appears to be the toughest of all the LBer spots. I've been to both games and while he may not show in the box scores he seems to really move well in space and also has a nice burst coming off of the ball

 
I don't think Matt Barkley should make this team
Marcus Smith doesn't look like he should make the team. And that pisses me off bad. Your first round pick should contribute something from week 1, if he's inactive for the opener, then it's a fail from the front office.
He doesn't even show in the box score, not even a tackle?
Nope.
FWIW, third-worst grade among 1st-round picks from PFF in the preseason: http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=711939#entry17155246
Just watched the game again and focused on Smith. He's not finishing plays but he's doing OK. Could easily have been given credit for 3 or 4 tackles, he does a decent job setting the edge and disengaging, just struggling to convert those into clean takedowns right now.

I thought this game was his best so far rush wise, though the competition may have helped. Got a hit on Simms on a rush up the middle and made both Simms and Boyd move off the spot a couple of times. Beat the TE (#44) outside on one play and was held, but not called.

He's not going to take the league by storm this year, but the potential is there to develop, we'll see how he does during the year.

 
He's not going to take the league by storm this year, but the potential is there to develop, we'll see how he does during the year.
If he learns that spot and can get on the field with Barwin our defense will look much better. I posted an article here (maybe during OTA's?) with an interview with Billy Davis...paraphrasing...Davis said they want Smith to learn Barwin's role so that when they're both on the field you don't know for sure which one is coming. Davis seemed to be alluding to the fact that when Cole is out there offenses have a pretty good idea that he wont be in coverage often.

I don't think Smith has looked "bad" in any of the last 2 weeks. It's a lot to learn but he seems to be doing well in space and has some nice speed to him as well.

 
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@caplannfl: #Eagles are planning to waive UDFA RB Henry Josey, source said.
Wow that's a mild surprise to me. Chip supposedly doesn't appreciate guys missing practice, so I was thinking Polk might be gone and Josey staying.

On Smith, I'm not villifying anyone. Yet. I'll give the kid a chance to learn the defense and see what happens. (Although not as long as insein :) ) Just the talk of possible deactivation week 1 is disappointing and shouldn't happen for a first rounder. He can't even run special teams??

Can't wait for it to begin. :pickle:

 
They may take 7 wideouts or 5 safety's now? Or keep Barner? Chip loves him some Ducks.

 
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Waiving Josey means Tucker and Barner are in to me. Polk gone. Good for Josey though since he will be picked up by a team after that preseason.

 
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@SheilKapadia: Eagles reportedly trying to trade WR Damaris Johnson. TE Burton makes 53, per @LesBowen. Full roundup here: http://t.co/iZeEoMlvFo

In our first surprise (at least from my perspective), the Eagles are apparently holding on to tight end Trey Burton:

And they're looking to trade Damaris Johnson:

Updated (3:11 Friday):

The Eagles are apparently placing WR Arrelious Benn on IR. Benn tore his ACL last summer and suffered a concussion a couple weeks ago. But he played in Thursday night's game against the Jets, scored a touchdown and said afterwards that he was healthy.

Updated (2:56 Friday): Ifeanyi Momah showed great improvement from Year 1 to Year 2, but he's still raw and needs work.

The roster is now at 71 players. Updated (2:23 Friday): It looks like fan favorite Henry Josey is going to be released.
 
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@Jeff_McLane: Lots happening: Arrelious Benn is going to short-term IR and will eventually be cut when healthy. Quron Pratt has been released, per @ZBerm.

 
I'm glad we are keeping Polk. Kid can play.

Edit: is it possible we only keep 3 rb's?

 
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Sad to see Josey go. I was rooting for him, especially after coming back from that knee injury. He'll catch on somewhere. Very intrigued by Trey Burton. I think he'll replace James Casey next year.

 
We need Terrelle Pryor to replace Barkley IMO...
Yeah, at this point, I think I'd take the gamble on Pryor. He won't be active this year unless someone gets hurt, but he's an athletic freak and I don't see any upside with Barkley.
I disagree. Freak or not, one guy looks like he's going to make a team and another isn't. Pryor is simply a name at this point IMO. Stick with Barkely as your 3 and just draft one next season.

 
Insein said:
Waiving Josey means Tucker and Barner are in to me. Polk gone. Good for Josey though since he will be picked up by a team after that preseason.
Polk stays Barner goes for me.

 
I know his career has gotten off to a rough start but if the can find the roster space I'd love to see them claim Stephen Hill. The guy has good measurables and may just need a fresh start and better coaching. Can stone hands be cured? I'd waive Maehl to take a shot on Hill's upside.

 
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Eagles made their cuts. Roster down to 53 now.

QB - Foles, Sanchez, Barkley

RB - McCoy, Sproles, Polk

WR - Maclin, Cooper, Matthews, Smith, Huff, Maehl

TE - Celek, Ertz, Casey, Burton

OL - Peters, Mathis, Kelce, Herremans, Barbre, Gardner, Tobin, Molk, Kelly, [Johnson - suspended for 4 games]

DL - Thornton, Logan, Cox, Curry, Allen, Bair, Hart

OLB - Barwin, Cole, Graham, Smith, Braman

ILB - Ryans, Kendricks, Goode, Matthews

CB - Williams, Fletcher, Carroll, Boykin, Watkins

S - Allen, Jenkins, Maragos, Wolff

K - Parkey

P - Jones

LS - Dorenbos

--

Glad Henery's gone. Surprised Tucker was cut. We'll see if they make any other moves.

 
I know his career has gotten off to a rough start but if the can find the roster space I'd love to see them claim Stephen Hill. The guy has good measurables and may just need a fresh start and better coaching. Can stone hands be cured? I'd waive Maehl to take a shot on Hill's upside.
As a guy who's seen almost all of DHB's and Hill's college and pro careers: you can't coach hands. Hill has the least-natural catching style of any pro WR I've ever seen ... plus he can't run a proper route half the time.

Chip will want no part of him and neither do I. If they're going to go after someone in the "athletic freak who needs intensive teaching" department, I'd much rather they take a shot on Seastrunk.

 
Looking at that WR group has me a little nervous. Forgive me, but what is the latest on Huff's health?

Don't see smith or Maehl getting much time and unsure about huff, so I'm thinking we get a lot of TE focus this year.

 
Looking at that WR group has me a little nervous. Forgive me, but what is the latest on Huff's health?

Don't see smith or Maehl getting much time and unsure about huff, so I'm thinking we get a lot of TE focus this year.
Was thinking the same thing. The hyped Ertz breakout looks all but imminent.

 

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