Rolando McClain of Interest?

The Raiders cut ILB Rolando McClain the other day.  He finally passed through waivers, with no claims being put in.  McClain is a free agent.

Should the Eagles be interested?  Will they?

McClain is very talented.  No one questions that.  He is a troubled person.  Reportedly he warned the Raiders before the draft that living that far from Alabama would be a problem for him.  That doesn’t sound like a guy you want to spend a Top 10 pick on and build around.  We do know for a fact that McClain was involved in a gun incident back in his home of Alabama.  That’s a player you should be scared of, no matter what.

McClain started 29 of his first 32 games and showed serious ability.  In 2011 he had 5 sacks and 14 PDs, along with 99 total tackles.  Last year McClain didn’t work as well with the new coaches and only started 9 games.

The argument for McClain is that he’s young and still talented.  He turns 24 in July.  McClain jumped out at me while watching tape of free agent Desmond Bryant.  He is 250 pounds and runs well.  Can play the run, can blitz, and has some coverage ability.  The Eagles would likely only be interested in him on a cheap deal.  They could bring McClain in as competition at ILB and to develop for the future.  With DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks in place, it isn’t likely that McClain would be a starter.  Chip Kelly does believe in competition, though, and McClain would be given a fair shot.  I just think the Eagles would see McClain as a player to take it slowly with.  If you could get his head on right and put him in the right system, he could be a very good player.

I wouldn’t bet the Eagles will sign him, but I’d be shocked if they didn’t at least call his agent to see what the asking price is and what McClain is thinking right now.  Is he only interested in a starting gig or is he willing to spend time as a backup and work his way up the depth chart?

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4 Responses to Rolando McClain of Interest?

  1. iskar36 says:

    McClain is definitely an intriguing player, but his off the field problems scare me way to much. If we had an established team and were looking to add a player late in FA that could be a high risk/high reward guy to potentially help us in a playoff run, I would certainly be interested, but it seems to me that right now, building the foundations of the team is more important and you want to establish your leaders first before you get a guy like McClain. He is worth considering, and if the Eagles sign off on it, I assume they have done the necessary background checks to feel confident enough that they can coach him properly, but from an outside perspective, the risk outweighs the benefits in my mind.

  2. DBG says:

    Not many troubled people come to Philadelphia to get cleaned up. This guy was just too much for the Raiders organization. Enough said.

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  4. Wilbert M. says:

    If McClain could play outside I could understand interest, but with DeMeco and Mychal inside I don’t get it. Chip will be well served by letting DeMeco be a leader.

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