Eagles Blog

The Dolphins have been talking to KC about a trade for LT Branden Albert, but reports say he’s asking for too much in a contract extension and the deal might not happen. If that’s the case, Miami will need to consider moving up for a LT.

Chris Mortensen reports that Miami is considering moving up, but only for 2 of the 3 OTs:

“For Joeckel or Fisher but no trade up for Johnson”

Both JAX and OAK have recently been linked with OTs. This could be legit info or smokescreens intended to make teams like Miami call about moving up. If Joeckel or Fisher makes it to #4, the Eagles could get a call from Miami.  The Lions at #5 are a team you need to stay ahead of to feel good about getting an OT.

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com was asked on Twitter if he thought the Eagles would have any interest in Ziggy Ansah.

“any talks of Ansah linked with the Eagles? Can play DE and OLB n the 3-4> I doubt it. Guessing OT, Star or Jordan.”

Very intersting. I think Ansah could definitely be an Eagles target, but that is purely conjecture on my part. Jeremiah worked for the Eagles last year and knows the NFL very well. That said, he’s on the outside in terms of what the new staff wants and of course there was a major scheme change.

I’m curious to know if Ansah is of any interest or if they see him strictly as a 4-3 player.

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com put up an interesting note on Twitter:

“I’ve had Dion Jordan going to JAX for a long time. However, I’ve talked to several GM’s/Personnel Directors that expect JAX to take an OT”

This would be great news for the Eagles, for a couple of reasons.  If you assume that KC and JAX both go for OTs, then Lane Johnson could become a hot property. You wonder if DET, ARZ, or SD would be willing to move up to get him.

I also think the Eagles want LB Dion Jordan. If the Jags pass, he should fall to #4.

Fantasy scenario…Joeckel, Fisher, and Floyd are the first 3 picks. Then the Lions hand you a 4th rounder so they can slide up from #5 to #4. They take Lane Johnson and the Eagles get Dion Jordan, plus the extra pick.

The Cards are leaking reports that they don’t like Johnson at all. What I’m not sure of is if that is legit or “me thinks he doth protest too much”.

The NFL held a Super Regional Combine in Dallas a few weeks back. This was a chance for guys off the beaten path to get looked at by NFL teams. DL Stefan Charles played collegiately in Canada and is trying to get into the NFL. The Eagles met with him at the SRC.

Charles is 6-5, 310. He played DT in Canada, but could easily play DE for a 3-4 team. He’s got an ideal frame. Charles impressed teams with the athleticism he showed in his workouts.  He has a chance to be a late round pick.

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BJ Daniels played QB for South Florida and had a long, strange career. He flashed big time talent early on as he led the Bulls to an upset win over Florida State in just his second start. Daniels was 2-0 in bowl games after his first 2 years. Things looked good. There was a coaching change and he failed to develop beyond that point.

Daniels, 5-11, 222, worked out for the Eagles. He is a good athlete, but nowhere close to being a polished passer. I don’t know if the Eagles worked him out as a QB or athlete.

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Per this report, ILB Arthur Brown visited the Eagles. I’m hesitant to buy that, only because so many media outlets get visits and private workouts mixed up. We know the Eagles have met with Brown, but him coming to Philly would be news. Possible that it happened, but it would be good to get confirmation from another source.

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Here is an update on Penn State LB Mike Mauti and his rehab from a torn ACL. Looks pretty good going in a straight line.

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Per this report, the Eagles are interested in Vandy QB Jordan Rodgers, the younger brother of Aaron Rodgers.

The report is from the Twitter account of a writer for NFL Draft Zone. I am not familiar with the writer so I can’t really vouch for his reliability, but it is presented as legit info and not just an opinion.

Rodgers is a late round pick. Solid athlete that could fit Chip Kelly’s offense.

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h/t to @eaglesnut for the first couple of items

Per this report, the Eagles have worked out Texas Tech LT LaAdrian Waddle.

Waddle is 6-6, 321. He has 41 career starts, mostly at LT. Put on the tape and you see a player with some potential, but who does need work. His feet look okay, but his technique is terrible. Doesn’t kick slide. He moves his feet backward as if walking back. That’s a big no-no in pass pro.

Here is Gil Brandt’s info on Waddle’s Pro Day:

“Waddle ran the 40-yard dash in 5.42 and 5.37 seconds. He had a 29-inch vertical jump and a 8-foot-6 broad jump. His short shuttle time was 4.88 seconds and his three-cone drill was completed in 7.23 seconds. He performed 23 lifts of 225 pounds on the bench press. Waddle is described as a mauling-type tackle, and could be a sixth- or seventh-round draft choice.”

Sheil Kapadia, half of the great Eagles 24/7 writing team, went game by game on the Eagles schedule and offered some thoughts for each contest. I have already lodged a complaint for his thoughts on the KC game.  We need good booing stories.

Chase Stuart from Football Perspective put the entire NFL schedule into a color coded chart. This is a very handy way to see every game for every team all at once. Can be very helpful when doing schedule analysis…such as seeing if the Eagles play teams coming off byes.  That only happens with Tampa Bay. What about teams playing on SNF, MNF, or TNF? Go see for yourselves.

There aren’t many top RBs in this class, but there are many guys who could fit, especially since the Eagles are looking for a #3 or #4 RB. They’ve got Shady McCoy and Bryce Brown locked in. Chris Polk can be #3.

One interesting player is George Winn of Cincinnati. He lacks ideal agility, which you can see on tape and his 3-cone/SS workout times. Winn has good size and is a north-south runner. He can be effective when he’s able to attack the LOS. He runs hard, stays behind his pads, and doesn’t waste motion. Some RBs dance when they don’t need to. Winn runs straight until someone is in his way.

I don’t know if Chip Kelly prefers a bigger guy or a smaller guy, but Winn is interesting. This is a good argument for him.  To this point, I don’t know that the Eagles have shown any interest, but I think they are legally required to like all players from the University of Cincinnati.

Per a leak on Twitter:

9-9-13 … at Washington – MNF
9-15-13 … San Diego – 1pm
9-19-13 … Kansas City – TNF
9-29-13 … at Denver – 425pm
10-6-13 … at NY Giants – 1pm
10-13-13 … at Tampa – 1pm
10-20-13 … Dallas – 1pm
10-27-13 … NY Giants – 1pm
11-3-13 … at Oakland – 405pm
11-10-13 … at Green Bay – 1pm
11-17-13 … Washington – 1pm
11-24-13 … bye week
12-1-13 … Arizona – 1pm
12-8-13 … Detroit – 1pm
12-15-13 … at Minnesota – 1pm
12-22-13 … Chicago – 1pm
12-29-13 … at Dallas – 1pm

I’m not a big one for analyzing the schedule. The most interesting thing, pointed out by Les Bowen on Twitter, is that the Eagles don’t have a night game after the first couple of weeks. Clearly that could change with the flex scheduling, but I’m guessing watching the Eagles play poorly in prime time down the stretch in 2012 scared off the networks.

The Eagles go to Oakland, where they’ve never won a game.

The Andy Reid Bowl is a Thursday Night game. Odd.

Playing Larry Fitzgerald and Megatron in back-to-back weeks late in the season should be fun.

3 consecutive road games isn’t easy, but since one is just up the road in NY, that takes some of the sting out of it.

I see 14-2, assuming Chip Kelly wants to rest the starters for the playoffs.

This isn’t official yet, but the leak on Twitter looks legit.

Per this report, the Eagles have had a private workout with ILB Arthur Brown. He is expected to go in the 20-30 range, but if he slips into the early 2nd round, the Eagles could be interested.

ILB is a tough position to get a feel for in regard to the Eagles. DeMeco Ryans is a key veteran. Mychal Kendricks is young and a possible star. The Eagles are probably just doing due diligence in checking Brown out, but they have looked at other ILBs so this isn’t completely casual. If he’s got a high enough grade, Brown could be tough to pass on.

Oh, and he’s the brother of RB Bryce Brown.

Arthur is a tough, instinctive LB. At only 6-1, 240, he lacks ideal size for the 3-4. He is a good tackler and hitter, and he’s got excellent range. One knock on him is that he wasn’t a major playmaker at Kansas State.  He had 3 INTs and 3 sacks in his career, but no FFs. Strange for a guy who can hit as well as he does.

Chip Kelly spent several weeks studying Brown for the Oregon-KSU showdown in the Fiesta Bowl. Brown finished the game with 9 tackles and a TFL.

Here is one Eagles fan’s take on Chip Kelly being a breath of fresh air.

As he says, there are no guarantees that the changes will work, but the vibe around the team is very different. And that’s true on the inside and outside. The players seem energized. The fans seem energized. As crazy as it sounds, even the media seems energized.

It will be interesting to see how all of this pans out.