Eagles roster battles: part 2
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Eagles
Eagles roster battles: part 2
Jonathan Tamari
With the draft and most significant burst of free agency behind us, we have a pretty good idea of who the Eagles will be bringing into training camp to fight for spots on the regular season roster. There may be a few tweaks here or there, but for the most part the line up is set. Here, then, is a look at the position battles we have to look forward to as rookie minicamps and offseason practices arrive in May and June and lead up to training camp, which opens July 22 for rookies, quarterbacks and injured players and July 25 for the rest of the team.
I started Tuesday with the five most intriguing positions, including safety, linebacker, quarterback, cornerback and defensive end. Here’s the rest of the roster, in no particular order.
-- Offensive line: The starters are set, with Demetress Bell, Evan Mathis, Jason Kelce, Danny Watkins and Todd Herremans locked in from left to right. The Eagles haven’t ruled out Jason Peters playing this season, but it’s quite a long shot. King Dunlap looks like the primary option as a backup tackle, and we’ve seen him handle that job well, including six starts the past two years plus one start at guard. He may be called upon: Bell has played 16 games just once in his four-year career.
After Dunlap most of the backup experience belongs to interior linemen Steve Vallos and Mike Gibson, who each have eight starts in four and three years in the league, respectively. Julian Vandervelde, a fifth round pick last year, Brandon Washington, a sixth rounder this year, and center Zane Taylor will also battle for jobs on the interior. Dallas Reynolds gets another shot after spending the past three years on the practice squad.
At tackle the only backups aside from Dunlap are fifth rounder Dennis Kelly and D.J. Jones. Handicapping the race for jobs on the line is a dicey proposition: we’ve seen that Howard Mudd is ready and willing to shake up the line up and can mold late round picks into starters (see: Kelce). After Dunlap, it’s a wide open fight for backup jobs.
-- Running back: LeSean McCoy is the obvious starter and will get the vast majority of touches. After that, though, there is a lot of youth and not much proven ability to play behind him. Dion Lewis got all of 23 carries last year. Then there’s undrafted free agent Chris Polk and seventh round pick Bryce Brown, each of whom has potential but questions. Polk was productive but often injured at Washington. Brown hardly played in college but has size and speed. The backup slot is there for one of these guys to go grab. Each one better work on pass protection – a lack of ability there is a deal breaker for Andy Reid. An e-mailer chided me last week for failing to mention Graig Cooper, so, yeah, he’s in there too. If none of these guys can get the job done, maybe the Eagles take another look at free agent options, though they seem more inclined this year to look within after paying Ronnie Brown to do nearly nothing last season. (At least nothing positive).
At fullback the Eagles have two undrafted free agents and one player who was on last year’s practice squad, Stanley Havili. Emil Igwenagu and Jeremy Stewart will try to make an impression, but the Eagles rarely use fullbacks and sometimes line up their tight ends in the backfield, so it wouldn’t be a shock if Reid goes without a fullback this year.
-- Tight end: It seems pretty straight forward here. Brent Celek starts. He can catch, block and run through tacklers – assuming, that is, that he is completely healed from surgeries to repair a torn labrum in his hip and sports hernia. GM Howie Roseman was evasive, though, when asked this week about Celek’s recovery. Celek has not talked much about his rehab. It’s an issue worth keeping an eye on.
Clay Harbor is an athletic number two option whose blocking has improved.
After those two it would be a big upset of either Brett Brackett or undrafted rookie Chase Ford are able to push for a roster spot.
-- Wide receiver: For the first time in several years, there is little drama surrounding this position. DeSean Jackson is re-signed and says he’s focused. Jeremy Maclin will team with him in the starting lineup and Jason Avant will be back in the slot and doing a whole host of other jobs, including punt rushing, serving as a backup holder and even a fourth-string emergency QB.
The fourth and maybe fifth receiver spots (if they keep that many) are where the battle begins. Riley Cooper has been OK as an occasional fill-in in his first two years but the Eagles have rarely used his 6-3 frame to great advantage. In comes Marvin McNutt, also 6-3, and if he proves to be a reliable big target he might make Cooper expendable. Chad Hall has been a nice story, but a marginal contributor. He’ll have a fight on his hands to make the team.
Mardy Gilyard was seemingly brought in to be a return option, but cornerback Brandon Boykin will have the inside track there.
With the first three receiver slots locked in and Cooper and McNutt both bidding for number four, Elvis Akpla, Jamel Hamler, McKay Jacobson, Damaris Johnson, Ronald Johnson, Aaron Pflugrad and Darnell Williams are fighting for, at most, one more spot, if one of them really impresses.
-- Defensive tackle: Cullen Jenkins and Mike Patterson enter training camp as the starters -- assuming Patterson is ready for camp after offseason brain surgery; he says he expects to be there. Fletcher Cox, if he doesn’t immediately take a starting job, will still find plenty of playing time in Jim Washburn’s rotation. That leaves Antonio Dixon, Derek Landri and Cedric Thornton fighting for one or two roster spots – probably one.
Dixon is the biggest lineman the Eagles have and probably the best run-stopper, and the team liked Thornton’s potential enough to keep him over Landri and Anthony Hargrove a year ago. Landri contributed when he played last year, but he spent awhile on the free agent market before the Eagles brought him back. It seems like he'll have to do something to overtake Dixon. The Eagles initially kept Thornton as a fifth tackle a year ago because they liked his potential, but cut him and moved him to the practice squad when they needed to make another roster move. He might have a hard time beating out any of the top four options at tackle, but he's still eligible for the practice squad after spending most of last season there.
-- Special teams: Alex Henery hit 88.9 percent of his field goals last year, including his final 16 attempts. It looks like he’ll be around for a long time, though we’re still waiting for a make in a high-pressure situation.
Punter Chas Henry ranked near the bottom of the league in average, net and punts inside the 20. The Eagles have brought in Kentucky’s Ryan Tydlacka in what figures to be a true competition for the job.
The team envisions Boykin as their return man, but if for some reason he can’t do it Gilyard and Hall will have opportunities. Special teams may also be the route for players such as Cooper, McNutt and linebackers Moise Fokou, Akeem Jordan and Keenan Clayton to try to stand out and win a job.
Long snapper Jon Dorenbos has been steady, but the team now has another snapper in tow, Matt Camilli. Are the Eagles looking for a replacement? Or just trying to give the veteran some rest?
Colt Anderson hopes to be ready for the season after tearing his ACL in Dec. 1. If he’s ready to go, he’ll have a spot waiting for him.
They should cut Patterson and go with Landri and Dixon for the final 2 DT spots. It would save $$$, and they would probably get better production.— Witz79- Are you serious??? Patterson was the most under rated player on the Eagles last year. If it was not for him we would have been the worst rushing defense in the league. Get Nflrewind and Watch the the tape. It impossible to miss. Then stick your foot in you mouth. — jbzuck
- I like Landri, too.— ericthered1
- I wouldnt be so quick to say that Boykin will get the return job. Cliff Harris had 4 or 5 punt returns for TDs at Oregon. There may be some good competition for this job.— Bobphxville
- it will be interesting to see how many Defensive line roster spots the eagles will go into the season with. I'm seeing at least 5 DE's and probably DT's.— mundiff
- I really like our Roster.— dmanphilly
- Mundiff, interesting question. They usually keep 10 DL's, right? If that number holds true, the battle should be interesting.
You figure the locks are: Cox, Babin, Cole, Jenkins, Curry, Patterson. That leaves 4 spots for: Graham, Landri, Dixon, Thornton, Tapp, Hunt, Fountain. If we assume that Thornton and Fountain are cut, that leaves:
4 spots for: Tapp, Hunt, Graham, Landri, Dixon. Who's the odd man out? I'd guess Tapp because of his cap number. Thoughts?— JTR - If your QB is the same turnover machine he was last year, you could have the best 53 man roster in the history of football and not make the playoffs. That's problem #1, not who the 10th DL will be.
I'm also mildly concerned about the fact that a key DT, DE, LB and probably the combo nickle corner/return guy are rookies. However, I think all of those guys are so good that they are a net upgrade over the guys they're replacing.
Should be an interesting year.— dlivesay - I agree 100%. Vick must show immediate growth. It's now or never!
Any optimism lies in the fact that just one year ago, Eli Manning led the league with 25 interceptions and that this will be Vick's first full camp as a starter.
Fingers are crossed and boos are at the ready. - If Brandon Graham is cut this year, it may be a sign from above that the Reid ego has lost some air. Think about how long McDougle and Abiamiri were retained when they produced nothing. Reid does not bid adieu to his draft picks - particularly early ones without being absolutely certain beyond the shadow of a doubt that his pick is a bust. I'm not knocking Reid or Graham. Graham may turn into a decent DE. But if he does nothing this season to merit that assessment, he'll still be around in 2013.— gnarlyscuzz
- I think it's a little early to compare Graham with Abiamiri and McDouble. Both those guys suffered severel injuries/set backs...meanwhile Graham has had just one injury and this year will be his first true chance to prove himself beyond a small sample his rookie year. I may agree with you though after this season, bur right now there is still hope. — JTR
- Agreed Divesay. I am banking on the team just generally getting better, QB, 2nd year players, and last year's new acquisitions (ie: Nhamdi and DRC) mostly, because of the full offseason. We'll soon find out if 2011 was just a set back for Vick, or if 2010 was just an aberation for Vick...Here's hoping its the former.
That said, a little back and forth about who makes the team and who doesn't can be fun during the offseason. There are other things we can talk about beyond a QB situation that isn't changing for the coming season (barring injury.— JTR - LOVE THE ROSTER!! Dream Team Part 2!— nascarpweb
- @nascarpwep ... Shut you MOUTH ! Go back to car racing ...— ingy9
- Looks like another Super Bowl for the Birds....oh, sorry...they still play them in February, don't they!— Romus
- Good analysis, JTR, and I agree with your conclusion - Eagles keep an extra lineman, and Tapp ends up being the odd man out (assuming injuries do not make the decision for them).— Mr. Magee
- I'll be real disappointed if McNutt, can't beat out Avant and, if Polk and Brown can not finish the season with 4 carries a game. I'm looking for Cox to register 8 sacks and 10 Tackles for Loss this year, Curry at least 6 sacks would be nice.
Anything less than the contribution above, this is all a waste of time. Graham, I saw Graham play at Michigan. Graham was a beast and play maker that stood out in the Big 10. Graham was damaged goods coming into the league. Somebody goofed in not detecting his injury. Should he return to 100%, I hope he returns to form. If not this year he will never return.— Dexter - There's no way McNutt beats out Avant this season. Avant is one the best slot WRs in the league. He may eventually replace him in the future though.
— phillychaos - We're looking for a receiver to fight for that number 4 spot when we need to be looking for a receiver to take the #1 spot. Desean is not the number 1 clutch go 2 receiver on tis team IMO. He's great in the regular seasun but ask yourself when was the last time we went deep into he playoffs with these receivers. Desean is vey similar to Hester with the bears. The bears finally realized this and now have special packages for Hester in the receiving game but he will focus on punt returning. Brandon Marshall will be JCulters go 2 receiver now. If we cant find a number 1 receiver at least move Avant to the number 4 slot and i can settle for a legitiamate clutch number 3 like plaxico.— Yes_General
- Andy still the coach. Juan still the DC.. What more needs to be said?— Ssteve115
- One of these guys have to beat out Dion Lewis...that guy is terrible. DL depth will be nice this year barring injuries. OL concerns me. alot of plug and play guys as backups and a couple of them are starters. That LT worries me alot. Avant is a solid 3, but R. Cooper has shown hardly anything at the 4, someone (McNutt) needs to beat him out. Out with Hanson in with Boykin...Go Birds!— Birdman1906
- Dion Lewis had 23 carries... how can you decide he's "horrible"? He broke record held by Tony Dorsett and McCoy in college. Give the kid one more year. — sasquatches
They will carry 5 DTs this year: Jenkins, Patterson, Cox, Dixon, Landri— conceptual_bro- you saw what winning games did to Tim tebo. He got traded at the end of the season after beating the mighty steelers in the playoffs. Winning games is important but we need a superbowl win more. I respect Cofflin because he doesnt baby players like Reid does and has several superbowls to justify why he doesnt. If Cofflin was the eagles coach i guarantee you we would have different receivers except for Maclin. Our receivers dont reflect the mold he looks for. I see why— Yes_General
- Good bye Graham Cracker....too small for NFL....— SkipinWV
- He's an inch shorter and two pounds lighter than Cole, dude. He's an inch shorter and 8 pounds heavier than Babin. You have no idea what you're talking about. He's not a bust, he played one year and ruptured his ACL. He's a defensive end, so we'll know if he's a bust or not at the end of the 2012 season.
I'm thinking the Eagles keep 9 or 10 defensive lineman: Cole, Babin, Patterson, Jenkins, Graham, Curry, Cox, Dixon, Hunt, & Landri. Very scary defensive line.— colahead420 - Roster battles for the Eagles, unfortunately, are not won by performance, as much as where you were selected in the Draft (See Laws over Landri, 2011). Graham will be yet another example of this in 2012 as they unload Hunt and or Tapp, just to preserve Arrogant Andy's Drafting success (success graded by Drafted Players kept on the roster NOT success by said players winning big games or contributing to make the playoffs).— younged
