Eagles minicamp: Times they are a-changing
The Philadelphia Inquirer Blog - Eagles
Eagles minicamp: Times they are a-changing
Jeff McLane, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Eagles kicked off their first minicamp post-Donovan McNabb. There was plenty of news so let's get to it ...
INJURIES
-- The following players did not practice today: center Jamaal Jackson (knee), linebacker Omar Gaither (foot), defensive end Vic Abiamiri (knee) and guard Max Jean-Gilles (gastric band surgery).
Eagles coach Andy Reid said as far back as the owners' meetings last month that Abiamiri had knee surgery, but he's been rather evasive about what kind of knee surgery he actually had. It wasn't to repair a torn ACL, Reid said. It wasn't arthroscopic. Reid said that he would get trainer Rick Burkhalter to explain to us the surgery. We're still waiting.
Jean-Gilles had his surgery on Tuesday. He said he weighed almost 400 pounds after the season and finally decided to do something about it. He said he's down to 375 right now and hopes to get to a playing weight of 335. Reid said it was the first time he's ever had a player that had that kind of surgery. Jean-Gilles said that he would be back for OTAs in June.
-- The following players participated in individual drills, but not in team drills: defensive back Marlin Jackson (knee), tight end Cornelius Ingram (knee), cornerback Ellis Hobbs (neck) and rookie safety Nate Allen (quad). Reid said that each of the those players should be able to do more as the spring progresses.
-- Middle linebacker Stew Bradley (knee) was out there for the whole practice and said afterward that he felt fine.
DEPTH CHART
Obviously, it's very early, but here is generally how the first and second team offense and defense were aligned during the morning practice (Be reminded that several key players sat out the team portion of practice with injuries):
Offense
WR: Jeremy Maclin Hank Baskett
TE: Brent Celek Martin Rucker
RT: Winston Justice King Dunlap
RG: Stacy Andrews Nick Cole
C: Nick Cole Mike McGlynn
LG: Todd Herremans Zipp Duncan
LT: Jason Peters Fenuki Tupou
QB: Kevin Kolb Michael Vick
RB: LeSean McCoy Mike Bell
FB: Leonard Weaver Dwayne Wright
WR: DeSean Jackson Jason Avant
Defense
LDE: Juqua Parker Brandon Graham
LDT: Mike Patterson Trevor Laws
RDT: Brodrick Bunkley Antonio Dixon
RDE: Trent Cole Darryl Tapp
WILL: Ernie Sims Akeem Jordan
MLB: Stewart Bradley Joe Mays
SAM: Moise Fokou Keenan Clayton
LCB: Asante Samuel Dmitri Patterson
RCB: Joselio Hanson Trevard Lindley
SS: Quintin Mikell Quintin Demps
FS: Macho Harris Kurt Coleman
-- McGlynn took most of the snaps at center, but Reid said Cole is the first teamer right now with Jackson still out.
-- In his first practice as the backup, Vick was shaky. He does look slimmer than he did last year.
-- McCoy, Fokou and Harris all looked a little more bulked up. According to Reid, they are a few of the second-year guys that really made an off-season commitment to getting into the workout room and strengthening up.
-- Rookie Ricky Sapp practiced with the linebackers. Linebacker Alex Hall, who came from Cleveland in the Sheldon Brown/Chris Gocong trade, played mostly with his hand on the ground off the end. Reid said Hall played that often in college.
CHANGES
-- No Donovan McNabb. The only mention of No. 5 during practice came when a man screamed out of a passing car: "McNabb."
-- McNabb's familiar stall in the corner of the Eagles' NovaCare Complex locker room has been replaced by Mike Kafka. The rookie quarterback said he wasn't told it was formerly McNabb's when the Eagles assigned it to him. Vick is next to Kafka and Kolb is next to Vick, as they were last season. Mike Bell has taken over Brian Westbrook's locker. Winston Justice has taken over Shawn Andrews' old locker. SpongeBob is gone.
-- There were a number of old photos of McNabb that were recently taken down at the NovaCare and replaced with Kolb's visage. The Eagles also had to purge their walls of Westbrook, Sheldon Brown and other long-time faces that departed this off-season.
-- Number changes: McCoy went from 29 to 25, Harris went from 35 to 24 (Brown's old number) and Dixon went from 64 to 90.
ROSTER CHANGES
-- Guard Shawn Murphy, who the Eagles picked off waivers from Tampa Bay earlier this week, did not pass a physical. Undrafted rookie defensive tackle Charles Alexander also didn't pass a physical.
This just in to philly.com...lonewolf10 reports that Kevin Kolb was seen turning water into wine, feeding the multitude with a fish, walking on water, and being resurrected from the dead.— Bobby G- This football team is an utter disgrace!!!!!!! I hope the McNabb haters are prepared for 6-10 AT BEST!— knebman
Rod72 & bossrjc- It's not mentioned here, but apparently Abiamiri's surgery was back in Febuary. Initially, he was looking at a six month recovery time (August), but it doesn't look like it's going to happen that way. More than likely, another year on the IR. Personally, I consider that a good thing. Let's see what Graham and T'eo can do.— phillychaos- beware of fraud wolfs accepting federal handouts and bailouts....my man— Lonewolf10
- kolb gets hurt in game 2 and is done for the season. vick leads the eagles to a 6-10 season. just watch it happen...— eaglesfan in DC
- Looks like the best roster in the NFL again, a real gold standard right there......already the envy of the NFC eat, maybe the entire league......— morrisrh
- I agree with Rod72. What's with these guys who get the surgery right before camp? What is that all about? Makes me wonder not only about commitment but also about coaching and communication. It's really p****s me off. Somebody needs to explain some of these timetables.— bossrjc
- Michael Vick looked "shaky"...just GREAT. Wonder which one of the FO pinheads decided the Eagles should welcome a rehabilitating Vick. Please trade Vick and lets use the roster spot more wisely.— Smashmouth
- This squad will be lucky to hit .500, Can we all agree that it is time for us to move on from Reid????
That isn't wiff guys. I'd know his BS anywhere and that ain't him. It's a different moron.— tpizza
Comment removed.- Comment removed.
Uggh! What a loser. I'm going to puke up my 4 buckets of extra crispy. Time's yours.— ANDY-IS-FAT
The Reddgie Purgatory is what we had to expirence with McNabb. All of those champship games all of those loses. If Kolb was at the helm he would have thrown strikes to Pinkston, Freddie Mitchell and Darnell Autry. McNabb had weapons and couldn't use them right. Kolb will let that ball fly and get it done because he's a leader of men and a true All-Amercian.- Lonewolf is Kolb's mom - that's my guess.— reb
- Ans while we are at it Lonewolf 10, what is your beef with Doc Halladay? He wants to play with a winner. I am pretty sure that every athlete alive wants to play with a winner. Toronto is the MLB equivalence of Purgatory. You know what, you probably have no clue what that means, so just forget it.— The Reddgie
- kolb is a true west coast offense qb and will put the ball where it needs to go so that receivers can keep on running and not have to stop then run again. I am ready to roll!— PEFF
- love the DE's and LB's. We should do good this year. Love Bradley!— PEFF
- Yo Lonely wolfie. Did you forget to take your medication again today?Pinpoint accuracy huh? Sure. Unfortunately it's usually to the other team. Oh and hey. be careful with the Patton references. You do know he was relieved of his duty don't you? Then again you don't sound like much of a history buff. It's far too factual. Something you don't seem to know much about. My man.— JLH
- cut jean-gillies right now that fat mess...how can a professional athlete get lap band surgery and still be taken seriously? thats embarrassing. good thing he shows a commitment to his team and his contract by coming it at 4 bills.— mt71985
- What was it that kept Alexander and Murphy from passing their physicals, the lack of ACL surgeries?— The Reddgie
- Jean-Gilles at 400lbs? Are you kidding me? Way to be dedicated to your profession. I am sure he'll have a lot of energy during a game being able to eat meals the size of a tennis ball.— stonefly
- Celek is so good he's listed twice under the Offense, as is Rucker. Doesn't anyone proof read these articles? Tell us why Murphy and Alexander failed their physicals?— The Marco Islander
- Move over Jerome McDougal, Abiamiri's replacing you as the latest early round bust.— beegal99
- depth on OL is pathetic. injuries are certain and kolb will be the victim.— jb99
- I'm not a doctor, but I thought that the purpose of gastric band surgery was to put the band around the top of the stomach as the first step in losing weight. As a result of the smaller space, the individual will now eat less food. I can see this working for the average person, but what about a professional athlete who does have to consume extra calories in order to perform? Maybe there was a reason that no other athlete had tried this yet while still playing.— catnameddomino
- Kolb is what every team envisions as a prototypical QB. Great size, arms strength, pinpoint accuracy and intangibles through the roof. His leadership skills alone raise him above the likes of McNabb and the Roy " FRontRunner" Halladay's of the world. He will lead this team to glory and not be the gear that clogs up the machine like McNabb did for us for so many years. He will be clutch when called upon and he will lead men like General Patton. He has the look and mindset of a true All-American and not the fraud wanting handouts like the previous QB.......Kolb my man.
- Comment removed.
- Why do players wait until days before camp starts to opt for surgery? This speaks volumes about the type of player he is.— Rod72
- What about the wide receiver from villanova , where did he go
- What about the wide receiver from villanova , where did he go
- AbiaMcDougle, I mean Abiamiri missed practice? Wow. Shocker.— Ballgame
- Get ready for a stream of McNabb apologists..."You can't take down his pictures, he's part of our history!!!...They should've never traded him!!!" Get over it people. McNabb is now gone, that's the bottom line. Climb aboard the Kolb train and enjoy the ride.
- "The only mention of No. 5 during practice came when a man screamed out of a passing car: "McNabb."" - It was Rush Limbaugh. He really loves Donovan and will miss him dearly.— B in DC
- Carlos Dunlap isn't on this team. Try King Dunlap.— dgreills
- The Eagles got Carlos Dunlap! Nice!— WWW.WEEMSWEAR.COM
