Do Eagles lack an elite player?
A couple national lists with the league's top players were recently released, and it's tough to find an Eagles player among the top 50. Do you disagree with the lists, or do the Eagles lack an elite player?
Do Eagles lack an elite player?
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
DeSean Jackson is the Eagles' best offensive player.
Trent Cole is the Eagles' best defensive player.
That's how I see it. That's probably how you see it. And while that might be how the national media see it, that doesn't mean Jackson and Cole are considered elite players around the country.
Which brings us to a couple lists I stumbled upon today.
Let's start with Pete Prisco's list of the top 50 players in the NFL on CBSSports.com. How many Eagles made the cut?
How about zero?
No Jackson. No Cole.
Here are the receivers that made it ahead of Jackson: Andre Johnson (7), Larry Fitzgerald (11), Randy Moss (28), Brandon Marshall (40), Steve Smith (49).
There are no specific guidelines for Prisco's list - just that these are the top 50 players in the league. Moss is 33, and Smith is 31, but both guys have some good years left in them. If you're projecting forward, in other words - Which 50 players would you start your franchise with? - it's easier to make the case for Jackson, who's only 23.
As for Cole, Prisco lists him among the players who "just missed" the cut. The pass-rushers in the top 50 are: DeMarcus Ware (5), Dwight Freeney (10), Jared Allen (12), Mario Williams (17), LaMarr Woodley (26), Julius Peppers (31) and Elvis Dumervil (32).
Meanwhile, Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com put out a similar list recently, but he goes with the top 100.
Four Eagles made the cut, and one even cracked the top 50: Asante Samuel:
A two-time Super Bowl champion, three-time Pro Bowl participant and two-time All-Pro, Samuel's evolved into a senior leader in the Eagles locker room. Though he rarely plays press coverage and isn’t exactly Dick Butkus when it comes to tackling, he's one of the league’s premier interception artists. In the last two seasons, the 29-year-old's recorded 13 regular-season interceptions, including two in the playoffs. His nine picks last year were tied for most in the NFL.
Jackson comes in at 53; Jason Peters at 65; and Cole at 95.
Here is the criteria for Schrager's list:
1. Which player would I rather have on my team?
2. Which player would make the most impact on my team?
3. Which player will be the best in 2010, specifically?
Given those rules, I have a hard time believing Cole shouldn't be higher. He has 34 sacks in the last three seasons and hasn't missed a game. He's only 27 and has shown he's excellent against the run also. There are really 94 players better than him?
Your thoughts?
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tacklin joe: You mean the Cincinnati teams that had the two-time national player of the year Jerry Lucas both years? The guy who was named to the all time NCAA Team in 1999, or who was named to the NBA all time top 50 in 1996, THAT Jerry Lucas? I think the Eagles would settle for a "non-elite" player of that caliber!— jimmyj- D-Jax is the second coming of T.O. and he'll be gone in a couple seasons. Then, he'll learn the hard way that there's no room for midget WRs in the NFL.— juliusman3
- WITH A HEAD COACH THAT PHILA HAS,YOU CANT EXPECT TO MUCH.— frank martino
- WITH A HEAD COACH THAT PHILA HAS,YOU CANT EXPECT TO MUCH.— frank martino
- jimmyj, you're obviously not a Cincinnati fan. Jerry Lucas played for Ohio State, a little school up in Columbus. UC had five very good college players. None of them did much in the pros. With their elite player, Ohio State went down two years in a row. It took Loyola of Chicago to unseat the Bearcats. When the Bearcats had Oscar Robertson, they couldn't win the title. Elite players are fine -- see Peyton Manning -- but not the only route to a Super Bowl.— tacklinjoe
- Oops, I should stick to a sport I don't know anything about like football! LOL— jimmyj
- Of course they lack elite players! Haven't you been paying attention for the last few years?— jman
- The only publications hat think the Eagles have good players is the Philly media. (They're all in Andy's back pockets.)— jman
- Some players look better than they are during the regular season. The truth comes out in the playoffs when an opponent schemes for a player and exploits their weaknesses. Jackson was a non-factor last year in the playoffs. Kolb is a "rythm" passer and opponents will jam Jackson at the line and disrupt the timing. Jackson doesn't have the strength to deal with getting jammed at the line. The only star player the Eagles had last year got traded to the Redskins. 7-9 sounds realistic. The Eagles should be back in the playoffs within 3-4 years with some luck and no injuries to their key starters. If Kolb doesn't perform near McNabb's level, we may be looking at a decade before the Eagles recover from the loss of McNabb. Pretty much the same as what happened before we picked McNabb with the a high 1st round draft pick. We'll need a few more high 1st round draft picks before we have a team that is a legit Super Bowl contender. The McNabb era was the golden age for the Eagles. People will understand that after this year.— MikeP
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