Draft position and Giants-Cowboys thoughts
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Draft position and Giants-Cowboys thoughts
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles are one of eight teams that finished the season with an 8-8 record.
Seven of those teams (the Broncos being the exception) will miss out on the playoffs. And that also means strength of schedule determines where those seven teams will pick in the first round of April's draft.
The team with the weakest strength of schedule among the group, the Cardinals, gets the 13th selection. And the Eagles will pick two spots later at No. 15. Here's the order for the 8-8 teams, with strength of schedule in parentheses, courtesy of NFL.com:
13. Cardinals (.469)
14. Cowboys (.473)
15. Eagles (.488)
16. Jets (.500)
17. Bengals (from Raiders) (.504)
18. Chargers (.516)
19. Bears (.527)
As for the second round, the seven teams cycle down. In other words, the Cardinals will pick last among this group, and the other teams get bumped up, with Dallas picking first.
That's significant because the Eagles get the Cardinals' second pick (courtesy of the Kevin Kolb deal) in addition to their own selection. That translates to the 46th pick (their own) and the 51st pick (the Cardinals') overall.
GIANTS TAKE THE NFC EAST
Some stray thoughts on the Giants' win over the Cowboys Sunday night:
* Before the Eagles played the Giants in Week 3, Victor Cruz had two career catches for 17 yards. He finished the season with 82 receptions and 1,536 yards, most in Giants franchise history and third-most in the league, behind only Calvin Johnson and Wes Welker.
Against the Cowboys, Cruz piled up six catches for 178 yards. In the first half, he made Terence Newman and Gerald Sensabaugh look silly on a 74-yard touchdown that included about 68 yards after the catch. With everything on the line for the Giants, it was the second straight week Cruz made a huge play. Against the Jets, he had a 99-yard touchdown in the first half.
* And no, I have no clue what NBC was thinking playing the salsa music for Cruz' celebration. Very strange. At first, I couldn't tell if it was coming from the broadcast, the stadium or my neighbor's apartment.
* If I'm the Giants, perhaps the most encouraging thing to take from yesterday's game was the pass rush. Jason Pierre-Paul's been doing it all season, but they got contributions from Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora yesterday. Tuck has two sacks in the last two games. And Umenyiora had two against the Cowboys. Overall, the Giants have 11 sacks in the last two games. There are still plenty of holes in that secondary, but New York can at least rush the passer effectively.
* Speaking of Pierre-Paul, if you were starting a franchise and had your pick of any defensive player in the league, he has to be in the discussion, right? Yesterday was his 23rd birthday, and Pierre-Paul finished the season with 16.5 sacks. I'm on board with those who have written that Brandon Graham deserves a chance to prove himself next season when he's healthy, but I don't think the regret over passing on Pierre-Paul is going away any time soon.
* As for the Cowboys, they miss out on the playoffs for the third time in four seasons. I know Tony Romo will take a lot of heat for turning the ball over twice, but the Dallas defense reminded me of what the Eagles' D has looked like at times this season. Missed tackles, confusion, breakdowns in the secondary. Eli Manning picked them apart, completing 24 of 33 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns. The Cowboys have plenty of work to do this offseason on that side of the ball.
NEXT YEAR'S OPPONENTS
With the regular season over, next year's opponents are set. Aside from the division games, the Eagles play the following teams at home: the Falcons, Panthers, Ravens, Bengals and Lions. Not an easy slate. Four of those five teams are in the playoffs, and the other has Cam Newton.
On the road, the Eagles go to New Orleans, Tampa, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Arizona. Two of those five teams are in the postseason.
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That home schedule is vicious. 5-3 at home next year would be an amazing feat. As for the rest of the schedule, at least we don't have to play the freaking Bears again.- You mean we don't play the Bears?— fgdavis
- 13th, 14th, 15th, whatever? Reid will just trade down anyway.— Steve Jeltz
- Regarding Graham vs. Pierre-Paul: while the latter may have size, speed, and game-tested ability, I'm told Graham has a high motor. Check ... mate.— defeNEstrati
- Those picks are as worthless as a tit on a bull if Rosenman is the GM making the picks. Rosenman and Banner are clueless and the ruination of the Eagles roster both for their draft decisions and their personnel management faux paus. They need to go yesterday!— Commonesnes
- Howie the Bean Counter is already studying tape of his draft targets on the University of Washington Huskies defensive squad! Remember Howie's Motto, "Quantity over Quality"! How many people had the Cardinals 2nd rounder we got for Kolb, being 5 spots after the Eagles selection? As for our 1st rounder, try and name the smallish, quick, high motor DE that we will take after trading 3 picks to move up and get? Don't worry, its coming! Hint.... He'll be coming off of some minor knee surgery!— younged
- loss to the saints, steelers, and ravens or bengels, split with the giants, and a loss in a game that they should win. 11-5/10-6 shouldn't be impossible— franknbeans
- Despite the dogs that played last night the team to root against more was no question the Cowgirls. How sweet was that look on creep Cryptkeeper Jerry Jones' face in the 1st half? Priceless.— Bob1
- Wow. That schedule is brutal. The home schedule is vicious and the road schedule is tougher than it looks. Tampa was probably a bigger disappointment than the Eagles and may play much better next year. Cleveland has a solid defense and they may get better in the off season. Arizona beat them this year. Even the scrub teams aren't gimmes. Good-luck with that one and Vick running the show.— UncleStosh
- when you start the W and L game in the first few days Jan it tells you alot about your team— lewisbratspis
- Schedule is a beast but look at the road trip potential...New Orleans, Tampa, Arizona? Are you kidding me. I can't to get tix to those games. Too far for you? You can drive to Pitt and Cleveland withing 6-8 hours. Very nice schedule as far as road trips go. Fun.— scootch
- We'll trade our first round pick to someone for their whole bottom half of the draft starting in the 6th round. With the first pick in the 6th round. The Philadelphia Eagles select.. Community College Of Philadelphia's.. Janitor. The scouting report is he wont give the team any problems when it comes to contracts. Its said he will work for peanuts. He has a high motor on the leaf blower. He can mop the computer floor in 500 seconds flat etc etc.
Next year's pick will probably retire after the Eagles sign him.— Zeru - Get an experienced, successful personnel guy (maybe from some strong drafting team's tree), promote him to GM, and let him make drafting and FA decisions, with input but not approval from Reid...who is staying whether fans like it or not. With three picks in the top 51 of this year's draft, it is crucial to get this right if we want to get back into the playoffs, let alone compete for a Super Bowl.— chesapeake
- fire castillo. we need a mean hard hitting defense like years passed. just hope goddell doesnt completely ban tackling next season. the nfl is becoming a joke. its now entertainment not sport. espn ruined sports. noe the nfl just wants offense and scoring to attack the fringe fans that know nothing. no wonder all the offensive records are being broken at record pace. you cant tackle or hit the qb, penalties keep the offense on the move constantly and offensive pass interference is never called. the nfl is no longer football, the nba is whinny crybaby thugs, and baseball is juiced. hockey is now the best sport in the country.— psualum
- So in other words, in 2012 the Eagles are playing the AFC North, the strongest division in football with three 2011-12 playoff teams, the NFC South, with two, the resurgent Lions and the Cardinals, who won seven of their last nine games. Dang. Against these opponents, the Birds will have to be better than they were this year.— Dave Clemens
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