Devastating news for Birds fans
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Devastating news for Birds fans
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
For the past 24 hours, we've been in search of truth and rumors in regards to Brian Dawkins' future.
The chase is now over.
About 90 minutes ago, Les Bowen of the Daily News confirmed that the longest-tenured Eagle has agreed to a deal with the Broncos.
According to Adam Schefter of NFL Network, it's a five-year, $17 million deal that includes $7.2 million guaranteed. Escalators could boost the deal to $27 million, but the deal could also be voided to two years, $9 million.
The numbers probably don't mean much to you right now. What does matter is that the franchise lost its most universally-liked player in over a decade.
The exact date is unknown, but Dawkins will play in Philadelphia next season. The Broncos have a date with the Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in 2009. That will be quite a day. I imagine many will dust off the No. 20 jerseys one more time.
I'll offer more of my take throughout the weekend, but for now, here's a Dawkins highlight video I found on YouTube from NFL Network.
At one point, the highlights go to Dawkins' interview with Terry Bradshaw after the Eagles earned a Super Bowl berth. At about the 2:30 mark, Dawkins says "Gimme some respect right now!" Seems kind of fitting, doesn't it?
And if you don't get chills at about the 2:45 mark, well, this whole Eagles Fan thing might not be for you.
Enjoy, and feel free to chime in with your thoughts on Dawkins' departure.
Comments (45)
I'm going to vomit. Hey front office, BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!— ematusko- owner from Boston, Banner no talent brains at all just a # cruncher for the rich! Reid = MORON Please tell your fans to wake up! Their problem is these 3 stooges that don't care about their fans or city!— losteagle
- this sucks....— vinni
- i hate that sports are a business
- It's really a shame that B-Dawk will not finish his career here in Philly. Best of luck in Denver.— GHOSTPHAYCE
- no, Sheil, actually the numbers do mean a lot. the Eagles could have easily paid that. how could you let Dawk walk for that? who can watch that video now?— tarik255
And I'm getting sick of all the guys saying he's lost a step, he's past his prime, he's just another player.... clearly, people who don't understand the high value of leadership and inspiration. And he has always been the guy the fans rallied around and made the whole thing fun. Woe be unto the organization if next year sucks....- Losing Dawk is a tough pill to swallow. If the Eagles were going to use the money they have just saved for a great young player, that would be one thing. However the Eagles continue to be way under the salary cap year after year. I thought Dawk would be the one guy Lurie and Reid would keep around and reward even in his latter years. This is sad.— Vituperator
- Makes zero sense and I am still in shock. They are 48M under the cap so they can afford to overpay someone. Who cares if he might not be good 2 years from now. He will help the team next year and isn't that all that matters. The Eagles can lie to us and say their goal is to win a superbowl but the truth is their goal is to always make sure they are good, but don't care about being great. They were right when they let go of Hugh, Trotter, Vincent and Bobby Taylor and I will give them credit for that, but BDawk is an entirely different case then those other guys. He is the heart and sole of this team and even if he turns out to be the worst football player in the NFL next year I will still say it was a horrible decision to let him go. This move goes to show that Joe Banner now has too much power in the Eagles organization.— Lemur
- Hold on guys...He'll be 36 years old this season and can't cover anymore. five-year, $17 million deal that includes $7.2 million guaranteed. Escalators could boost the deal to $27 million, but the deal could also be voided to two years, $9 million. Only a hurting team like Denver would pay that much. he's not worth 4.5mm a year for 2 years. You guys want a Super Bowl well the Birds just moved in the right direction. All of Dawkins theatrics don't make him a cover man. Yup he can hit but the guy already caught the ball....Mikell and Demps....Get use to it. Getting rid of Runyan another good move, but they gotta get rid of Tra. He sucks...— bryky
- Face it, they just don't care what the fans think. To them, we are idiots. There are 50,000 people waiting to take your tickets if you give them up. The only way to get to them would be to shame them on a national stage, but the lemming fans won't organize or support a fan walkout to the concourse during a nationally televised game, or boycott concessions or training camp or anything that makes the front office look like the chumps they are. They figure they are smarter than the fans and are probably right. Best wishes B Dawk, you left it all out on the feild for us, we appreciate it.— jimmymack
- Get a grip, people. Dawkins left for the money. The Eagles would have been stupid to match that deal. It's pro football, not American Idol, and Dawkins is not your special binky to coddle you through the games. I remember the very moment Dawk was drafted, and I've been at all the home games he excelled in. He's one of the greatest Eagles ever. But Denver just flushed a pile of money, while the Eagles will get younger and faster.— ahab
- Greg Lewis remains an Eagle and Brian Dawkins is not. Joe Banner strikes again. The gold-standard? Not quite.— philadelphialegend
Comment removed.- Really liked Dawkins 'til I saw he had to produce this saccharine tribute to himself. Hey Brian, it doesn't count if you have to tout your own horn. Have some class dude.— jakelbi
- Looks like I got me a new team to watch!— WhatNow
- JIMMYMACK that might be the dumbest idea i ever heard of, a walkout during a nationally televised game, that might be the stupidest thing i ever heard of, yeah go pay for your tickets than leave the game to prove a point, you know what go buy your tickets and you can lead the crowd on the way out, see how many people follow you 0. Do any of you really think that there trying not to spend money, that they want to put a bad team on the field, get a life, there arent many free agents worth spending money on, the only way at this point to improve the team is through the draft and via trade, anyone who knows anything would tell you that. All you eagle haters act like you dont care yet your going to come on this site and however many others and comment about how you hate this or that, yeah that shows how much you really dont care, your gonna be sitting at the stadium or your lazy boys watching every game this year while the eagles continue to put a winning team together year after year, if they thought that Dawk would have had a bigger impact in uniform this year than his eventual replacement than he would still be here, thats all there is to it.— allsprtsfan84
- Ouch. Tough to lose the heart, even if he was getting old. Denver will no doubt go far with him. It often seems to work that way. I guess it had to happen eventually, best of luck B-Dawk.— LarzNero
- I wouldn't mind this move as much with the exception that WHO exactly to the Birds have to: 1. Replace Dawk, 2. Be a leader on the defense 3. Be the IMPACT player on the defense? Right now, they just have some "nice" players--where are the STUDS, gained either from trades or previous drafts? Oh, right, we traded our picks away!— Tracer41
- watching that was tough— slowski
- For years I wondered exactly why I have a problem with Andy and Jeff. The probelms is that they just don't get it!! I think most of us are willing to put up with constantly being a brides maid and never a bride if we can still find some solace in the fact that we have guys like BDawk around - guys that play this game the way we all think we would play the game if we had the talent. On the other side, we are willing to probably sell our souls to the devil for one superbowl win before we die. So if we had to live with talentfilled heartless players - we may make that sacrifice. But we can't live with the in-between world that Jeff and Andy reside in. They dont have the marbles to bet it all and go for the superbowl and they dont have the heart to recognize true heart when it has been with them for 13 years. My guess is Jeff was counting the dollars he'll make when all the fans have to go out an buy new jerseys cause number 20 is not on the field anymore. I am sad to see BDawk go - especially when he still could contribute. But it makes me more sad that these guys just dont get it!!! Can ownership trade - could you guys move to somewhere where they want sushi in the stands and plastic champaign glasses and give us someone who understands that "almost winning" doesn't justify cutting out our hearts.— jerrybosch
- For years I wondered exactly why I have a problem with Andy and Jeff. The probelms is that they just don't get it!! I think most of us are willing to put up with constantly being a brides maid and never a bride if we can still find some solace in the fact that we have guys like BDawk around - guys that play this game the way we all think we would play the game if we had the talent. On the other side, we are willing to probably sell our souls to the devil for one superbowl win before we die. So if we had to live with talentfilled heartless players - we may make that sacrifice. But we can't live with the in-between world that Jeff and Andy reside in. They dont have the marbles to bet it all and go for the superbowl and they dont have the heart to recognize true heart when it has been with them for 13 years. My guess is Jeff was counting the dollars he'll make when all the fans have to go out an buy new jerseys cause number 20 is not on the field anymore. I am sad to see BDawk go - especially when he still could contribute. But it makes me more sad that these guys just dont get it!!! Can ownership trade - could you guys move to somewhere where they want sushi in the stands and plastic champaign glasses and give us someone who understands that "almost winning" doesn't justify cutting out our hearts.— jerrybosch
- No matter how much his skills might deteriorate over the next 2 years, I'll be missing that rabid flying squirrel leap of his that caused so many fumbles. Thanks, Brian.— frankenslade
- 5 years is a bit much but I heard they were hesitant to make ANY deal and Dawk was quick to walk. This organization cares about dollars, not wins. Go Phillies!— Gigs1777
- The Merchant of Broad Street strikes again. What a freaking joke this front office has become. This is the biggest disgrace I've seen in a loooong time from the Eagles. You cheap dopes act like you know how to run a team, yet have NO SB's to back it up. You might as well trade McNabb and Westbrook while they still have value since you're obviously rebuilding. Don't half arss the rebuild process you cheap twits. 48 million in cap space and you couldn't pony up to keep the best player to ever play for this franchise. You deserve to lose, LURIE. WE WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU DAWK!!!!!— blueballs
- I love Dawkins. I'm happy he got one more big pay day. But, did anyone forget how the secondary was toasted by Larry Fitzgerald? I'm glad I don't have to watch him get isolated by teams with WR or TE and watch them blow by him for a touchdown. He WAS an awesome player and one of the best ever. But, NOW he's just a good player.— Tom98786
- YOU ARE $41mm STILL UNDER THE CAP AND YOU DON'T PAY TO BRING BACK THE HEART AND SOUL WHEN THERE ARE NO OTHER OPTIONS? ANDY REID AND JOE BANNER IF YOU WANT ME TO BE A BRONCOS FAN, THEN A BRONCOS FAN I WILL BE. I WILL NEVER, EVER ROOT FOR THIS TEAM UNDER THIS REGIME EVER AGAIN. I AM NOW A DIE HARD BRONCOS FAN LIKE I GREW UP THERE. JOE BANNER CAN GO TO HELL HE IS A PIECE OF GARBAGE. I HATE YOU TOO JEFF LURIE YOU NO GOOD NORMAN BRAMEN WANNABE.— MOJR
- So what your all saying is that every Sunday your all going to be wearing your midnight green cheering the eagles as usual, clowns. Try having some faith in one of the most winning organizations since there arrival. CLOWNS, everyone will miss Dawk but if he isnt the player he once was you cant keep him around for sentimental value in a diminished role, do you think he wants to be splitting time or a backup the last few years of his career, the only thing your all thinking about is your love affair with this player and thats all good and well but think about the player and the overall well being of the team and grow up.— allsprtsfan84
- It is amazing how much some here know about how much money the birds have to spend and how they should spend it. I have been an avid Eagle fan for 55 years and have seen some tough times and some bad decisions, but if some of you guys were in control--WOW. A real fan supports his team--doesn't made judgments at the start--wait till the off season is complete and the birds will be competitive. So far all looks good.— J Ziggy
- " Do you feel that thang beatin in chest dog gone it". Best of luck to my favorite Eagle of all-time.— albertpa
- Comment removed.
- get a stud wide receiver with the money saved....upgrade...upgrade...upgrade— phillyfan19335
- THe following is straight from a VERY RELIABLE SOURCE INSIDE THE EAGLES FO. I cannot say where this info came from , just know that it is the truth: "In a nutshell: Dawkins told the Eagles about the offer. They basically laughed and called him a liar (in a nice way) and said to 'go ahead and take it', thinking that he was bluffing. Dawkins put the pen to paper about a half hour after that conversation. This all came about because Banner and Reid terribly lowballed him. I actually didn't believe it when I heard the $$$ offered. He wanted more and the Eagles said: if you think you can do better, go ahead and try, just call us when you get an offer. I find this to be terribly insulting and I'm sure Dawkins did too. I can't believe he even did call them to try one more time to stay after the #### they pulled."— tch43
- I really don't Think Dawk contacted the Iggles. That is what agents are paid large sums of money to do. If they matched that money they really would be idiots— Reggie92
- Good for you Dawk!!! Boycott the Birds in 09!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!— Jay C
- I wish the whole franchise would get the Hell out of this city,as a team you suck you'll alway's suck you are bad publicly to all of us loyal fan's,so tell us how on this frickin earth are you going to replace the caliber of Dawk? I wish and I feel well all wish you a 0-16 season,fore you deserve nothing but this at all. I am a many year season ticket holder and as of today I am no more,Go to Hell! Let's Go Phillies!
- Front-office apologists need to wake up. Did this team make a move when they could have added a top-shelf tight end during the season last year? Did this team actually go into a season without a fullback? The season before without kick returners? Yes, I lived through the Kuharick - Campbell - Kotite years, yet I have never felt more alienated from this franchise's leadership. Oh did I say leadership? Banner-Lurie-Reid wouldn't recognize leadership if it came in a bottle. I am really p.o.'d right now, but know that by next season I'll still be watching. What I will not do is spend another penny on any Eagle merchandise.
- ahab, they will get younger and faster. and worse you idiot. they are a worse football team than they were two weeks ago. we are just money to those in the front office. seeing this guy hold up another jersey makes me wanna throw up.— theanswer80
- wow watching that video brings up so many emotions.happiness, crunkness, anger, depression. we all as eagles fan just have to be grateful that we were able to have a guy like dawkins representing our team and playing with the passion that he did for 13 years. he was the type of player we love. even if your not as talented as some of the superstars in the league if you go out and play your heart out and act like the game actually means something to you, we respect you. it's so hard looking at dawkins holding up a broncos jersey but we all know the dawk will forever be an eagle. I wish him nothing but the best in Denver and am proud to be an eagles fan with him pouring his heart and soul out for us the fans and the team for all those years. Thanks for the memories Dawk!— bleedingreen86
- Jimmy Mack (no relation, thank God) said: "Face it, they [Eagles Managment] just don't care what the fans think. To them, we are idiots." He's right. And so is Eagles Management. Ahab gets it. The rest of you are nitwits.— Tom.Mack
- Comment removed.
- I still can't believe they did this. I am just stunned, saddened and angry. That "Weapon X" video has been one of my favorites for years. And now watching it just makes me sad.— kimbafuzz
- I'm not devastated. disappointed he never got a ring with the eagles but not devastated. some of you need a reality check. Denver wayyy over paid for a player wayy past his prime. Very good point ahab and I agree completely. Dawk did what was in his own best interest and that was a good thing for him. Throwing money at over-the-hill players is a lousy way to run a football team.— bleedgreen
- IF THERE'S NO ROOM FOR DAWKINS THEN THERE SHOULD BE NO ROOM FOR THAT FAT F--K , COACH REID.DAWKINS AND HIS DEFENSIVE STALWARTS SAVED THE COACHES JOB TIME AND AGAIN.IF THE FRONT OFFICE IS CLEANING HOUSE ,THEN LETS START AT THE TOP !!!!— ROCKINRANDYLEE
- Correction. Dawk is third best. Don't forget Reggie White and Chuck Bednarik. Sad to see him go; but, this is the right move. Our safeties are one year away from being in the same rare air. We've got talent to spare at the safety and corner positions.
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Sheil Kapadia is in his fifth season writing about the Eagles and the NFL for philly.com. His earliest
memories as a sports fan include several trips to Veterans Stadium with
his Dad. He's not a beat writer or an Insider, but is here to
discuss the NFL 365 days a year. E-mail him at skapadia@philly.com or
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