Eagles training camp awards
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Eagles training camp awards
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
The Eagles wrapped up another summer here at Lehigh Tuesday morning.
They'll face the Steelers Thursday night in Pittsburgh before returning to work at the Novacare Complex in South Philadelphia.
This is the fourth camp I've covered, and each one seems to be more eventful than the last.
Keeping that in mind, let's look back at the past few weeks and hand out some training camp awards.
MVP: MICHAEL VICK
By the time the second morning practice was over, it was clear that Michael Vick had become the face of the 2011 Eagles. Fans cheered and flocked to him. Teammates, both old and new, followed him. And the coaching staff/front office counted on him to be the team's spokesman. When no one else wanted to comment on DeSean Jackson's holdout, there was Vick, day-after-day, answering reporters' questions. He made it clear he was in Jackson's corner, but also kept management comfortable.
On the field, he acknowledged improvement was necessary in terms of pre-snap recognition and reading the blitz, and he put in the work. When the Eagles signed Vince Young as his backup, Vick welcomed him and now will be counted on to mentor him. It was two years ago last Saturday that the Eagles stunned the NFL world by signing Vick out of prison. Now he is the single biggest reason the team has Super Bowl aspirations.
LVP: JOE TOLEDO
The Eagles needed a camp body and signed the 28-year-old offensive lineman on Saturday. Buat at about 5:45 Monday evening, they announced his release. The poor guy never even got his name on a jersey. Here's to hoping Mr. Toledo's next stop is a longer one.
SCARIEST MOMENT: MIKE PATTERSON'S SEIZURE
I can honestly say Patterson convulsing on the ground was the scariest thing I've ever seen on a football field. I remember walking towards the end of the field where the linemen practice, and by the time I got there, seeing Patterson on his back. The players soon blocked my vision, but seeing their reactions and their emotion made me realize just how serious it was. While his football future really isn't important, Patterson seems to be on the road to recovery and has even been on the field in recent days with the rehabbing players.
MOST REGRETTABLE MOMENT: THE 'DREAM TEAM' MENTION
Vince Young was asked about the talent on the Eagles and made what seemed to be (at the time) a relatively innocent comment. But the words "Dream Team" did come out of his mouth, and the rest is history.
Young's teammates and coaches have now been asked about his comment on a daily basis. Same with coaches, front office members and reporters who cover the team. While I hate to say it, my guess is this is only the beginning. If the Eagles struggle early on, guess what people are going to bring up? When media from other cities interview Eagles players during the regular season, guess what they are going to ask about? That's right, my friends. We are going to be hearing the words "Dream Team" for months to come. Mark my words.
MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT: THE NNAMDI ASOMUGHA SIGNING
As many of you know, I went through a stretch where I happened to be driving when all the big news broke. I was behind the wheel when the Eagles traded Kevin Kolb to Arizona. And I was on the road the next day when they signed Nnamdi Asomugha. Before I left the practice fields at Lehigh, it looked like the race for Asomugha had come down to the Jets and Cowboys. And as I packed up my stuff in the bloggers' trailer, I saw a Tweet that the Jets were out. I commented to a couple other reporters that it looked like DeSean Jackson would have to face Asomugha twice a year when the Birds played Dallas.
I was listening to 97.5 The Fanatic in the car when host Jon Marks said they had breaking news regarding Asomugha. I was sure he was going to say the Cowboys' deal was done, but when he announced that the Eagles had swooped in, I nearly drove off the road. By the time I got to my destination, my phone had blown up with texts and e-mails.
Later that evening, the Phillies acquired Hunter Pence without giving up Domonic Brown or Vance Worley. I got more responses to something I Tweeted that night than ever before:
I picture Ruben Amaro Jr. and Howie Roseman smoking cigars on a rooftop in Center City tonight like Avon and Stringer.
Depending on how things work out with the Phillies and Eagles, that night has a chance to go down as one of the most memorable in Philadelphia sports history.
PLAYER WHOSE STOCK ROSE: JASON KELCE
You first saw Kelce's name surface in this space on April 12 when a report came out that the Eagles were planning on hosting him for a pre-draft visit. Projections I saw at the time had him listed as a late-round pick or an undrafted free agent. The Eagles took him in the sixth round, and to be honest, he was an afterthought (for me, at least) when practices started here.
But not anymore. He's been mixing in at center with the first team and has a chance to snatch away the starting spot from veteran Jamaal Jackson.
PLAYER WHOSE STOCK DROPPED: TREVOR LAWS
This one might surprise you, but because of his injury and the Eagles' personnel moves, this has been a tough camp for Laws.
He drew rave reviews in the offseason for working out and adding muscle, but Laws has missed many practices here with a hip flexor. Meanwhile, the Eagles added a pair of veteran defensive tackles in Anthony Hargrove and Derek Landri. Hargrove has been running alongside Cullen Jenkins with the first team, and Landri was impressive in the first preseason game. With Antonio Dixon in the fold and Patterson potentially returning, the Eagles are going to face tough roster decisions on Laws (who is in the final year of his deal) and the other defensive tackles.
MOST IMPORTANT STORYLINE: REVAMPING THE 'D'
It's tough to imagine the Eagles doing any more to overhaul a group that was historically bad in the red zone a year ago and allowed a franchise-worst 31 touchdowns.
The jury's out on Juan Castillo as Sean McDermott's replacement, but the Eagles went out and got Jim Washburn to coach the defensive line. The talent is night and day from a year ago, with Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Asomugha at cornerback, and Jenkins and Babin on the defensive line.
Adding more veterans should lead to better leadership. And while it's still early, the Eagles' pass defense has a chance to be one of the best in the league.
WHAT I'LL REMEMBER: THE CASTILLO HEAD-BUTT
I was on the sidelines when Castillo started chewing out second-year linebacker Keenan Clayton. And while his in-your-face approach was evident from Day 1, I was pretty shocked when I saw Castillo (without a helmet) head-butt Clayton (with a helmet). Later, during his press conference, Castillo had a mark on his forehead. Perhaps I had spent too many hours in the sun, but I didn't put two and two together right then. Luckily, Casey Matthews later clarified that the cut was indeed from the Clayton head-butt.
WHAT I'D LIKE TO FORGET: THE PORT-A-POTTY
There comes a time in every man's life when he questions the direction things are going. For me, that happened on a daily basis when I spent 30 seconds or so in the Port-A-Potty next to the fields before the start of morning practice. If there's a more unforgiving place to be at 7:45 a.m., I can't think of it.
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Funniest thing I ever saw was a smack-talking cowgirls fan get shoved into a port-a-potty & tilted on its door outside the Vet, all the while, Philly's finest looking on and laughing.— Mabus
construction worker use them everyday! toughen up a little, there are still outhouse's in remote parts of the US guess you need to get out of town and see some of the country boys life!— thinkinggreen- If they're smart, they will embrace the "Dream Team" monicker and use it to make them play so hard that nobody will ever say it with a question mark attached. It could be good to play scared.— coachie
In L.A., port-a-pottys are called 'Andy Gumps', (after the company that manufactured them). One poor, sheltered girl I knew in los angeles had never even heard of a port-a-potty...go figure.- Great story TBear. I thought having to use one of those things after it had sat in 100 degree heat for a few days was bad but after your tale, I bow to the master of the port-a-john.— tpizza
- Love the comments about Mike Vick stepping up to the mic and answering for his team and his teammates. That he is willing to be the face of the franchise on and off the field is a welcome change. He is holding nothing back, and wearing his desire to win on his sleeve. In short, Vick is bringing to the Eagles team and organization something we haven't seen from a Philly QB in some time: it's called leadership, my friends, and oh, how sweet it is!— Eaglesfan in IL
- Sheil your articles are well written, enlightening. Well done.— hallux
- Good summary, Sheil.— armchairGM
- Laws and Landri were starting DT's for Notre Dame at the same time. Abiamiri (sp) was a starting DE. Laws Left ND the year after Landri and Abiamiri— Dennis Downey
- try using a port a potty in 130 degree heat after some iraqi used the seat for target practice all while wearing 100 lbs of gear, lets get real!
Mad respect @Tbear!— xlGmanlx - wow @TBear. i don't think i'll ever use a port-a-potty again after reading that. or at least on anything other than a sunny and tranquil day.— poetx
- TBear...that is the greatest story ever told. I've heard of "The Greatest Story Ever Told".. but I just forgot what it used to be. I was going to relay my experiences as a (recovering) addict and tell a story about worse places to be at 7:45am... but I can barely hold a candle to that story. The course of my life has been altered (again).— Jim Daly
- Training camps awards?....act like you've been there before...oh, you haven't.— bearsfriend
Comment removed.- Sheil, re your port-a-potty ill will: As a retired construction worker, I had frequent associations with the aforementioned latrine system. Suffice to say that on a cold, wind-swept open deck on a high-rise building under construction, you have no choice but to seek out the small, green and/or white haven. You see, these rather light "buildings" have a tendency to fly away with whover may be inside if the wind is sufficently strong....and 30 stories up, it is QUITE brisk. On the jobsite I'm speaking of, this particular flimsy structure was actually chained to a steel column. One would think that to be enough. Seems there was a weak link. As the gods would have it, one REALLY windy day I had occasion to visit this structure. After "locking" the door and preparing for the reason of the visit, a violent gust rocked the thing, and simultaneously a rather loud SNAP was heard, milliseconds before I was pitched forward as the thing was pushed over by the wind. Not content with trapping me inside, with my pants down, the damn thing started moving, and actually picking up some speed. Knowing that the edge of the building wasn't far away, I panicked, started yelling, and tried to roll one way to allow the door to be freed. No luck. after an eternity, "we" came to a stop, and finally some guys rolled the thing over and rescued me. Seems that just two hours before, the gaurd posts and safety cables had been installed on that edge of the floor! Without them, this former electrician wouldn't be relaying this hilarious story. Haha. So, Sheil, while you find them to be distasteful, remember: They don't like US either. Otherwise, nice reading your stuff today.— TBear
Hah! You've got it so easy. It is much more "unforgiving" for a female at any hour! Whoever invented these travelling outhouses should be shot at close range... ;-)— NancyNancy- Speaking of port a pottys. I will never forget the '95 playoff game against the lions. If you recall Lomas Brown ran his mouth prior to the game. Anyway, I saw a loud annoying Lions fan in a Sanders jersey walk into a port a potty and 2 eagles fan go behind it push it over door down. All the 2 guys was walk away like nothing happened. talk about having a bad day!— briandawkins20moron
- The "Turd" Award to Kevin Kolb for his total lack of class and constant bellyaching to anyone who would listen about his poor, pitiful plight as a back-up when nobody on the team cared.— Astro Jones
- The only place left to go, is the penthouse.— tommy_the_k
- I don't think there is anybody better at covering a team than Sheil. Keep it up.— joe$
- DREAM TEAM....TV announcers and media all season long will call the Eagles the DREAM TEAM...now the Eagles need to live up to the hype and play like the DREAM TEAM.— frank105
- Frank you said you would not follow the Eagles until they get rid of black players but here you are again commenting on the Eagles, I guess you are a closet fan of "Must See TV" LOL. — Blessed8251
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