CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S FOOTBALL SEASON
As I mentioned in the paper today (buy one, it's an incredible value), Jason Avant's agents also handle Marlin Jackson, the Colts CB/safety who will visit NovaCare after stopping by Baltimore today. Jackson didn't sign with the Ravens, and I'm told he'll be at NovaCare by 3 p.m. Updating: The Eagles have announced Jackson will speak to reporters tomorrow at 11 a.m. I wouldn't be at all shocked to see him end up signing here, ACL issues notwithstanding -- as your presumptive starting free safety.
Yes, ACL recovery is tricky, but everyone is not Stacy Andrews. I understand Jackson will be able to go hard by training camp. It would be a gamble, but an interesting one. I am led to believe the Birds have exhibited very strong interest. We'll see, as Andy Reid likes to say.
The first commenter below mentions the Peter King blurb about Jackson this week. Here it is, from si.com, under the heading of three decisions PK thinks should happen soon: " 3. I'm doing a thorough physical on free agent cornerback Marlin Jackson, dumped by the Colts. And unless I think his knee won't allow him to start the season, I'm moving aggressively to sign him. He's now missed much of the past two years with injuries, but he's a smart 26-year-old corner the Colts thought so highly of that they picked him in the first round five years ago. Worth the risk. He'll visit the Eagles and Ravens this week, and I'd be surprised if he were unemployed Friday."
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Somebody mentioned this last night, but I have no quick and comprehensive way of checking it out -- didn't Jason Avant just become the highest-paid No. 3 receiver in football? My take is, teams yak all the time about team values and leadership, it's nice to see the Eagles actually paying like they really value those things, for once. But I always get nervous when a role player gets a lot of attention and compensation, to the point where expectations exceed the size of the role ... kinda the Aaron McKie Principle, if not the Peter Principle.
Iggles Blog allays those fears a bit. It would be interesting to see what would happen, particularly in the red zone, if they really went to Avant, instead of making him an emergency check-down. I suspect he wouldn't quite get open enough for a QB who really likes his separation. But I wouldn't mind seeing the Eagles give it a shot.
Also, if you're wondering what Avant's contract does to the potential DeSean Jackson renegotiation, I'm thinking nothing. As Drew Rosenhaus well knows, there's a 30 percent rule in effect for renegotiations. DJax can't make more than 30 percent above what he made last season. The commission from that deal would hardly keep Drew in hair gel.
Les Bowen has covered the Eagles for the Daily News since 2002. Before that, he spent nearly 13 years covering the Flyers. It took Les only a few seasons after the switch to figure out that there was no penalty box at the Linc, and that the time really wasn't his, despite what Andy Reid kept saying. Les came to Philadelphia and the Daily News from Charlotte in 1983. In the intervening years, he has pretty much lost track of NASCAR, and his accent. He, his wife Barbara, and their two sons live in Haddon Township, New Jersey.
Paul Domowitch has been with the Daily News since 1982. He has spent most of his 27 years at the paper covering the Eagles and pro football. For the last 10 years, he’s been a selector for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A native of Wilkes-Barre and a graduate of Wilkes University, Domo came to the Daily News from the Fort Worth (Tx.) Star-Telegram, where he covered some god-awful Texas Ranger baseball teams. His first beat at the Daily News actually was boxing, which he covered just long enough to lose two sports coats to blood-spatter before moving on to football. Domo and his wife Shelley, a University of Oklahoma grad and very dangerous to be around following a Sooner loss, have been married 29 years and have raised 2 terrific daughters – Allison, 26, a lawyer and graduate of Boston University School of Law; and Amy, 23, who graduated from Clemson and works in marketing and sales for a professional baseball team. You can now follow Paul Domowitch on Twitter
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