There might not have been anything they could do. The Birds kept von Oelhoffen's locker right there with those of the other established defensive linemen all spring, his nameplate and number attached, a few stray items of workout gear remaining, even as the 88-man roster strained the locker room at its seams. It seemed clear all along that von Oelhoffen was coming back, but that at age 37, the coaches decided he didn't need to huff and puff through minicamp reps. Instead, Ramsey and Clark did that, before the OTAs ended Thursday, and they were among the nine players the Birds released yesterday to get down to the NFL roster limit of 80.

Von Oelhoffen came to the Eagles from the Jets after their final roster cutdown last year. He is a 15-year NFL veteran who won a Super Bowl ring with the Steelers, the same year he infamously tore up Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer's knee in a playoff game. He was active for eight Eagles' games last season, starting one.

Two years ago, the Eagles thought they might have something in Ramsey, a sixth-round draftee from USC. But coaches seemed to abruptly change their minds about him through the 2006 season, and he was a fringe player last season, activated for just nine games, sitting out the final four.

Clark had a good training camp last year as an undrafted rookie, spent the season on the practice squad, but apparently didn't have an offseason that made him indispensible. The Eagles have six d-tackles - starters Brodrick Bunkley and Mike Patterson, second-round rookie Trevor Laws, veterans Montae Reagor and von Oelhoffen, and Dan Klecko, who was signed as a fullback but sent back to the line this past week. If Darren Howard, nominally a defensive end, makes the team, as many as three of the remaining tackles might not, but those decisions are a couple of months away, at least.

Yesterday's cuts were spurred by the need to sign draftees and stay within the NFL roster limit of 80. Also released were linebackers Gary Butler and Markell Staffieri, cornerback Tanard Davis, wide receiver Terrell Golden, quarterback Casey Hansen, and defensive ends Xzavie Jackson and A.J. Schable.

Davis is a corner the Birds signed off Carolina's practice squad last December. He tried to enhance his value by volunteering to field punts and kicks this spring, but he did not look like a budding star there.

Birdseed

With Jason Licht leaving and Howie Roseman taking over as player personnel vice president, changes within the scouting department continue. The Eagles announced yesterday the hiring of Jeremy Snyder as a pro scout and Mike Miller as college scouting coordinator. Snyder, 29, spent the last 5 seasons with the Bears, the last 4 as a football operations assistant. Miller, 25, joined the Eagles in 2006 as a pro personnel assistant, before being promoted to college scouting assistant in 2007. *