Danny Watkins may have lost job
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Danny Watkins may have lost job
Jeff McLane
Andy Reid said that guard Danny Watkins, who has a chronic ankle injury, would struggle to play Monday against the Saints.
With Watkins questionable, Dennis Kelly could get his second straight start at right guard. Reid said the rookie did a "respectable job" on Sunday against the Falcons. With Watkins' inconsistencies this season, it's fair to question whether he'll retain his starting job even when he returns.
“Yeah, we’ll see," Reid said. "I want to see how he feels once he gets in there [and] we’ll take it from there.”
Kelly said he's up for the challenge.
“Hopefully, if I keep playing at a high level, if they give me the spot, hopefully, I can run with it,” he said.
Kelly, a fifth-round draft pick, was asked if he had been given any indication from coaches that the job was there for the taking.
“Some players have talked about it, just saying, ‘If you’re in there, you’re in there for a reason,’” Kelly said. “Obviously, Danny’s hurt, but there were other options they could have put in. They are telling me to approach it like you can take it, so that’s what I’m doing."
Watkins' chronic ankle came out of the nowhere. Reid said last week that he knew about it as far back as the draft. He said the 2011 first round draft pick re-injured it two weeks ago against the Lions and then again in practice last week.
“He’s got a bit of a component of a high ankle [sprain] and it’s got a bit of a component of a low ankle," Reid said. "Anything that he does lateral hurts him.”
Reid, who was asked if Watkins could be sidelined long-term, said that would assess his progress daily.
"This will pass here," Reid said. "It’s not where it’s going to be career-ending or anything.”
The Watkins' draft pick remains a questionable one. When the Eagles selected him 26th overall, he had only played four years of football after picking it up at the age of 22. He didn't start as a rookie until the fifth game, but seemed to take steps forward by the end of last season.
He's had some low moments this season, especially in pass protection. Watkins hasn't been the only linemen to struggle. The whole unit has been a liability with the injuries to left tackle Jason Peters and center Jason Kelce.
OTHER INJURIES
-- Cullen Jenkins has a hyperextended knee and won't practice on Thursday. The defensive tackle said that he expected to play Monday.
-- Reid said that defensive tackle Mike Patterson would practice with the first team and that there was a chance he could play against the Saints. The Eagles have until Nov. 13 to decided whether to activate Patterson or place him on season-ending Injured Reserve.
-- Wide receiver Mardy Gilyard (hamstring) won't practice either. Reid said that Damaris Johnson, who hasn't dressed the last two weeks, will be active Monday and return punts with Gilyard injured.
- Not so fast. We still have to factor in Jeff Limp-Wrist Lurie into this. As we have seen, Lurie seems to be afraid of his own shadow and seems to be intimidated by he hulking presence of Reid. That's why he keeps giving him 'just one more chance' easily read in to his (weak) ultimatum earlier this year. I guarantee, it'll be the same "ultimatum" at the end of the season with some other strange caveat attached.
— essell - The Tonner's said it before: fire everyone who is still around and had a hand in the 2010 and 2011 drafts. The Tonner doesn't want them picking their noses for the Eagles next year, let alone players who are going to shape the future of the team.— hunglikeaton
- Major part of our teams getting worse is Andy making more and more of the draft choices and its hurting us....tremendously...As well as him choosing which free agents to go after. This is the exact opposite of the definition of team he has assembled. Cannot get quality players in here with heart...and refuses to hire qualified replacement coaches for his staff...all add up to 500 or less. Stay the course...mediocrity rules with Andy— RealizticFan
- When you promote a Lawyer/Accountant as your GM, you are rewarded with the 2010 and 2011 Drafts. The jury is still out on 2012 but don't be surprised if nearly 75% fail to make the squad when a new regime is brought in next season. Clean house Lurie or better yet sell the team!— cooperhawk
- Watkins was a nice story while it lasted. It was not his fault that the Eagles chose him so high....blame that one on the Eagles...but since then he has not developed at all. I am wondering whether this "magic" techniques that is being taught to the offensive line is causeing good prospects to go bad. Wasn'r Demetrius Bell supposed to be the best tackle available...and we keep hearing he is having trouble with the "system". By this time next year all Philly coaches will either be in a rocking chair or in San Diego.— Bob K
- It seems to me that if you were to pick up a couple of those college football draft magazines and just draft the players that they say are pretty good, you'll probably end up with a pretty good draft. It can't be that hard. I don't know for sure, but I doubt that any of those magazines had Danny Watkins listed as high as the 23rd pick of the first round.
— TexColorado - I've said before, if they just listened to Mike Mayock before (and during) the draft, they'd be golden! He'd be the first guy I hire if I was Jeff Laurie! — gdibig
- Bench Vick!!!!!!!!!!!!!— slade1955
- watkins is a bust....reid is gone after the season.— psualum
- Why not move Watkins over to left tackle?...He couldn't be any worse than what's there now!— jmb53
- Oh please, spare us. We just went through 2 weeks of stories about how Vick was supposedly going to get benched. Quit making up speculation and reporting on it like it's fact. I guess these guys can't think of any stories to write so they just make them up.— JimG
you're doing a helluva job, howie— hannibal barca
As a previous poster noted, Watkins was a tackle in college, drafted by the Eagles and put in as a guard. Most people don't realize that those are two different tchniques that have to be taught and since Watkins only had 4 yrs in college as a tackle he has to now learn guard. Smart thing would have been to keep him at tackle which he is more familiar. The guy played that position protecting last year's Heisman Trophy winner and RGIII plays a similar style to Vick so the guy can play, just another square peg that Reid tried to put in a round hole.- I posted a response citing that same thing (above)
before I had the chance to read your post. We see the same(yet another) flaw in Reid that has existed for years. Draft a player that has played just ONE position for almost his entire football life and suddenly thrust that player in to a totally foreign position with foreign concepts. Only with the Eagles. Even if they did ask the player to play another position, you still have to have COMPETENT coaches able to "coach him up" using accepted textbook instruction. I doubt the Eagles coaches ever looked at textbooks such as Play Football The NFL Way by Tom Bass which teaches position by position techniques and drills for offense, defense, and special teams. This is AN OFFICIAL NFL BOOK. I'll bet they deviate liberally from these accepted practices and pass along their own bad habits acquired over the years.— essell
