Ricky Watters, DeSean and power rankings
Links: Ricky Watters offers his take on Eagles fans. Two Birds make the cut on a list of the league's most underpaid players. And where the Eagles rank in a recently released set of power rankings.
Ricky Watters, DeSean and power rankings
Sheil Kapadia, Philly.com
Some links to get to on this Monday.
If you missed it over the weekend, I provided five thoughts on the Eagles' defense.
FoxSports.com's John Czarnecki has a list out of the 10 most underpaid players in the NFL. DeSean Jackson comes in at No. 9:
He isn’t alone in this spot, because I easily could've mentioned the Cowboys’ Miles Austin and Chargers’ Vincent Jackson. Austin and Jackson have been offered restricted FA tenders of $3.1 million and $3.2 million, respectively, for this season. Jackson's set to earn $1.1 million, but he’s also a fine return man and a great deep threat. He has three TDs as a returner and had nine receiving scores last season to go with 1,156 yards.
Another Eagle makes the list above Jackson - Trent Cole, who is No. 7:
Some may barf with a $4 million player on the list, but Cole's had 34 sacks over the last three seasons and is just hitting his prime. Really, is Julius Peppers worth $16 million more than Cole, who's also way behind Jared Allen and DeMarcus Ware, let alone DT Albert Haynesworth? The Eagles know what they're doing with Cole signed up long-term and MLB Stewart Bradley earning $550,000 this season. Philly would be lost without these two defenders.
A couple links to Rick Gosselin, national football write for The Dallas Morning News. The first takes a look at how many starters each NFL team lost in the offseason - either through trade, free agency, release or retirement. The Eagles lost five starters from a year ago. Only the Dolphins (6) and the Cardinals (7) lost more. I'm guessing the guys Gosselin is counting for the Birds are: Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, Sheldon Brown, Chris Gocong and Will Witherspoon.
Westbrook, of course, was only a starter for seven games. And Gocong lost his starting job by the end of the season. By Gosselin's count, no team traded more starters (3) than the Eagles.
Gosselin also has his power rankings out. He's got the Eagles at No. 16:
Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook carried the Philadelphia offense most of the 2000 decade. Both are gone. Kevin Kolb replaces McNabb and LeSean McCoy takes over for Westbrook. Coach Andy Reid bolstered the rest of his roster with 13 draft picks, including elite pass rusher Brandon Graham and versatile safety Nate Allen.
He has the Cowboys at No. 2, the Giants at No. 13 and the Redskins 25th.
And finally, catching up with Ricky Watters. Frank Ward of The Daily Philadelphian got Watters' take on a couple different topics, including his fondest memory of Eagles fans.
"My fondest memory of Eagles fans is when I went to Seattle. I didn’t know how I’d be received when I came back to play here," Watters said. "I got a great ovation and saw No. 32 jerseys through the stands. People after game told me how much they appreciated my years there. That’s who they are as fans."
Watters, who attended the same high school (Bishop McDevitt in Harrisburg) as LeSean McCoy, said he's been impressed with the Eagles' second-year back and would like to help him out.
"I’d love to help him even more because when I was young, if I had a guy to give me tips and cut up some of film with (I’d have been even better)," Watters said. "I’d like to do that for him."
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For who? For what?
D-Jax is worth more than any other WR in the game period. There isn't another WR who is as multi-dimensional as D-Jax. With his circus, fade route,ins and outs catches. Plus his ability to catch passes over the middle for 1st down where he knocks over linebackers like bowling pins is one of a kind. With the tall and skinny Andre Johnson, Miles Austin, Sidney Rice, Larry Fitzgerald i would much prefer the small but compact body of D-Jax as my #1 WR. None of those guys mentioned can catch a better fade route or jump ball than D-Jax. Add the fact that Kevin "Mr. Clutch" Kolb will be placing that ball right on target and there may not be a better 1-2 connection in the NFL period!- Lone wolf strikes again.......lol— tunde25798
- my thoughts exactly...— docboy
- That cannot be the REAL lonebarf speaking...is it!?— lalaw9833
- Did one of lonewolf's (the real one, I believe he goes by wolf 4 nowadays) cronies say Andre Johnson is skinny in comparing him to Desean? I must have really missed whatever he is drinking, or smoking.— EaglesBleedMoney
- lonewolf 10 is the imposter version of the lonewolf we have all come to know and love... lonewolf4 (the original lonewolf) generally ends his post with wolf out or ....my man. lonewolf 10's post can be pretty funny though— thegloryofoldstate
- DeSean over Larry Fitzgerald? Never.
Comment removed.- i think that lonewolf was being sarcastic.— juggadore
- i think that lonewolf was being sarcastic.— juggadore
- i think that lonewolf was being sarcastic.— juggadore
- maclins the better receiver.— first down
- Um, thanks for your comments, Rickey. If Shady needs any help, we've got that covered. We'll keep your number, tho--in case we need a good laugh.— rad205
- Um, thanks for your comments, Rickey. If Shady needs any help, we've got that covered. We'll keep your number, tho--in case we need a good laugh.— rad205
- Lonewolf , Lay off the freakin coolaide. Kevin Kolb has a looong way to go before he's called " Mr Clutch " and Desean Jackson @ 5'10" 168 lbs qualifies as a "Smurf" Smurfs don't knock LB's down like bowling pins. Unless he's playing in a pop warner game.— MJPD345
so we lost five guys we didn't win with. except for losing sheldon brown, i think the other 4 spots have been improved by subtraction, no? i love westbrook to bits, always will. i'd be shocked if he came out like it was 2006 and ran for three more years. i don't see the cowgirls at number 2, or the birds at 16. but we'll know better by week 9. the eagles are two seasons away from superbowl readiness. provided A. the draft picks continue to address needs, B. the CBA gets finalized and we figure out how to adjust to it instride. C. they then can make offers to a couple overthetop FA's that give them the right boost.— Evilvet- If people remember CORRECTLY, after that "For who, for what?" game, he became the toughest guy in the freakin' LEAGUE --running, catching, block-----well, running and catching anyway. After he got skewered by the writers and the fans, he shrugged, said "O.K."...and went out and played smash-mouth ball....and we loved him. And I hope he can speak to our kid running back and help him mentally or any OTHER way.OH!...lonewolf 10 is finally beginning to be accepted as a brilliantly humorous skeptic, who's biting sarcasm is SOOO sharp, that you don't even feel the needles. Whereas the ORIGINAL (and still the greatest!) lonewolf STILL needs permisssion from the nurse staff to play with crayons.— TBear
- The cowgirls are second, WTF weren't they destroyed by the vikes in the playoffs? how much better are they than the cardinals?— bow
Still like those kelly green unis over the midnight edition. Be nice to go back to those one day...- My day is now complete because Lonewolf slobbered on this bolg!— Eagle Weiner
- Cowboys at 2, Giants at 13, Eagles at 16, makes good sense. Redskins at 25 is pessimistic. It could happen, but I see them at #17. The Boys have the horses to go all the way, but we never know what they'll actually do. Right now they have the Eagles' number, but the rest of the league is not so intimidated. This year's Eagles squad probably loses two more to the Cowboys, helping them go 12-4.— tacklinjoe
- Comment removed.
- I don't think you can put players on that list that are in their first 3 years. Especially someone like Austin. Wasn't last year the first year he was even decent?(I know he was great last year, but what about before that?) Let a guy earn his money and do it for more than a year or two.— scars73
- DeSean is worth, eh, just less than a second grade male elementary school teacher...who happens to be on the budget chopping block. Oh in over hyped market terms...he makes plenty for a young man. The shovel for gold gets bigger with age. Pay your dues to this game and have respect for it DeSean.— retzlaff
- Duh...don't they know all the doo doo Birds do is UNDERPAY?! 0 RINGS BABY!...Laurie's new slogan..."Just Underpay Baby".....— RoastedBird
- Ricky still starts every thought with "I".— Carlos2
- Haha Wolf "small but compact" - like your posts which are insane but crazy.— CrustaManVibrations
- The last sentence of lonewolf 10's post is a giveaway that it's not the real lonewolf. It doesn't have any extraneous punctuation and it's a complete sentence with mostly correct grammar. It's funny as heck, though.— psv
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