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Sunday, April 26, 2009

One day after saying he felt Sheldon Brown would take a professional approach to his bitter contract dispute with the Eagles, coach Andy Reid acquired a veteran cornerback.

The Eagles sent two fifth-round picks -- 137 and 141 overall -- to New England for Ellis Hobbs, a former third-round pick who was a starter for the Patriots in 2007 and 2008.

The addition of Hobbs gives the Eagles both of New England's starting cornerbacks from the team that went 16-0 in the regular season two years ago. The other, of course, is Asante Samuel, who signed a $57 million deal with the Eagles as a free agent before the 2008 season.

Hobbs, who turns 26 next month, has nine career interceptions, including three last season.

According to an Eagles source, this move does not mean the Eagles are going to trade Brown, who went public with a trade request Monday and made some strong statements in various media outlets the remainder of the week.

Like Brown, Hobbs said he isn't thrilled about his own contract. Hobbs, however, has just one year left on his rookie five-year contract with the Patriots. He will make $2.545 million in 2009.

"It's definitely frustrating when you see guys making certain amounts of money that you think you should get just as well and you deserve," Hobbs said. "That's especially true with some of the injuries I've played through: a torn shoulder, a torn groin. To take some of the blows I did from (Patriots fans) and to put it on the line day in and day out when I know some of the guys weren't doing that and to get the money I was getting, you're definitely not happy with it. It is what it is and I'm getting paid more than a lot of people in this world, so that will come."

Hobbs said he would be willing to extend his relationship beyond one season with the Eagles.

"If we can make this my home, I would definitely love to be here," he said. "I know it's not going to come easy. You have to go out there and prove it. Nobody wants a paper champ. These guys have seen me and the coaches said every time they watch film, there I am showing up and making plays."

Posted by Bob Brookover @ 2:54 PM  Permalink | 44 comments
44
Comments   
Posted 01:50 PM, 04/26/2009
iloveprimerib!
actions speak louder than words. they dont think sheldon is gonna play 100%. he is being litoed. usually i dont agree with banner and company, but sheldon is crazy!
Posted 01:53 PM, 04/26/2009
moderndaymesh
I like this pickup. It puts more pressure on Sheldon, first off. Plus, Hobbs has experience both as a starting corner AND a kick returner. It adds some more depth to our special teams and secondary. This also means, I think, that they really want Demps to start over Sean Jones at safety--getting all these guys who can return kicks might mean they don't want to risk Demps and Jackson on returns anymore.
Posted 01:55 PM, 04/26/2009
PG
Sheldon Brown, you are a FOOL. Disrespected your AGENT!? Have fun on the bench, and way to trash your career you friggen crybaby. We don't need you any more! OUCH. Didn't see that one comin' did ya?
Posted 01:56 PM, 04/26/2009
beeron
i'm a negadelphian. i dont care that hobbs started at NE last year. He sucks because he is on our team now. maybe we can trade hobbs and brown and our 1st round pick for the next 13 years for boldin?
Posted 01:56 PM, 04/26/2009
crohnkiller
Nice pickup!! You can go home early Sheldon...
Posted 01:59 PM, 04/26/2009
zwarte piet
i dont know if this guy was worth two fifth-rounders. at 5'9" he's another smallish cb on an already smallish secondary. he is injury-prone an has missed a lot of time in his short 4-year career.. he's done nicely as a kickoff returner though.
Posted 02:00 PM, 04/26/2009
wondo40
Good pick up. Solid player. The Eagles are having a good weekend and a nice offseason overall. FLY EAGLES FLY!!!!!
Posted 02:01 PM, 04/26/2009
iloveprimerib!
did mort just say he thought sheldon would be traded by the end of the day?
Posted 02:06 PM, 04/26/2009
moderndaymesh
Considering he was a 3rd round pick, getting him for two 5ths, which we had six of anyways, is a pretty good value.
Posted 02:06 PM, 04/26/2009
mish798798
Trade Sheldon for Tony Scheffler
Posted 02:08 PM, 04/26/2009
Philly-d-kidder
Patriots draft team were salary dumping they are trying to sign jason taylor and peppers.. time will tell!! Patriots say This Guy is the best of the DB's but they were all average..in their eyes... Spadaro and merrill are Horrible on Draft Coverage Patriots tweeted the transaction and Eagles couldn't confirm not even the Eagle PR Guy in the Draft room... pathetic! NFL announced it still Spadaro awaiting confirmation...
Posted 02:09 PM, 04/26/2009
belocki
sheldon brown all of a sudden does not feel so good. he could of stayed here and made his money, now he is on a journey thru the seamy side of the NFL. uh oh.
Posted 02:11 PM, 04/26/2009
moderndaymesh
What's the appeal of Scheffler? He's a receiving TE who hasn't had a truly great season yet and who can't block for beans. In my mind, he's no better than Celek. Would you trade Sheldon Brown for a guy as good as Brent Celek? Plus, I'm just sick of giving Denver our players, or players that we wanted.
Posted 02:31 PM, 04/26/2009
Hutch
You knew it wouldn't take them long to give Sheldon Brown's starting job to someone else, but OF COURSE they won't trade him, because it's more important than anything else to punish him for speaking out. He'll sit on the bench all season, getting used sporadically at best, and they'll trade him next year after they've run his trade value into the ground.
Posted 02:35 PM, 04/26/2009
MaddenFL
I liked you Sheldon. So long.
About Birds' Eye View Blog

Bob Brookover, left, is in his seventh year of covering the Philadelphia Eagles after spending 15 years covering the Philadelphia Phillies for the Inquirer and two other newspapers. The 45-year-old Brookover lives in Delran with his wife Francine and roots for Notre Dame and Michigan State, the two schools attended by his children, Justine and Ryan. When Notre Dame plays Michigan State, he cheers for the school of the child he likes more at that particular moment.

Jeff McLane, right, joined the Eagles beat in April 2009 after two years of covering colleges, namely Penn State football. Before that he covered high school sports for The Inquirer. Before that he worked in the mailroom (not quite). Informed that his father is no longer covering the Lions, McLane's eldest, three-year-old son said, "You mean Simba, Scar and Mufasa, Daddy?" His two-year-old son -- excited about the move to the Eagles -- said, "Go, Deigo, Go!" or something like that. His wife of five-plus years, however, had a different take on the new job. "Another five years is in question," she said. Check out McLane on Twitter and Facebook for instant updates on the Eagles.
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