Philadelphia Eagles: Dream 2011-12 Offseason

Let me begin by saying that anyone that thinks the Eagles can still make it to the playoffs is plainly delusional.  

This team's stars do not play with heart and I firmly believe that leaders brought in through free agency are not the same as leaders drafted and raised in a team atmosphere.  

Unfortunately, the Eagles have jettisoned their defensive leaders in an effort to bring in some stars on the defensive side of the ball. I still agree with the large splash we made in free agency last year but we need to draft youthful talent that can lead this team for years to come.  

On a side note, as an Eagles fan, I miss the days of cheering for a defensive juggernaut that was just mean. Of course I love the big play offense of late, but give me the mean, intimidating team of old any day.

Additionally, it is time the front office and Andy Reid recognize that defensive leaders are needed "in the middle of the defense" meaning your linebackers primarily along with safeties.  The best defensive teams have great linebackers and usually pretty good safeties as well (Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Houston.)

This slideshow will look at each position and analyze who should be cut and why.  Additionally, keeping the draft and free agency in mind, I will attempt to use www.eaglescap.com as my primary method for identifying players' salaries.

The man above is Vince Young and to be concise, he should go. I think we are fine with Vick as the starter but a consistent backup is needed due to Vick's violent style of play.  Young currently makes $4 million dollars—way too much for a backup quarterback who is not very good.

The solution would be to draft a quarterback in either the first or second round of the draft.  It is still too early to tell precisely where we will draft, but if it is in the top 10, I would strongly consider drafting a quarterback to sit for a few years to learn.  

Behind Vick, any backup will receive plenty of snaps over the course of a season and the best quarterbacks today (Brady, Rodgers) all sat behind someone for a few years unless they were a number one overall pick.

Due to the current Rookie Pay Scale, drafting a quarterback in the first round is no longer a financial burden.

This man is the tailback for the Philadelphia Eagles for the foreseeable future.  

The Eagles' first place of business should be to extend the contract of the underpaid second round player.  A lengthy contract should not be an issue as McCoy has shown grit and toughness to play through injury.  I believe a contract awarding him $10-11 million a year is warranted.

His backup is currently Ronnie Brown who does not make much more than $1 million.  The vet minimum is nearly half a million thus this is a small difference in the scheme of a projected $125 million dollar cap.  

If Brown chooses to leave then that is fine. If not, a running back drafted in the third or fourth round is valid as running backs tend to slide in the draft anyways. Perhaps a slightly larger back like Ronnie Brown that can catch the ball would be a good pick.  Last year I desired a player like Demarco Murray and he is currently doing well with the Cowboys.

Dion Lewis is fine as the third string running back.

I wanted to add a picture of Steve Smith, but he has been so bad this year it was difficult to find a picture of him in action.  Above is a picture of Riley Cooper who has warranted more time and perhaps action on the field above Jason Avant.

For Desean Jackson, I would not mind resigning him despite his horrible season, but at a significant discount of around $5-6 million a year.  He initially wanted $10-11 million a year.  My only hesitation is that he may continue to quit for reasons in the future concerning his health as no contract will give him significant guaranteed money.  If he doesn't agree to a low ball offer, I say franchise tag and trade him for a first or second round pick.

Next year's free agency class for wide receivers will include Vincent Jackson who I am personally a fan of.  Despite the occasional off the field incidents, he is a large wide receiver averaging 17-18 yards per catch in his career.  

He will be 29 next year and his game is not built around speed so he should still be good for quite a few years to come. He still does have the speed to stretch the field and the size to play the middle.  His salary would likely be in the $10 million dollar range which I would pay for. Maclin and VJAX could both stretch the field and both play well consistently with Vick throwing to them.

Jason Avant is not an amazing wide receiver but he is a leader from a locker room perspective. Fortunately, the Eagles have their leader on offense in Vick and young receivers who can get separation are the trend in the NFL. I say keep Avant but I wouldn't mind replacing him with a low draft pick.

Cooper on the other hand ought to be on the field more and perhaps surpass Avant as the No. 3 receiver.  Steve Smith should just be let go of and he is not worth the $4 million we paid him for this year.

I am personally a fan of Brent Celek.  I know many fans crave young, athletic tight ends like Jermichael Finley or Jimmy Graham, but Celek is an all around tight end.  Our tight end in training is Clay Harbor who was supposed to be more of the receiving threat although he has improved in pass blocking.  

I am fairly content with both of these players and our system does not utilize the tight end too much. Although paying Celek $3.2 million next year may not be the best bang for your buck, he is a good player who the team drafted that is a dedicated hard worker.  He has future leadership potential when given the chance to lead.

The status quo is fine at this position.

Look at that big boy! That is Jason Peters who is having one of the best seasons of his career. He plays the left tackle position which is solidified for a long time with his lucrative, long term signing.  

Todd Herremans is a surprise at right tackle and has done an outstanding job playing the position. He is truly versatile and his current salary pays him like a guard, so I am content with keeping him next year at his $2.3 million dollar salary.  

Our young center, Jason Kelce, is a rookie sixth round draft pick who has shown great improvement since the beginning of the year. Our first round pick, Danny Watkins, has done the same. Both are on rookie salaries which are very cap friendly.  

Evan Mathis has been surprisingly good and should be resigned next year for a $1-2 million dollar salary.  The Eagles starting offensive line has played well in the last few games under Howard Mudd and hopefully Mudd stays and continues to coach up young promising players.

At backup offensive tackle, Winston Justice gets paid way too much.  He should be asked to take a pay cut or he should be cut outright. At $4.3 million dollars, almost $2.5 million can be saved if he is cut outright. This savings should go directly to signing Evan Mathis for a few years.

All of the other players should be kept as backups as they are veterans with valuable experience. The Eagles can draft an offensive tackle prospect around the fourth round or later or bring in a low level free agent that fits Mudd's scheme well.  Mudd's turned coal into diamonds before so why not give him a project with good upside.

On a side note, Mudd's ability to coach up guys like Kelce and Jeff Saturday demonstrate he coaches players up well which indicates a coach that deserves to stay and not be fired because of the mess of this season.

Our defensive line play has been pretty pleasant thus far.  The wide-nine scheme is a good scheme that utilizes the strengths of our players.  Additionally, it is strong against the pass-happy NFL.  

The weakness to this is the play of the linebackers which I will address in the next slide.  Another benefit of the wide-nine scheme is that it requires fast, athletes to play in it.

An example of this is Babin whose career was a bust before playing in the wide-nine under Jim Washburn.  Washburn was also thrilled to work with last years first round pick Brandom Graham who is coming off a serious knee injury.  With Cole, Babin and Graham, the future looks bright for the defensive ends for the next few years.

Juqua Parker will be a free agent next year.  I am content to let him go as he is aging and overpaid.  He currently makes $3.3 million dollars and produces little in comparison to Babin and Trent Cole who are paid $5.3 million and $5 million, respectively.  

During training camp, it was noted that the wide-nine scheme allowed players with raw athletic ability to show some life.  If Washburn can continue to coach up Graham and perhaps a low draft pick or low level free agent, the Eagles will be set at defensive end with a healthy four man rotation.

This would eliminate Darryl Tapp's somewhat heavy salary as well. He is the same as Parker except not as old. Tapp's salary will be $3.6 million next year and his production is replaceable.

At defensive tackle, the Eagles got a steal with the free agency signing of Cullen Jenkins who is a great locker room presence. He collapses the pocket with his pass rush and he is large enough to stop the run on the way to the quarterback. Collapsing the pocket takes pressure off of the defensive ends and it is the only true way to defeat elite quarterbacks as they cannot step up into throws.

Patterson is a well-liked player on the team but his production seems scant for his $4 million dollar salary.  The Eagles should trade him out for whatever pick they can receive a la Broderick Bunkley. Laws and Dixon are free agents and one of the two should receive a cheap extension. Seeing as Dixon was seriously injured, Laws makes the most sense to resign.

A surprise this year has been Derek Landri who continues to make it into the backfield.  He currently makes the veteran minimum and is 28 years old.  Signing him to a contract similar to Evan Mathis would be a wise move.

I would not mind Landri starting next year next to Jenkins.  In the draft we can pickup a DE/DT in the fourth round or later or pickup a low level free agent much as Landri is.  I recall prior to the season beginning that Anthony Hargrove was also playing excellently, thus the scheme that is being utilized does not require top draft picks and free agents to excel in them. 

I actually like our linebackers as opposed to the rest of the world.  The problem is they are all projects and none are start worthy.  I liked Chaney's rookie performances last year and I truly thought drafting Brian Rolle in the sixth round was a steal this year.  Both have bright futures in my opinion, but the rest of the linebacking core is composed of individuals who should never be more than backups. 

All the players at this position are paid meagerly and the production thus far has matched. I could say bring in a top level free agent at the position, but now my theory of drafting young studs in the middle of the defense comes into play.

This year's linebacking class is one of the deepest I can recall and first round talent can be found all the way until the end of the second round—depending on how many players declare for the NFL.

Fortunately, the Eagles have one high pick in the first round, along with what should be two high picks in the second round.

All of our current linebackers are signed through next year and the only departure should be Akeem Jordan who is being paid $700,000 next year. This is to make room for two young stud linebackers.

I am not a self-proclaimed college scout although I have heard Vontaze Burfict and Manti Te'o been mentioned several times at middle line backer, and Zach Brown and Ronnell Lewis been mentioned at outside line backer.  

Fortunately, 4-3 linebackers do not tend to get drafted highly thus we could easily grab our middle linebacker in the first and a very good outside linebacker in the second if that is what the front office is thinking.  I would rarely double dip, but with the elite talent at all other positions, why not splurge on the middle of your defense?

In case you can't tell, this is Asante Samuel making a tackle.  It is a rarity so please take a good look.  

Part of Asante's claim to being an elite cornerback is that the man is a gambler and he gets many interceptions. An under the radar move for the Eagles was not bringing back the underrated Quentin Mikell.

Although Mikell is not elite, his savvy experience allowed Samuel to take risks and jump routes. The youth at safety does not allow Samuel to do this and his interception totals have dropped accordingly.  

Additionally, I am not a fan of a man who can't tackle to stop the big play, thus I would prefer a far cheaper, fundamentally sound, less flashy player at cornerback. He is scheduled to make $9.5 million next year and $11.5 million the year after.  

This is a lot for a pick specialist who is no longer creating turnovers. He should be traded for a second or third round pick as he is an aging player who is not physical, but his style would work well with a defense who does not create turnovers.  A great example would be the Rams as that is also where Mikell is currently playing.  

Asomugha has also not lived up to expectations but that is because he is trying to be utilized like Charles Woodson, but Juan Castillo is not Dom Capers. Asomugha should be allowed to play his original role which he played so well in Oakland.  

Shutting down one side of the field allows so much flexibility in terms of scheme that Asomugha should play to his strengths. Most of his poor performance this year I blame on the defensive coordinator trying to get too cute.

Although it may look silly for Asomugha to lineup only on the right side regardless of where the best player on the opposing team lines up, it is fine as that allows the other corner and safety to double the best wide receiver if he is being moved around.  Ask Rex Ryan what can be done from a scheme perspective if half of the field is gone.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie has issues tackling and has proven to be a poor nickel corner—part of the Kevin Kolb trade with Arizona included Rodgers-Cromartie. His speed is undeniable and I personally believe he should be used as a kickoff/punt returner.  

On the other hand, his upside is visible and he needs to be coached up. Rodgers-Cromartie makes a small salary that makes him a free agent following 2012 but he does not deserve a raise until he can show me something on a regular basis. He will likely be the next man up if/when Asante leaves.

Curtis Marsh and Brandon Hughes are the bubble guys at corner but both make so little and have seen so little action I cannot move to simply replace them. Joselio Hanson is an underrated slot corner and I don't mind him staying with the team at his low salary.

I am personally a fan of Nate Allen.  He is a smart, hard working player who has played somewhat poorly of late.  I expect him and Brandon Graham to be in much better shape next year considering both came off of season ending injuries last year.  

Kurt Coleman does not belong as a starter in the NFL, but he is an okay backup. Jaiquan Jarrett was mentioned as being over drafted by the Eagles and he has not shown the coaching staff enough to even surpass Coleman.  Colt Anderson is a safety by position but he is truly a special teams ace.  With an ACL injury, his future is questionable as well.

None of these players make a tremendous amount of money much as the linebackers on this team. My advice would be to draft a young player fairly highly to address this area.

Drafting a safety in the first round may be a bit much but drafting one in the second round such as Mark Barron would make me happy.  He is likely the consensus top safety in the draft class.  He is intimidating in the run game and should make a good pairing with the usually rangier Nate Allen.

If all of my moves occur and recommendations are followed, Lesean Mccoy should be the only player to receive an extension making him a highly paid running back.  New contracts should be given to King Dunlap, Evan Mathis, Derek Landri and Trevor Laws. None of these contracts should be large or exceeding $1-2 million a year.  

Winston Justice, Darryl Tapp and Mike Patterson should be traded for low draft picks, or they should be cut out right. Desean Jackson should be franchise tagged and traded. Asante Samuel should also be traded.

Assuming both yield a second round pick each is a safe bet.  If Samuel is not worth a second rounder by himself, I am content with adding Justice, Tapp or Patterson to make it so that we gain two additional second round picks.

This would leave us with a first round pick and four second round picks to address our issues. Many of the backup offensive line and defensive line positions could be addressed with fourth round picks or lower or cheap free agents.

I would utilize the Eagles' picks by going:

1: Middle Linebacker (Burfict or Manti Te'o)

2: Safety (Mark Barron)

2: Outside Linebacker (Zach Brown or Ronnell Lewis)

2: Quarterback (the most accurate quarterback in the draft outside of Luck, accuracy is the biggest measure of a quarterbacks NFL success.  Look at Andy Dalton and Drew Brees)

2: Cornerback (Its a deep cornerback class as well so guys like Stephen Gilmore and perhaps Janoris Jenkins will still be on the board)

We would still have several other draft picks to develop certain positions or they could be bunched together to add more picks in the early rounds. Additionally, the several positions cuts/trades and McCoy extension would tabulate to over $27 million in money to spend on resigning players mentioned above and free agents assuming the salary cap does not increase by one penny next year.  

Although the salary cap will most likely be $125 million and not $120 million as I am using for calculations, I will be conservative.

Additionally, signing a draft class with this many picks will cost about $9 million on this rookie pay scale. Assuming the four resigned players make $1.5 million each, $6 million for resigning and $9 million for rookies.

This would leave about $12 million to sign players not resigned, extended or drafted.  I suggest $9-10 million be spent on Vincent Jackson to replace Desean Jackson. This leaves a complete roster with plenty of rising talent and skill along with ample talent on both sides of the ball.

Let me begin by saying I put this slide last as it does not affect player personnel or the salary cap. I am also an Andy Reid fan and I think he is one of the top coaches in the game.  Of course I am annoyed with his game clock management and run/pass ratio—although all the stats that show "when McCoy gets this many carries we win" are useless as we tend to run more when protecting large leads.

Andy Reid deserves a fair bit of the blame for whiffing on many draft picks and appointing some coaches. I do believe that Reid has the title of players' coach which is why the Eagles are attractive in free agency.  

Additionally, he attracts top position coaches such as Jim Washburn, Howard Mudd and Bobby April who I believe are all the best coaches at their position.  Also, Duce Staley should stay as he has done a great job with Lesean McCoy.  

I do not know how to judge Marty Mornhinweg as it is difficult to tell whether the offense is a result of Andy Reid or Mornhinweg. I will give both the benefit of the doubt as the Eagles have been setting records for the last three years in scoring for the franchise.

I appreciate Juan Castillo's attitude, but his lack of experience is clear. I would be okay with keeping Reid if he hired a legitimate defensive coordinator who could also help him hit on some draft picks this year.

If the Eagles decide to move on from Reid, I believe Jeff Fisher would be the best head coach for the job. Some may say that he is just another long-time head coach without a ring in Tennessee, but he is the perfect man for the job.  

He was defensive coordinator under the beloved Buddy Ryan defense and his Titans were consistently a top defensive unit for many of his years.  Assuming Mornhinweg can keep the magic going, Fisher would likely keep his old defensive line coach, Washburn.  

He would likely keep the other coaches mentioned as they have demonstrated they deserve to stay.  Fisher could hire a defensive coordinator of his liking and Fisher's experience as defensive coordinator would help him play call that side of the ball.  Additionally, Fisher has experience coaching/playing defensive backs so perhaps he could utilize our talent at that position better.

With Washburn overlooking the defensive line and Fisher overlooking the secondary, my suggestion would be to bring in a defensive coordinator who could learn under Fisher with experience coaching the linebackers.  

Winston Moss was a popular name heading into last offseason thus he may be a candidate if he can transition from 3-4 to 4-3.  The offensive line and running backs coach would stay in place along with the offensive coordinator.

Fisher knows the pressures of coaching in Philadelphia and will only accept a job as a head coach once again.  The Titans were an expansion team with an overly involved owner.  Hopefully with the talent level, familiarity, and autonomy of the Philly head coaching position, Fisher could bring that tough, play-until-three-seconds-after-the-whistle type mentality to a team that has become a finesse team, lacking finesse and no longer relating to a city of fans with a blue collar mentality.