Philadelphia Eagles

How to Fix ‘em: Philadelphia Eagles

By: Matt Harmon

Year in Review:

Well it was a fun ride under Andy Reid, Eagles fans. Well, at least the first thirteen years. This is a roster with a ton of holes and it’s hard to say exactly how many great players remain on this team. The problem with the two-year “dream team” experiment is that the roster was, in theory, incredibly top heavy, but the positions that didn’t have that top end talent were some of the worst position groups in the league, never mind that those top end players/parts of the roster never played up to their billing. The sum wasn’t equal to the whole of its parts, as they say. The new coach has a hell of a job on his hands because this roster frankly needs a hack job. A ton of overpaid, and poorly fit parts, need to be jettisoned. There are a few things to build on, LeSean McCoy and Bryce Brown come to mind, but overall this roster is in bad shape and there are needs all over the place. A notoriously impatient fan base in Philadelphia is going to have to be very patient with this team, because it could be a long time until we see a run of success like this team had under Reid.

Top Five Team Needs:

Offensive line: I normally don’t list an entire position group, but this unit was so dreadful in 2012 I found it necessary. Evan Mathis was rock solid, but after that it was just a mess. Jason Peters, Todd Herremans, and Jason Kelce were all lost to serious season ending injuries. Its going to be to tough to count on all three of those players coming back, much less at full strength, so the Eagles would be wise to develop a contingency plan. Former first round pick, Danny Watkins was injured off and on, and was eventually benched; further cementing how ridiculous it is to draft a 27-year-old non-elite prospect in the first round. The best move would be for the team to find a tackle who can start on the left or right side, depending on Peters health, so that Herremans can slide back inside to his natural guard spot. 2012 showed Philly that depth and competition is a must here.
Two cornerbacks: This unit puts a face on the dream team failure. People expected this to be a stellar unit with Nnamdi Asomugha and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie holding things down. Well Nnamdi was burnt so badly on a regular basis that a friend of mine wrote him a letter asking to be repaid for the jersey he bought of his last season. His regression from a shut-down corner to this is very perplexing. DRC was adequate, but he is a free agent who is likely to depart. Brandon Boykin looks like a keeper, but in a nickel role. Two starters should be added.
Safety: The Eagles endured two second round busts in Nate Allen and Jaiquawn Jarrett. This unit has been one of the bigger disasters the past two years as Kurt Coleman isn’t very good either. Special teamer Colt Anderson actually played serviceably at one spot, so they can ride with him as a starter for at least a season, but they desperately need to find someone to man the free safety spot.
Pass catchers: Maybe now that Andy Reid is gone the Eagles will actually utilize the strength of their offense, that being their running back stable. Their aerial attack has been extremely overrated the past two years. While part of that can be blame on Michael Vick being a shell of himself, but still this group has underperformed. DeSean Jackson is perennially overrated because all he can do is run go routes and get behind a defense. He is far from a number one option. Jeremy Maclin could fill that role, and he played much better with Nick Foles under center, but he struggles with injuries and hasn’t lived up to his potential. Brent Celek can’t get open much anymore and he struggles with drops; he should be replaced despite his hurdling abilities. This may have to wait a year, but a new starter at receiver could help.
Quarterback: Nick Foles showed that he is at least a competent NFL quarterback, but is a new regime going to trust him to be their long-term starter? I wouldn’t bet my money on it. I expect someone to at least bring in some competition for him. As for Michael Vick, I harp on him a lot because I think he is vastly over hyped by the media, and while he has done a tremendous job remaking himself into a much better human being post prison he has not fixed many of his bad traits as a quarterback. I think he is most likely done.

Offseason Moves:

Chip Kelly hired as Head Coach: Normally I am not in favor of hiring college coaches with no NFL experience, and Kelly has spent 0.0 seconds of NFL experience. Kelly spurned the Eagles and Browns a few weeks back over issues of control and Oregon booster Phil Knight shelling out a bunch of cash. So, its safe to assume that the Eagles gave Kelly a big contract and final say on the roster. Many are throwing around ideas about who fits Chip Kelly's scheme, but the important thing to note is that NFL teams weren't infatuated with Kelly just because of his offensive schemes. They really loved how he builds a program and has a great football mind and I doubt that he is going be bringing a carbon copy of his Oregon offense to the NFL. Also do not assume that Vick will be his quarterback just because he can run, that is lazy analysis and its just not what Kelly's offense is all about. To better understand Kelly's offense follow @smartfootball on Twitter and read his piece here (http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8631595/the-success-chip-kelly-oregon-ducks-offense-more-familiar-seems). Overall I like this hire as long as Chip Kelly aclimates himself to the NFL properly. Grade: B
Pat Shurmur hired as Offensive Coordinator: This initially strikes as an odd fit, but I think this can be a nice hire for a couple reasons. Shurmur has experience in Philly as he served under Andy Reid as his quarterback's coach for several years. Secondly, Shurmur is a west coast offense disciple, but rumor has it he has shown a willingness to scrap or modify that system in his interviews for offensive coordinator jobs with other teams. Shurmur will help Kelly adjust to the NFL and can give him a different offensive perspective as well. Grade: B
Billy Davis hired as Defensive Coordinator: Davis has never really been successful in any of his previous stops, so it is hard to give this hire a high mark. This looks like a case in which Chip Kelly waffled around too long searching for a coordinator and ended up having to scrape the bottom of the barrel. It also looks like the Eagles will run a hybrid 4-3 3-4 defense, another move I do not like. Grade: D
Resigning QB, Michael Vick: Now, lets be clear. Some will look at this deal and think Vick is getting $10 million for one year. Fat chance. Vick will likely see about $5.5 to $7 million of that money because he will not reach all of those incentives. Either way I do not like this. I think Vick is just about done and I do not think he can be a successful starting quarterback anymore. He just does not have what it takes a this point in his career and at 33 years old he just is what he is. I think Kelly realizes this and is bringing him in for purely competition purposes, which is fine. I doubt Vick starts more than half the season, if he starts at all. Grade: C
Signing QB, Dennis Dixon: Now this is a move I love. I really liked Dixon before his injury in his final season at Oregon. He has experience with Chip Kelly and he may still have untapped potential. Eagles fans shouldn't expect this guy to be the answer at quarterback, but he could be a nice bridge and long term backup guy. Grade: A

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