Philadelphia Eagles General Thread

[Don Wassall]

Blankenship continues to look great. The fastest rise by a White safety from UFA to starter that I can recall. And of course it took an injury or two for him to get to see the field last season.

Eagles’ Reed Blankenship picks off Deshaun Watson, shining in a joint practice session against Browns

Blankenship continues to show he's headed toward being a starting safety with a strong performance against the Cleveland Browns' starting offense.

www.inquirer.com

 

[Leonardfan]

https://nfltraderumors.co/eagles-c-jason-kelce-to-retire/

Kelce going to retire. Eagles lose the best center in the league.

 

[Bucky]

https://nfltraderumors.co/eagles-c-jason-kelce-to-retire/

Kelce going to retire. Eagles lose the best center in the league.

HOF Center Drafted in the 6th round, after countless sumos. Maybe change the way they evaluate OL?!

 

[NikoDuke]

HOF Center Drafted in the 6th round, after countless sumos. Maybe change the way they evaluate OL?!

Oh they will. Going forward more Kelce like Omen will go undrafted..
On field performance will not change the Caste system..

 

[FootballDad]

HOF Center Drafted in the 6th round, after countless sumos. Maybe change the way they evaluate OL?!

Most of the centers in the league are already white, it's usually the strongest part of the offensive line. You can have short arms, boring feet and be "underweight" and be a center. The dirty little secret is that the center actually has to have a decent IQ as they are the signal-callers for the the O-line.

 

[Bucky]

Of course fellas. I doubt anyone would pass on him in 1st round if they re drafted. But he’s just an outlier.

 

[jphoss]

Most of the centers in the league are already white, it's usually the strongest part of the offensive line. You can have short arms, boring feet and be "underweight" and be a center. The dirty little secret is that the center actually has to have a decent IQ as they are the signal-callers for the the O-line.

I believe centers had the second highest wonderlic scores lol

 

[Warhawk_46]

Lane Johnson calling out some of his teammates and the coaches.

Lane Johnson says Eagles 'didn't do s---' to address struggles prior to playoff loss: 'Embarrassing'

Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson was straightforward about how his team's struggles ended what was a hopeful season early in a loss to the Buccaneers on Monday night.

www.foxnews.com

 

[wile]

Speaking of a Kelce, I subscribe to this channel about cattle and grazing operations and lo and behold Kelce attended the man's grazing school. It's about a 4 minute video with some good words about Jason. And IMO worth what you pay for it of course Greg has the best herd of cattle in the country I mention that if any of you need a good bull for your own herd.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Speaking of a Kelce, I subscribe to this channel about cattle and grazing operations and lo and behold Kelce attended the man's grazing school. It's about a 4 minute video with some good words about Jason. And IMO worth what you pay for it of course Greg has the best herd of cattle in the country I mention that if any of you need a good bull for your own herd.

i’ve attended this grazing school. twice! Greg Judy is the real deal in the regenerative farming movement that is healing the land while allowing the farmer to make a profit.

 

[wile]

I'm all hat and no cattle I lease out my little slice of paradise I follow the biz like Greg and other so I don't get BSed and if I do I know when to cut bait like I had to do last year because the kid was a serious BS artist that I might not have caught without some knowledge. But damn those bulls he has up the first 3 or so in the video were spectacular.

 

[Don Wassall]

Tough blow for the Eagles. Their o-line was a huge part of the success in recent years of an otherwise strongly Caste team, so Kelce's retirement will make the '24 season that much more interesting given their collapse the second half of '23:

Jason Kelce retired from the NFL after 13 seasons
Kelce spent all 13 seasons with the Eagles and became one of the most beloved figures in Philadelphia sports history during that time. The seven-time Pro Bowler and six-time All-Pro has mulled retirement for the last several years but is finally ready to hang it up. Widely regarded as one of the best centers in NFL history, Kelce anchored the Eagles’ offensive line for the 2017 season when the team won their first Super Bowl in league history and played in 193 of a possible 211 regular season games during his career, last missing a game in 2014. A true iron man of the sport, Kelce will almost certainly find himself in the Hall of Fame in the coming years.

 

[jphoss]

Tough blow for the Eagles. Their o-line was a huge part of the success in recent years of an otherwise strongly Caste team, so Kelce's retirement will make the '24 season that much more interesting given their collapse the second half of '23:

Jason Kelce retired from the NFL after 13 seasons
Kelce spent all 13 seasons with the Eagles and became one of the most beloved figures in Philadelphia sports history during that time. The seven-time Pro Bowler and six-time All-Pro has mulled retirement for the last several years but is finally ready to hang it up. Widely regarded as one of the best centers in NFL history, Kelce anchored the Eagles’ offensive line for the 2017 season when the team won their first Super Bowl in league history and played in 193 of a possible 211 regular season games during his career, last missing a game in 2014. A true iron man of the sport, Kelce will almost certainly find himself in the Hall of Fame in the coming years.

I watched that Kelce documentary on amazon and it was well done. Watch really struck me, looking through the lens of the caste system is how overlooked of a recruit he was in high school. he was a walk on at Cincinnati, and originally played defense! It wasn’t until Brian Kelly (lol) got there and switched him to center. And of course his success at center allowed for his younger brother to get recruited to Cincinnati. Imagine if he never even made the team as a walk on or was moved to center! We wouldn’t have seen arguably the greatest center and tight end to ever play. Now imagine how many overlooked white players who have the potential to be great don’t get even the slimmest of opportunities to play at the highest levels. How many of our guys this has happened to is heartbreaking and infuriating

 

[Freethinker]

I watched that Kelce documentary on amazon and it was well done. Watch really struck me, looking through the lens of the caste system is how overlooked of a recruit he was in high school. he was a walk on at Cincinnati, and originally played defense! It wasn’t until Brian Kelly (lol) got there and switched him to center. And of course his success at center allowed for his younger brother to get recruited to Cincinnati. Imagine if he never even made the team as a walk on or was moved to center! We wouldn’t have seen arguably the greatest center and tight end to ever play. Now imagine how many overlooked white players who have the potential to be great don’t get even the slimmest of opportunities to play at the highest levels. How many of our guys this has happened to is heartbreaking and infuriating

Excellent post. I didn’t know that story. So many elite White athletes have similar stories where they needed some improbable break. Meanwhile black athletes get chance after chance after chance….

 

[Don Wassall]

Don't be surprised if this signing sends Reed Blankenship to the bench. 3 years $33 million. Not predicting it, only saying don't be surprised if it happens because anything can and does happen in the Caste NFL.

Eagles signing Gardner-Johnson to 3-year deal

The Philadelphia Eagles are signing defensive back Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to a three-year deal worth up to $33 million in maximum value.

www.espn.com

 

[Bucky]

Wouldn’t doubt it either.

 

[jphoss]

I know he plays a lot of slot corner too so hopefully that’s where he gets the majority of the snaps.

 

[Leonardfan]

https://nfltraderumors.co/eagles-sign-s-reed-blankenship-to-extension-through-2025/

Blankenship gets the White man discount extension.

 

[Bucky]

https://nfltraderumors.co/eagles-sign-s-reed-blankenship-to-extension-through-2025/

Blankenship gets the White man discount extension.

113 tackles, gets a 1yr extension. Yeah the White Man’s discount is a real thing.

 

[Don Wassall]

113 tackles, gets a 1yr extension. Yeah the White Man’s discount is a real thing.

Blankenship missed two games because of injury (one after he was speared in the chest) and still put up these stats:

Starting 15 games, Blankenship recorded a team-best 108 total tackles, 75 of them solo hits. He was credited with 11 passes defensed, three interceptions, and one fumble recovery, becoming one of only five NFL players last season to have 105-plus tackles, 3-plus interceptions and 10-plus passes defensed.

Eagles agree to terms with Reed Blankenship on a contract extension

www.philadelphiaeagles.com

He should have been signed to a longer, more lucrative deal. Maybe he'll be able to do that after the '25 season, he shouldn't keep signing cheap deals out of misplaced loyalty to the Eagles.

 

[Bucky]

Definitely frustrating. Hope he stays healthy and dominates again. And ya, get the hell out of Philly and a get a payday!

 

[Don Wassall]

Reed Blankenship is underpaid but his starting position is secure and Cooper DeJean has a very good chance of starting as a rookie:

The Philadelphia Eagles are making some changes to their secondary. That change will start with the team releasing safety Kevin Byard, according to ESPN.

Philadelphia traded fifth- and sixth-round picks, plus safety Terrell Edmunds, to the Tennessee Titans to acquire Byard midway through the 2023 season. He played 10 games for the Eagles, racking up 75 tackles, one interception, and three passes defended. The team's pass defense did not show all that much improvement over the latter half of the year, though, and Byard's inability to recapture the same coverage ability he showed during his Pro Bowl seasons was part of that.

He was set to count against Philadelphia's books for $14.4 million in 2024, according to Over the Cap, and by releasing him the Eagles reduce that charge to a mere $1.4 million, creating an additional $13 million in space. That should give them around $42 million of room under the cap to make roster moves this offseason.

The Eagles will surely undertake an effort to reshape the defensive backfield after it struggled so badly last season. Cornerbacks Darius Slay and James Bradberry are getting up there in age, and and after releasing Byard Philly will have only Reed Blankenship and Sydney Brown under contract for next season at safety.

They drafted Brown and Kelee Ringo last year, and also signed Eli Ricks as an undrafted free agent, but none have yet looked like surefire starting-caliber players. General manager Howie Roseman has almost always prioritized the defensive front over the back end, but given how last year went, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Eagles pour more resources into shoring up the secondary this offseason.

MSN

 

[Don Wassall]

From a report on the Eagles' OTA practice:

1. Cooper DeJean played both at slot corner and at outside corner. I've seen a number of fans project him to safety, which I understand because the team has a lot more corner depth than safety depth. And sure, if at some point down the road it makes sense for DeJean to play safety, one of his best traits in college at Iowa was his versatility. But the team drafted him to play corner, and that is where they are initially playing him.

• Rookie fourth-round pick Will Shipley played some slot receiver. And by that I mean the Eagles had another running back on the field along with Shipley, and Shipley lined up at receiver. Shipley caught 69 passes his last two seasons at Clemson, so he has some receiving chops. He struggled a bit catching the football on Wednesday, but the more noteworthy point here is that the team views him as a potential weapon from the slot.

• I mostly liked what I saw from Kenny Pickett. He threw with more zip than I was anticipating, and he was mostly accurate. Two throws stood out: He hit Albert Okwuegbunam on the money on a deep ball down the seam. (Albert O. later had a bad drop.) He put a back shoulder throw in a perfect spot in the end zone to Kenny Gainwell who was being guarded by Ben VanSumeren.

Eagles OTA practice notes: Defensive versatility likely to be a theme under Vic Fangio

Players like Cooper DeJean, Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Avonte Maddox, Zack Baun and more will be versatile pieces on the Eagles' defense.

www.phillyvoice.com

I also read another article concerning a rumor that Philly may cut Kenneth Gainwell for salary cap reasons. That would be great for Shipley as most DWFs and media "experts" naturally assume that he's currently stuck behind Gainwell. Shipley is more talented than Gainwell in every area and hopefully will start the season behind only the somewhat injury prone Barkley.

 

[Don Wassall]

If Hurts gets "hurt" again, Pickett may surprise a lot of the haters:

Report: Former Pitt QB Kenny Pickett Outperforming Eagles Starter in OTAs

The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t trade for Kenny Pickett with the expectation that he’d start any time soon. Incumbent starter Jalen Hurts is firmly entrenched as the starter, but it sounds as though Pickett is impressing early. The Pittsburgh Steelers traded Pickett to the Eagles in March...

pittsburghsportsnow.com

 

[Bucky]

Appreciate the updates, can't say Ive Been excited for Philly since Chip Kelly era! Shipley and DeJean in same class is insane!