Lane Johnson: Johnson infuses some badly needed youth, talent, and athleticism on the offensive line. I like the pick because I believe that he’s a great fit for what the Eagles will try to do under Chip Kelly, and he has a chance to be a staple on this line for years to come. The question is whether or not Johnson was truly worthy of the fourth overall pick. I’ll say this: if the Eagles didn’t take Johnson at number four, he would not have lasted much longer. Plenty of teams are desperate for offensive line help, Arizona took guard Jonathan Cooper just three picks later, and several picks after that the Chargers took D.J. Fluker. His stock had risen considerably because of his success in workouts leading up to the draft. If the Eagles wanted to add a potential difference maker on the offensive line, this was the time to do it.
Zach Ertz: Could bring a new dimension to the Eagles offense. Tight end with excellent size, and can make tough catches. First-round talent that fell to the Eagles at the top of the second-round, he may be one of the biggest steals of this draft. Ertz is the pick I’m most excited about. This is a guy with the tools to be for the Eagles what Jason Witten is to the Dallas Cowboys.
Bennie Logan: Potential future nose tackle who has a reputation for giving maximum effort on every play. The Eagles certainly needed more for the nose tackle position than just veteran Isaac Sopoaga, and Logan should at least be a part of the defensive line rotation in his first season.
Matt Barkley: Possibly the most polarizing pick of the draft. This is a pick that you’re either going to love or hate. People that love the pick believe that the Eagles got themselves a first-round talent in the fourth round. People that either don’t like or are confused by the pick will wonder why the Eagles would spend a fourth-round pick on a quarterback one year after spending a third-round pick on another quarterback.
Earl Wolff: Physical safety who has a reputation for constantly being around the football. Nate Allen’s roster spot is in trouble.
Joe Krueger: Brother of current NFL defensive lineman Paul Krueger, has decent size at 6-6 270. He can play either defensive end or linebacker in a 3-4 scheme. He’ll add some depth and compete for a job in training camp.
Jordan Poyer: Cornerback who could have been a third or fourth round pick if not for off-field troubles. He’s got average size and speed but has good ball skills. He’s an interesting prospect at the bottom of the draft, and will have a good chance to make the roster which has a lack of depth at the cornerback position.
David King: Very raw prospect, and will face an uphill battle to make the roster. Possible practice squad candidate.
What I Like
- In the early rounds, the Eagles targeted players that have been apart of some of the most successful programs in college football. Too often during the Andy Reid era, the Eagles would try to outsmart the league by making bizzare picks and reaches in the higher rounds of the draft that really hurt this franchise. Think of how many second and third-round picks were lost on guys like Matt McCoy, Chris Gocong, Bryan Smith, guys from small schools that more often than not were just destined to be overmatched by NFL competition. In this draft, the Eagles stuck to guys from top programs like Oklahoma, Stanford, LSU, and USC. These are guys from winning programs that have faced the best competition that college football has to offer.
- Johnson and Ertz should be able to make significant contributions right away.
- Earl Wolff is advertised as a physical safety with decent cover skills. He may not be a starter, or even have much of an impact, but if any of the information on him is true, at the very least his presence should spell the end of Nate Allen’s time in Philadelphia.
- Not only did the Eagles stick to players from winning programs, but they also drafted players with good size.
- I’m glad the Eagles passed on Geno Smith. I already wasn’t on board with the idea of drafting a guy like Smith, who wasn’t a true top-of-the-line prospect, early in the draft, but then watching him pout, storm out of the draft room before the first round was even over, and declare that he wasn’t going to return for the second day (before his agent or someone close to him advised him otherwise) really rubbed me the wrong way. Watching Smith’s reactions brought back memories of Donovan McNabb’s poor-pitiful-me personality.
What I Don’t Like
- I don’t think the Eagles were able to improve their defense enough. Bennie Logan is the only defensive player drafted that is a lock to make the roster, and he might be too raw to make a great impact this season.
- Cornerback depth is still an issue, I don’t think it’s wise for this team to go into the season counting on Bradley Fletcher to be one of their starters without some kind of quality competition or viable Plan B. Poyer may or may not be a late round steal, but you can’t count on a lot from a seventh-round pick.
- No additional depth on the offensive line. After adding Lane Johnson, the Eagles didn’t draft any other lineman, which I believe is a mistake. Right now, the Eagles’ top backups are three fringe players in Dennis Kelly, Dallas Reynolds, and Danny Watkins. The Eagles’ offensive line has three starters coming off of season-ending injuries, two of which are older players that are more susceptible to injury (Jason Peters, Todd Herremans). The team is going to have to look to undrafted free agents and veteran retreads to improve their offensive line depth now, and the decision to not add an additional prospect or two could come back to hurt this team during the season.
Final Thoughts
In a perfect world, the Eagles would not have had to use the fourth overall pick on Johnson, but there was a serious drop off in the talent level of the available offensive tackle prospects after Johnson, and the Eagles needed to do something to upgrade this offensive line. Even though the line was going to be better with the healthy returns of Jason Peters, Todd Herremans, and Jason Kelce, Peters and Herremans are getting older and have quite a bit of miles on them. The team needed to prepare to replace these guys, and even though Johnson wasn’t regarded as highly as Eric Fisher or Luke Joeckel, I think he has a chance to be very good player in this league.
The Matt Barkley pick is the one I question the most. Sure, at one point this guy was considered first-round material, but there’s a reason he slipped to the third day of the draft. There’s a reason that every other team in the league passed on him multiple times. There’s a reason that even though this was a particularly weak quarterback class, he was taken after the likes of E.J. Manuel, Geno Smith, and Matt Glennon. The Eagles are in a position in which it doesn’t make sense to draft a quarterback, unless it’s a guy who is a true premier talent. They’re in a rebuilding mode right now, and aren’t expected to win this season. They’ve already got a young, developmental quarterback on the roster in Nick Foles, who they just spent a third-round pick on a year ago. Unless Matt Barkley sets the world on fire (which isn’t impossible, but realistically is unlikely), the Eagles are still going to be in a position a year from now in which they’re still looking for a franchise quarterback, meaning that they’ve likely spent a fourth-round pick on a guy who may turn out to be not better than a second-string quarterback. I would have rather seen them spend that fourth-rounder on an extra offensive lineman or a cornerback. However, even though I would have gone in a different direction with the pick, its not as though the team spent a second or third-round pick on Barkley, they took a chance with a fourth-rounder. It’s not a move that’s going to break the success of this draft class.
Overall, I thought the Eagles did a decent job with this draft. Lane Johnson and Zach Ertz may not be the pieces that really put the team on another level, but they’re a couple of solid building blocks that can help the team build towards something greater. I would have liked to see the team add some more depth in certain areas, but they can only do so much in one off-season. There are more things that I like about this draft than not, and even though I’m not overwhelmed by this group, I think this group has a chance to be a decent draft class.
Cmon Denny. When Vick and Dixon are cut and we go into a season with only 2 QB’s You will get it! With a 53 man roster a-lot of the league (with pocket passers) is going to only 2 QB’s (thats all that can practice anyway). You save a spot on the 53 for another player that can provide a useful service unlike holding a clip board.
We had no QB like Foles following the release of Edwards. I think Barkley may even cost less than Edwards’ contract towards the cap and give you 2 Young QB’s that can have a true competition for the job.
So spending a measly fourth (ok and a 7th) on Barkley was just great Value!!!
You can not fill all the holes on a team in one draft but you may never get value like Barkley in the 4th round again.
Regal if you recall the mini camp the high volume of plays in those four days allowed all three QB’s go take reps with the ones, so what are you talking about? The NFL hasn’t seen anything like Kelly’s system so we have no idea how they practice.
Good article Denny, you understand that the Barkley pick should have been better spent elsewhere, too many needs to be fishing for a franchise QB in the 4th round. I was looking for one djfference maker on defense but I agree with regal can’t fix everything in one draft other than that the draft was a good one.
Cant be any worse than fishing for the 8th QB in the draft last year projected on going in the 5th round last year. Bottom line of the last 20 superbowl QBs a 90% are HOF QBs or are HOF bound 90% are 1st round picks with Kurt Warner(HOF) and Tom Brady (once in a million) being the exception. Brad Johnson had a HOF defense and Dilfer was still 1st round pick with HOF defense.
@dag,
Yeah, I heard the same thing of the radio. It’s a pretty dumb statement since you have to assume Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Joe Flacco all make the HOF for it to be accurate. And it’s a self fulfilling prophesy, since it’s the SB wins that make them HOF’ers.
Also, you forgot Drew Brees… he’s not a first round pick.
Plus, stats like that are made to be broken. Should they fire all black quarterbacks because in the last 20 years zero % of the super bowl winning quarterbacks have been black? Pretty stupid, right?
Wisdom !! Preach Irish!!!!!!!!!!
Eagles still have close to $18 Million under the Cap and will need to spend about ..95% of their Cap $$$ in Player Contracts.. After Rookies are Signed, they shoukd still have lots of $$$ to get a Center/Gyard (Kelce’s Return is still up in the air to late June/July and want if he has a setback and especially while putting in a new Offense)
CB and ILB still need to be upgraded.. Are Natthews/Chaney going to be challenged for Roster Spots???
A CB Corps of Cary Williams, Fletcher, Boykin,Marsh, Hughes and now Poyner is still not good enoug in my book..
The QBs aren’t good enough, the LBs aren’t good enough, the DL is not good enough, the DBs aren’t good enough, the WR aren’t good enough, the…well, you get the idea. This talent drain after the crappy drafts of 2010 and 2011 is high.
This is going to be a process, not a quick fix.
really not sold on Kelce as an NFL starting center, he can’t get movement on a DT by himself in short yardage. would like to have seen bigger stronger centers drafted or unsigned FA. since the death of JJ we will finally have one voice as a Def Coord in Billy Davis so we will see our DB’s in action.
The points were covered above but I guess I’ll reiterate them I have pretty much disagreed with Denny on everything, but I’ll agree on the Barkley pick. Super Bowl teams need 1st round grades at QBs, not second round. Nothing is absolute but the percentages of success are slim without it.
The comparisons I’m seeing (Dalton, Schaub) are not good.
The one problem I have is that you complain about not filling needs (defense) yet like the Johnson and Ertz picks. You can’t have it both ways. Something was going to be neglected. The Eagles have holes everywhere (all defense, OL, QB, WR, returners). Unless the Eagles had 8 picks in the first two rounds, all of the holes weren’t going to be filled.
It is generally recognized that any draft that yields 3 starters should be considered a success . I have little difficulty seeing 3 starters emerging from this draft. If Barkley turns out to be a good NFL QB, this will be a spectacular draft. When I look at the 4 main QBs on the roster, it is clear that the tandem of FOLES and BARKLEY will be the direction the team is heading. The future doesn’t look to be in the Vick / Dixon direction. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Vick traded or released next August – especially if he continues to turn the ball over….
BTW, Deny thinks Wolff means the end of Allen. I think the slow footed Coleman may be the odd man out….
I figure that Lhillips,Chung and Colt Anderson are locks
Meaning Allen, Coleman, Sims and Wolff fight it out for the last 1-2 Spots open.. Most Teams carry 4 Safeties, sometimes 5 but the Health of Kenny Phillips may determine if 4 or 5 Safeties are carried on the Roster
Ray Didinger said something on CSNPhilly which is hard to ignore – coach’s don’t trade up to draft QBs not to play and sit on the bench.
They tossed in a compensatory pick to move up 3 spots in the 4th round.
Don’t try to comare it to the Skins trading 2 drafts to get RGIII.
You cannot trade a Conpensatory PIck Vinnie, it was their own 7th Round Pick, not that it matters much..
You are right Vinnie. I love Ray Didinger, but he has been wrong in his evaluation of some players every year.
A player can have a 1st Round grade, but not be able to translate those expectations to the NFL.But ask yourself…..Who is ranking them? Says who? That they are 1st Round talent. Do you realize how many players drafted with 1st Round grades have actually been bust?
How come these so called experts can be wrong in their evaluations, and still get the respect of you guys, but Paul, Dcar, and Myself can’t get our props when we’re correct?
How come these so called experts can be wrong in their evaluations, and still get the respect of you guys, but Paul, Dcar, and Myself can’t get our props when we’re correct?
When we’re you guys right about an evaluation ??
Gotta show me the post ! I’m sorry
Ray Diddy is an idiot.
I used to like him Birdo but listening to him ridicule Chip Kelly as a gimmick head coach who the Eagles should want no part off then want to comment on every move he makes is sickening. He is another smug talking head who has no clue.
ys he’s slippin… like merril Reese
I hated the James Casey free agent signing — I am so glad the Eagles selected Zack Ertz.
Jeff Stoutland had to block Bennie Logan 3 times in the last 2 years so he must have given his approval & recommendation for that pick. The Eagle DL is not that impressive so I think Bennie Logan is an instant participant. DL constantly rotate so he will be on the field more quickly than any other draft pick. I worry when DL aren’t involved ( like eagles cheerleaders & sit in the stands stiffs graham and curry).
MAN I am highly impressed with this Ertz guy as a receiving TE, guy is smart, runs crisp routes, finds soft spots when opposing defenses are in zone, can outrun defenders and has big hands.
If you have a few minutes watch ESPNs sports science take on Ertz, it will get you excited he is an Eagle!
Dude can be another Gronk
Mhenski- just watch the game against Oregon.
ok i will but i am highly impressed after watching sports science and the highlights here
Dude is gonna be a menace this year!
Depending on who is throwing the ball you could be right/
I didn’t like what I saw out of Nick Foles last year and I know Mike Vick’s body is too weak to play NFL QB so I hope Matt Barkley wins the starting job by the end of 2013. If Mike Vick & Kevin Kolb start the season I’m having a pool to bet who gets hurt first, tie breaker name the game and the quarter.
And now everyone is loving the Ertz?
Where was the love 2 weeks ago?
2 weeks ago I never watched Ertz play or his highlights as I dont watch college football or study the draft. Now that Ertz is a an Eagle I do a little reading and watching to see who is the player my team selected and come away impressed.
Kudos to you if you were all about Ertz prior to the draft though.
Ertz has been training and learning with former 49er TE Brent Jones about the nuances of the TE Postion since he was in HIgh School..Kid has the Potential to be really specail and the best TE the Eagles have had in years and on top of this, is a really smart,good kid on and off the Field and tough too.. .
I wouldn’t have picked Ertz or Johnson ( I would of selected Floyd and Warford with 1st 2 picks) but I still like the selections because I’m not a fan of Herremans or Celek’s 2012 season & I hate Casey, Harbor and Dennis Kelly even more.
I’m gonna say this only once the Eagles talent didn’t match there record last season yes they were 4-12 but coaching was the reason for that with that talent they should of had at least 8-10 wins. Your not gonna take care of all the needs in 1 off season but there off to a good start.
I disagree Turk. I think the Eagles had a severe lack of talent in the secondary, and at the QB position and with the lack of talent in those 2 spots you are guaranteed to have a losing record…
You didn’t like what you seen from Foles last season well let me think for a minute Nick comes into start without taking any 1st team snaps all season hasn’t played since preseason Deshawn Jackson and Leshon McCoy done for the season and the teams has quit but he still played pretty well under those circumstances.
yes I think Foles played well all things considered but at that point the season was over… when i say lack of talent I am specifically talking about the “quarterback” who started the season…
Mhenski when was the last time you seen a team who was predicted to go far in the playoffs because of the talent they had and 16 games later you only have 4 wins well let me tell you how… 1. Poorly coached team. 2. Didn’t utilized the best player on the team Leshon McCoy. 3. Having the wrong players for the scheme you want to have on defense.4. Losing your center and left tackle for the season
they were predicted to go far but morons who believed in vick imo… i think you are damn right though too with #1 #2 & #4. I think with #3 we had/have (dunno who was making the personnel decisions) bad talent evaluators ie nnamdi, cromartie, all of our safeties …
Chip Kelly and getting players who fit his scheme= 9 to 10 wins this season
I love what Chip is doing and love his openness and have from the start but I think 9/10 wins this season cant happen especially if vick is under center.
speaking of kelly where are all those guys who didnt want kelly because he runs a “gimmick offense”????????? He told people from the jump he calls plays based on the talents of his personnel and nobody believed him, believing yet???????
Turk, are you totally f^#@ing brain damaged? 9-10 wins?????? Why, because of all of those stud free agents we signed? Why, because of the monster draft, in which we practically filled no holes on DF & reached on all top 4 picks? Or how’s about because of the 90 unsettled QB’s on the roster? Yeah, that sounds like 9-10 wins to me, maybe even a SB & start of the next Dynasty! GTFO!!!!
I don’t even know if Vick will be on the roster when the final roster is complete and remember you heard it hear first!!!
ummmm….not quite first.
his frail little weak body is not NFL quality any more
With the hits that Vick has taken for this team, how they hell can he be considered frail? If any of your “great QB’s” took the hits Vick took how would they do? Again, a dumb ass comment!
Vick’s frail rib cage is worth 4 games.
Vick’s head less than that —– Proof is in the injury report not “RealTalk777” fortune cookie dreams.
First I wanna say I like the Barkley pick…he’s a cool cat!
Turk – Yea I’m a remember it alright, on this day 4/29 Turk was smoking crack!
MHenski, with you normal gibberish…”Eagles were picked to go far by folks that believed in Vick?” How dumb is that statement? Had nothing to do with the weapons they Eagles are said to possess? just Vick huh? nothing to do with the defensive front that was supposed to get to the QB, huh? nothing to do with the pro bowl corner the Eagles had, that was supposed to be a “shut down”….nothing to do with any of that, just Vick, right? Last time I checked you need an O Line and some defensive support to win games in the NFL. Your ignorance never surprises me. Simply put that kind of statement only comes from a “Vick hater”, real talk!
your entire team can be above average in all facets of the game but if your qb is vick you will not succeed. again for the millionth time i dont hate vick the person but i hate vick the qbs game or lack there of.
Realtalk, will he beat out Dixon?
eagles predicted to go far when vick was qb and didnt, falcons predicted to go far when vick was qb and didnt. but its the coaches fault, the lines fault the defenses fault…
I agree with most of what deny said, except the Barkley thing. It’s the 4th round, you didn’t reach for this guy, you got value for him. Someone mentioned that 3 starters from one draft is being considered stellar . We we can get possible 4 with one being a qb. I’d say Howie and co. Did a pretty good job. One thing they needed was a defensive playmaker and they were not able to land one, as of yet. They are building his team from the ground up, they got some long, athletic guys that are going to be team first guys. That is something this team was sorely lacking.
HEY DENNY IF YOU ARE OUT THERE – ARE YOU STILL DOWN ON CHIP BEING OUR COACH OR ARE YOU CHANGING YOUR MIND WITH WHAT HE IS DOING SO FAR?
Yes, I’m still down on Chip Kelly as the head coach. The Eagles have made some nice moves in free agency and the draft, but its not nearly enough to change my mind about the direction of the team.
Just a year ago, the Eagles were supposedly going in the right direction when they traded for DeMeco Ryans, and drafted Fletcher Cox, Mychal Kendricks, and Vinny Curry. The addition of a handful of nice players/draft picks can’t cover for the core issues of this franchise.
This team still has a certain arrogance about it, believing that they’re going to be much better than they actually are. Throughout the offseason you’ve had the Michael Vicks, DeSean Jacksons, and Brent Celeks on this team continue to come out and chirp about how what theyre doing is going to “change the league” and other nonsense like that…and so far I get the sense that Kelly is a guy who is going to further enable that line of thinking rather than eliminate it. In previous years we’ve seen this group get behind the ideas of “dream team” and “dynasty”, only to fold the very instant that the going gets tough.
Even though they’ve got some better players now, I don’t know that its going to translate into a much better product than what we saw last year. Nothing about the moves that they’ve made has jumped out at me and made me say “OK, maybe we’ve got something here!”
The free agent additions to the secondary? Better than what we had, but still not necessarily good.
Lane Johnson and Zach Ertz? Really nice prospects, but not exactly reason to get 100% behind the coach.
I’m no more convinced now than I was several months ago that Kelly was the best choice for this team. The way they went about hiring a defensive coordinator (hiring assistants before the coordinator…again) was a mistake, and I see no reason to be excited about what Billy Davis will do for the defense.
Good stuff Denny. Thanks for the read. I thought maybe you were down on chip because a lot of the people that were thought he was bringing in a “gimmick” offense, which I never believed he was…
Your 3rd paragraph regarding mentality does make me nervous to say the least mostly because I think you are right, but maybe chip can draw up plays to make Desean and Celek succeed… We are hopeless with Vick either way in my opinion but I hope he is the QB this year so we can secure another year of high draft picks…
Thanks for the response.
No problem, anytime!
It was Reported that QB Mick Vick was just seen being chased by a large pack of wild Pit Bulls over the Ben Franklin Bridge over towards the Camden side.. Not sure what happened, or if report is even true, but it’s not looking good for Vick anyway you look at it… God Bless him and Best Wishes for his Future
paul i think vick plays and starts with barkley in a redshirt year. i suppose time will tell tho. id guess our depth will be
qb1 vick
qb2 foles
qb3 barkley
never speculate on speculation… bet Vick’s startin for the opener..
There’s more things that I like about this draft then not…What kind of grammar is this for a writer?
Why, it would be poor grammar of course!
It happens every now and then.
this is a blog not in print big difference imo
These are my thoughts, initially I was down on the draft. I thought there were playmakers to be had. Outside of the Ertz I really didn’t like anybody else really. But I do like Chip Kelly, I think he has a plan for this team. I believe with time he will build this team to where he wants it to be. It’s not going to happen in one off season. So patient’s is needed for all Eagle fans, at this time. These players that were selected from Ertz, Kruger, Poyer etc. Were all players coach Kelly has seen and played against. So I am banking that he know’s more than Diddy,Dcar,Pman,Big and yes even you Gmcliff etc etc etc. Until he shows us that his talent evaluation is not to be trusted. We have to have faith that he know’s what he is doing. And Diddy trust’s Coach Kelly right now until we see different. We have to allow this man the time to put this together. E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles fo birds.
Thats fair Diddy, I respect that Brother…My question is do we get our props if he is wrong? Andy Reid was for years, but apparently, we are still viewed as completely incompetent in relation to talent evaluation. LOL!! Why?
Gm you get props regardless but yes if he is wrong send me one of those T-shirts brother. LOL
Oh yeah you too Denny. LOL
Good Post Pdiddy.. I agree with you, let’s get behind Coach Kelly for it’s his TeM and I will give him a chance to prove to us Fans that he kniw’s what he’s doing and so far, I like what I have seen and it will take some time
But in 3 Months time ( which nay seem like an eternity to Fans, he and the Front Office have done a lot to change this Roster in his likeness
(Now cut Mike Vick and I will be happy)
Wow I meant go birds I need to proof read this shit.
I love the Barkley pick in the 4th round. QB is the most important position in team sports and the Eagles do not have a franchise QB – yet. So, now you increase your odds of developing one in a younger player by having both Foles and Barkley on the roster. What were you going to get instead of Barkley – backup DB or Linebacker? What position is more important? I believe that if you don’t have a surefire Andrew Luck type QB pick, and you don’t have a franchise QB, you keep picking them until you have one. Now we have two chances for a franchise QB instead of one.
I heard on sirius radio that one of the reasons why Jordon Poyer dropped in the draft, was because of some bar fight he was involved in. I think Poyer will end up being the steal of this draft class. If he works on his speed and gets faster, then this kid will be something special for the Eagles
He is a nickel corner exclusively….That is also why he dropped. He’s not all that, that the problem with his game. To be drafted in the 3rd Round would be overdrafting him……
Poyer had a 3rd Round Grade by most Scouting Services..
Since they Drafted Barkley who they were expecting to be around,
I would release QB Vick today and go with Foles/Barkely and develop a true
west-Coast System that relies heavily on the Run and 2-3 TE Sets
Abd then let Dixon/Kinnie battle it out for 3rd String QB and develop a package of DO/Wildcat Plays for them to work on to change things up
This way Chip Kelly doesn’t wast a half of 2013 Season with Zvick since he is not the long-term answer and whether they win 8 Games or 6 Games in 2013
Is irrelevant to the long term success of his Coaching Tenure
There is limited contact and 11 on 11 Drills to install a new Offense and not enough reps to go around during the OTA’s/Summer Camp to be splitting plays with 3-4-5 QB’s.. Select 3 right now and move forward and build your bee system with a foundation of Players who you will have around for 2-3 Years to help you get there, Mike Vick is not the QB long term, so move on from him and allow him to name a deal with whomever he wants..
Give it a rest paulman, we get it you want Vick gone with the rest of the Vick haters club, Chip Kelly will make that call when and if it becomes needed.
I think it’s so sad that after we (the fans) so far have gotten what we’ve wanted (the firing of Andy Reid, Staff & a few players, a new and coach, better players added….etc.) and we even got things that we didn’t expect (Chip Kelly, great players from FA (winners), practices here in Philly, and Jason Peters @ 100%, and a GREAT draft! And we STILL find things to B*tch about! Let things play out…..Chip Kelly saw HEART in Vick if nothing else, and a QB who is coachable after such a bad season or 2 or 3 of being badly coached and protected…..and all yawl can do is talk about the neg things…..I bleed GREEN, but most of our/yawl fans SUCK! Yawl are so “up & down”
eFL, most of the fanbase didn’t want Kelly, a college coach, with zero NFL experience! Great players from FA???? Really??? Did I miss, all of the top notch playmakers & future HOF FA’s we signed? Who the cares that the practices are here, especially now, that we as a fanbase aren’t going to be able to see it, unless we’re the media, & select practices for season ticket holders? Peters will NEVER be 100%, EVER again! As for your great draft comment, you’re a f^#@ing moron! We still have the same holes, that we had, at seasons end. Mediocre secondary! No O-line depth! No true NT! No ROLB! And 30 unsettled QB’s, on the roster, with the fraud leading them! So before you come on here, with your deluded, pom-pom waving @$$, & criticise the fanbase, why don’t you live in reality & get your f^#@ing facts straight! Got it YAWL!
Three points on this post:
Wolff does not spell the end of Allen. Allen is a FS. Wolff is a SS. They brought Kenny Phillips in on a one year deal to compete with Allen. They brought Chung in on a multi-year deal to play SS since they knew Coleman couldn’t cut it. This is Allen’s last year to show that he can play in the NFL, but not because of Wolff. Next year they will seriously address FS if it is still a position of concern.
Barkley in the 4th is fine. Kafka was a 4th round pick. Who would you rather have as a back-up? Foles has little to do with Barkley because he was not a Chip Kelly pick. You don’t know that Kelly is particularly happy with Foles. Vick will not be around more than a year or two tops, at which point you will have to address QB if one is not currently on the roster. Barkley had a 2nd round grade on him so they made the move to make sure they have two young QBs will compete to develop into your future starters.
Lastly, the most glaring difference between this draft and Reid drafts is that they drafted for talent and players, not position. This is how you re-build. You don’t try to force your scheme when rebuilding. You get as many talented players as possible and conform your scheme to that until you have build a core. This philosophy is born out in the Barkely, Kruger, and Poyer picks. All three of those guys have much higher grades on them than were they were selected. No more Considine, Matt McCoy, Bryan Smith gaffs in mid-rounds.
This is a re-build with two new schemes; one on offense and one on defense. They loaded up on veteran players in the secondary and brought in Barwin to help at OLB. Bring in Sopoaga and draft Logan to pair with Cox on the Dline. They brought in players that will help them keep their heads above water until all weaknesses can be addressed. The spent a first rounder on an Olineman which allows you to move Herremans back inside, effectively upgrading two spots with one pick. They have some talent at WR and RB, so they load up on TEs because Kelly likes mis-matches. Last piece of the puzzle is the biggest, QB. Get every thing else in place first to give your QB a chance to succeed. I’m actually very happy with the direction of the team. I can see a clear plan in place to bring in quality vets where you know you can’t fix all holes at once.
I don’t expect a remarkable turnaround in one year, but if they get good Oline and QB play they could be a decent team in year one, much better than the 4-12 output they gave us last year.
Good points Ceterman,
I am still not crazy about 3rd Pick DT Logan from LSU
Brandon Williams(Ravens), and Montori Hughes(Saints) will have better careers, and make more of an impact in the league than Bennie Logan – another wasted pick
Paulman’s List of Impact Players from the 2013 Draft
(This is Based on the Player’s Talent of course, bu also going to the right Team and situation where they will get a great chance to play right away and will receive Good Coaching for a “System” that fits their Skill Set
From the 1st Round
WR/Returnman Tayvon Austin (SL Rams 8th Overall Pick – Rookie of the Year Potential)
OLB Jarvis Jones (Steelers 17th Overall Pick – Best Pure Pass Rusher )
Safety Eric Reid (49ers 18th Pick- How Cowboys traded this Pick where they desperately need a Playmaking Safety is beyond me)
DE Datone Jones (Packers 26th Overall-Perfect fit for Packers 3-4 Scheme)
OLB Alec Ogletree (SL Rams – 30th Overall – Great Fit on a very good Front 7 and Defense that Fisher has built in SL)
2nd Round
Safety – J Cyprien (Jaguars – 33rd Overall – WIll be the new Leader of a entirely new Jaguars Secondary headed up by new HC Gus Bradley)
RB – Giovanni Bernard – (Benglas – 37th Overall – Will be utilized as 3rd Down/Returnman – Will get more Carries & Touches as the Season goes on and will be a greaat outlet Receiver out of the Backfield for Bengals Offense
OLB – Jaime Colllins – (Patriots – 52nd Overall – Will be used all over the Defense by Belicheck and make All-Rooke Team and Probably the Defensive Rookie of the Year
Round #3
OLB – Sio Moore (Raiders – 66th Overall Pick and will have a chance to play right away on a bad Defense in dire need of rebuilding, expect him to make a lot of plays and have a very good Rookie Season
CB – Leon McFadden – (Browns – 68 Overall Pick, will get a chance to start right away opposite of Joe Haden giving the Browns a nice younf CB Tandem to build with)
Safety – TJ McDonald – (SL Rams – 71st Overall , will have a great opportunity to start right away, Jeff Fisher was a Safety and takes to heart young thumpers like MCDonald.. Rams probably have the Best Front 7 in the NFC and will create some great Opportunities for the Secondary with Janoris Jenkins,Cortland Finnegan and now TJ McDonald to make Plays..
DT – Brandon Williams – (Ravens 94th Overall Pick, with solid mentor in Hgata will get to learn from one of the best.. May not put up good Individual Stats,but will have the Ravens tremendously in the middle of their rebuilt Defense
Round #4
ILB – Nico Johnson – (KC Chiefs – 99th Overall – Will get a chance to Start right away with th Chiefs who under new DC Sutton will employ many of the schemes nad packages that the JEts used which is a System built around the LB’s making plays.. Johnson was an under teh Radar player at Alabama with all their big names on their squad, but was the glue that held their Defense together .. I think he’s an All-Pro by 2nd/3rd Season in the NFL
RB – Jonathon Franklin (Packers 125th Overall – The Steal of the entire Draft in my opinion and will be the big playmaker from the Packers backfield who also added big RB E Lacey to pound between the Tackles but I believe that Franklin by mid-season will become the feature back of the Packers due to hs big play capability, blocking and receiving out the backfield that Lacey is not very good at.. RB J Franlin reminds me a lot of Eagles L McCoy, not as big yet or as strong, but a very shifty runner in traffic with great cut-back ability and is perfect for the dyamic Packer Offense.. I liked this kid a lot..
WR – Quentin Patton – (49ers – 128th Pick – Smart, great route runner,tough and able to make plays on the ball… With Vernon Davis,Crabtree, strong Running Game with Gore, Kaepernick,etc, Patton will get ample opportunites in 1 on 1 match-ups to utilize his skills..
Round #5
RB Stephon Taylor – Arizona Cardinals 140th Overall – Going to a Team with a need at RB and play for a Coach in Bruce Arians that will throw a lot of Screens and Passes to the Backs.. A good Tough, Smart Player in Taylor who should see plenty of Touches his Rookie Season
Round #6
OLB Cornelius Washington (Bears – 188th Overall) — will be moved around the formations as the Bears rebuild their Defenses, can see him coming off the edge as Pass-Rusher outside of DE J Peppers getting many open looks to the QB..
Honorable Mention for SOlid Rookie Seasons
WR DeArndre Hopkins for the Texans
WR Kennan Allen for the Chargers
There are many Good PLayers in this Draft Class, but I believe the PLayers I listed will make the most impact their Rookie Season based on where they are Players and the Opportunity to step in and play right away
Tavon Austin — I don’t see anyone 5’8″ 175 lbs lasting 6 divisional games in the NFL. That is the size of a kicker.
Based on where they were picking in the 3rd round, I think they should have went TJ McDonald over Logan. I dislike the Logan pick the most.
I agree with you 100%,
I wanted CB’s Leon McFadden or even CB Blidi-Wreh-Wilson
or OL Terron Armstead and move him in at RG the way it was falling in
3rd Rd and even Safety TJ McDonald would have been better and than
grad a developmental DT in the 5th Round instead of Wolff (DT’s Montori Hughes or even Jessee Williams who slipped down to the 5th) ..
They missed & reached the entire draft, & got lucky with Kruger & Poyer, falling to the 7th. We drafted not 1 impact player, on DF, nor signed 1 in FA! Ertz will probably be good, but Celek, Casey & Harbor could have done a good enough, to hold them over for another year. We still have the same holes on DF!
With no Trades involved
Paulman would have went as Follows
#4 – OT Lane Johnson
#35 – DE Tank Carradine
#68 – CB Leon MxFadden
#101 – Center/Guard Brian Schwenke
#133 – Safety Earl Wolff
7th Round – Make Kruger & Poyer Picks and then add Highest Rated TE