Rookie right guard Danny Watkins refused to answer the question from a reporter about whether he would be in the starting lineup for the first game of the year against the St. Louis Rams. He had about 25 media people with microphones stuck in his face at his locker, but he refused to comment about what was on everybody’s mind.
Who is going to start at right guard on Sunday? Eagles head coach Andy Reid had told the youngster to avoid questions about who was starting.
Reid had let the cat out of the bag, when he refused to commit to Watkins starting this week. Reid had told Watkins to stay away from making comments on who was going to start, so all he could do was refuse to answer the question.
Kyle DeVan will be the starting right guard on Sunday. He didn’t want to talk about who was starting when he was circled by reporters, but he made a point to say he was there to help the younger guys like Danny learn as much as they can about Howard Mudd’s system and technique of run and pass blocking.
This was a great decision by the Birds coaching staff. I was getting very concerned that they were going to walk right into a disaster by letting the rookie go out and get destroyed. I don’t even listen to Reid when he talks about his younger players because he’s not going to bury them even if they stinking up the place. They saw Watkins getting beat time and time again and I saw it as well.
I’ve been telling you for a couple of weeks now that Watkins isn’t ready to start. Both he and rookie center Jason Kelce were struggling early in camp with all of the learning they had to do, but Kelce got on top of the mental part of the game and he’s also a remarkable athlete. Kelce is growing on me every time I see him play or practice. Still this is going to be a challenge for him because of the noise in the Edward Jones Dome. He won’t be able to hear anything, but he’s got to perform flawlessly.
Watkins has continued to struggle. He’s been making mental mistakes and technique mistakes. He was able to manhandle the defensive linemen on the college level but he hasn’t be able to do that to NFL defensive tackles. I could tell at the New York Jets game that he’s not ready start. He’s not a great athlete nor stronger than some of the monsters he has to deal with so he must improve his technique.
In fairness, the lockout has destroyed the chances of many of these rookie draft picks and free agents to make major contributions in their first season. Still I’m really concerned about Watkins because he doesn’t have the quick feet or good body control. The young man has a lot of work to do. I could see him playing in the league, but he’s got to work his butt off.
Does anyone feel better that its one of Mudds formal players? Takes some sting off the move in my opinion. At least there makign moves to protect the #1 guy.
4 sacks on Bradford this week…..
I believe the Northern Lights Fire Deptartment just repsonded to a call of a man about to Jump Off the Ben Frankling Bridge wearing an Eagle #63 Jersey…
(not confirmed mind you but reported)
As we’ve said as well, let the coaches do their jobs. They see and know much more than we will ever know. I swear this is the longest week of the year…
Paul, bad joke, suicide not funny, did you mean Northern Liberties (a neighbor hood nowhere near that bridge which is in South Philly and South Jersey)?
Yes, Northern Liberties is what I meant to say Schiller. Of course the Fire Depratment stated that the man just wanted a good look at the Delaware Valley before he packs his bags and heads back to Canada .. All is ok now …
Trevard Lindley… Danny Watkins… Teo… who’s drafting these guys? Somebody needs to be held accountable. BTW, DeVan is here to help the young guys???? He and Watkins are the same age…
When you take a step back and look at it. When it comes to vricchini’s statements that watkins was a bad pick to schillers, erocks and birdos he was a good pick. I think as of right now I won that argument.
I think Vricchini should oversee the Eagles next Draft in 2012 and let COach AR visit Hawaaii since he wears those damn ugly Hawaaiin shirts every Draft Day which I think brings the team bad luck…
vr – as of right now? Really? You’re ignoring the wisdom of needing time to evaluate a draft pick just for your ego boost of the day? Ok man, whatever
VR’s statements are premature, even ask his girl…
This is simply UNACCEPTABLE. To draft a guard in the first round and he cant start? He looks terrible. Guard and DT are probably the easiest positions to come in and play. A 1str round pick shouldnt need much to be able to play GUARD. His technique sucks, hes not strong enough? WTF was he good at? To be picked in 1st round as a guard you better be DOMINATE. Especially when you had highly rated players such as Tackles on the board. Brandon Graham stinks, Allen stinks and Im not seeing anything out of Jarrett thus far eithier but I will give him some time.
I said AS OF NOW he looks like a bad pick according to this article You guys are being too naive. Schiller cmon man I cant brag yet its too early to tell if he is a bust but if I dont stroke my ego a bit who will? lol
wmonell wow you had to bring my girl in this? its not that serious man.
dag – thanks for the laughs. Do you find many things in life UNACCEPTABLE? that’s my suspicion….
Shiller I have a simply philosophy. If you draft a Earl Thomas, Gabe Carini or a Jerome McDougal who was highly rated and they are bust that is acceptable. But If you friggin reach when there are other highly regarded players on the board and they are busts that is UNACCEPTABE and you have to explain that draft philosophy.
dagg – your use of the names is vague. Gabe Carimi at this point = Danny Watkins. Different teams, different speculation maybe, but they were both highly rated and many sources said that danny Watkins was more NFL ready. Also, many (if not all) said that Carimi is ill-suited for Andy Reid’s offense – that his weekness is pass protection. I just don’t understand how you regard certain players as ‘concensus’ studs and others not when there’s nothing to back it up but your opinion. What is the ‘reaching’ you speak of? Do you put a ton of stock into mock drafts like Songs?
Let’s see how much Watkins progresses from year 1 to year 2 before we bury him and call him a bust. Really unfair, and very naive.Kelce might be special.
Well thank goodness the rookie 6th round pick Kelce isnt overwhelmed.
Not to be the bearer of more bad news for Cowboys FAns
Top Draft Pick and Starting RT Tryon Smith injured his knee and is having an MRI to determine how severe.. Eagl Fans think the Eagles OL is a work on Progreess. Check the Cowboys out.. 4 New Players with 2 Rookies and now their RT may have to be covered with an endrafted player named Jeremy Parnell
Aslo Starting CB M Jenkins also injured his knee and Cowboys officials are expecting the worse with Jenkins about a poosible ACL Tear.. Jenkins injured his neck and played in zero Pre-Seaons games and has hardly practiced at all this SUmmer Camp
CB Orlando Scandrick was arrested for failing to pay alimony.. Just another distraction for Jerry Jones and his Cowboys and it couldn’t happen to nice folks…
I told you guys, Those Ohio Boys not only klnow how to play football, but they are mature beyond their years… (T Cole,B Celek, K Coleman, B Rolle, J Kelce) to give you a few examples..
Sarcasm vr,, it’s all light-hearted.
I got your attention though with my point, so it worked
Whether or not this is the right decision aside, when your first round pick rides the bench his first season and he’s 22 years old, that’s one thing. When your first round pick is 26 – which is pretty much a football player’s prime – and isn’t starting, the front office looks mighty dumb.
No doubt the Eagles have hit on a few gems in the past few years (Jackson, Maclin, McCoy) but they’ve got more quantity out their drafts recently than quality. Just because they draft starters doesn’t necessarily mean they’ve drafted well. Stockpiling sixth and seventh rounds picks isn’t the way to go about building a championship team.
I have not given up on Watkins. Once he gets stronger and learns how to pass block and run block he should be just fine. It overwhelming for him right now. He has had less time than any other rookie in the NFL.
Chester, one game is not a season. They actually stockpile 2s 3s 4s and 5s too if you’re paying attention…
If as G says Watkins doesn’t have quick feet or good body control what the hell were the Eagles watching in the combines and in his college games
I would think they would be able to see flaws like that
cmon schiller, even you must see a serious red flag raised by reid in benching the annointed one on a wednesday before the first game, this is a problem, with reverberating effects, this player should be well ahead of kelce by his draft status, pure and simple, looks like another mistake at this pont in time
jakedog – I’ve posted numerous times that there are very few draft picks made during AR’s tenure, which in NFL terms is incredibly long, that play or played ABOVE expectations.
They take stupid draft risks that very rarely pan out but as we all know, AR is incapable of conforming to conventional wisdom on anything. He’s a gambler much like Favre.
Struck gold one year, for AR as an assistant, and statistically good for the remainder of their career with impressive numbers. Favre threw INTs at key moments, AR now starts rookies in key positions including both kickers, calls onsides kicks to start a game, deep TD plays to start a season, brings in Owens, moves OL coaches to DC, goes in to a season w/o return kickers, trades away 1st round picks, brings in Vick… Vick is now, but wasn’t at the time, an obviously huge score. It’s not the outcome of the gambles I’m highlighting, it’s the propensity to gamble which also brings big downsides too.
Well, maybetheycan, by your post maybetheycant, as much as I wanted to stay positive about this season, this most recent move makes me think like yonder that this is the same Andy, clueless about traditional football methodology that wins championships, poor drafting, which makes me think all the other problems with him as a coach will come out, poor game plan, poor clock management, and poor adjustments, same result, no championship
jakedog – I see the move of replacing Watkins with DeVan as promissing. I applaud AR for acknowledging that his top draft pick isn’t yet ready to start and I see no shame in that. Watkins simply hasn’t had enough time to get there. Today, I’m not concerned when he’ll be ready. I’d like to think he’ll get there in his time and hopefully, DeVan bought the team the time needed. Can’t moan and groan about Kelce being ready before Watkins. Every player is different and some trains take a while to get a good head of steam. So, on this point, lets take a deep breath and be happy that AR took a step towards better protection for Vick.
Its a roster move that needed to be made…its that fuc#n simple. Stop bigging it up and laying all this shit about his coaching downfalls on the table like its end of the season.
Devan is a upgrade yes,they no more more about talent then we do…they get paid for that sh!T.
It makes the offense a little more runbased ,no…new rg who is a nice run blocker.Thats a bonus.
Talent wise Watkins has it…ill bring up that i said so, like some of you “i recall saying so cats” on a later date.Hes a stout gaurd with great strenght…footwork is learned and he needs to get the checks down.
He’s not a bust…anyone calling him or Graham that are FUGGIN DOPES who need to go back to school for x’ and o’s and knowing how to judge a player.Suppose we did draft another guy..Watkins would do this somewhere else…no..yes..a weaker team would tell him to just play through tthe learning curve. And he bust his ass even harder to get better.
Age b.s. is dumb…he can and will play till hes 36-37…
Experience is b.s. too…extreme example of just being talented enough to play on this level..Antonio Gates…
Erock – Couldn’t agree more on your points except experience and a comparing to Gates. Talent and experience are not the same or interchangable and you can’t cherry pick an extreme example, as you called it, and set it as the standard. If so, we should see a whole lot more Tom Brady 6th rounders floating around the NFL.
Guys….check out Andy qoutes.
Reid said Wednesday Watkins’ struggles shouldn’t be that surprising, considering he’s playing a new position, he didn’t have OTAs or minicamps, he’s only been playing organized football for four years and he missed the first week of training camp in a contract impasse.
“When you move from the college to the pros, that’s a big deal,” Reid said. “When you move from tackle to guard that’s another tough deal. And, when you move from the left side to the right that’s another tough deal. Then you add on to it missing part of camp. So he’s been playing a catch-up game all the way through.”
If Andy know it’s tough transitioning guys from their natural position…
Why chance this with your first round pick?
If Andy wanted a right Gaurd..he should have targeted the best Right Gaurd in college and drafted him. You can really find good gaurds in the 3rd round..why use a 1st round pick and damage his psyce by moving him around ?
He’s almost 30 for God’s sake!!!!!
Andy assumed Watkins could play out of position when scouting him.
That’s the problem.
no jakedog, I do not see it as a redflag at all. A red flag means danger up ahead, not a slight roadbump. Is it that pessimist Eagles fans see any sign of uncertainty whatsoever as a bad thing/a problem/ something to work about? Life is full of uncertainty! If you treat every reminder of that as a redflag, well heck, I hope you see your cardiologist regularly. If he gets up to speed and gets in his groove, this could be forgotten entirely. McNabb was benched and then came back and played real good. It’s so minor but yet so many want to treat it as a big deal.
Songs, you sir have once again made me laugh, and proven that you’re a fool. ANDY DID GO OUT AND GET THE BEST RIGHT GUARD IN COLLEGE! HIS NAME WAS DANNY WATKINS! HE WAS HANDS DOWN RATED AS THE BEST INTERIOR LINEMAN IN THE ENTIRE DRAFT. PERIOD. This is a prime example of how you often put your foot in your mouth. You get so stuck in your own head. Your fantasy alternative realities where ‘what if’ or “should have….” that you lose touch with DID and IS. The Eagles drafted the best interior lineman in college and he isn’t going to start game one of his NFL career. That is SO SO minor in terms of a player’s career and for you not to understand that is startling. If you were to get hired for a job, and then right before your startdate your boss realized that there’s a mandatory orientation/education that you hadn’t yet discussed, and they postponed your start date until you had completed the course. Would you then say “Uhp, there goes my career. Never should’ve went into this field in the first place, I’m just not cut out..”
HELL NO FOOL
WAKE UP TO REALITY. EAGLES FOOTBALL FOR REAL ON SUNDAY! and here you are worring about what if/shoulda coulda woulda about something that you think went south but it hasn’t left the start point yet. It’s like you did some laudry, but your favorite shirt isn’t dry when the rest of your clothes are. So you put on your 2nd favorite one, then get ready to leave the house and you think, boy, I really blew that!
Go find your balls wherever you hid them and stop being an unstable sissy.
1st Round Draft Picks get paid a ton of money right away, to play right away. Period.
Not learn and HOPE they get better.
You can’t have it both ways. If Desean has over performed, then when a 1st rounder can’t start he’s underperforming.
Watkins was touted as the one offensive lineman most ready to start right now!
NBC SPORTS . COM
The Philadelphia Eagles selected Baylor offensive lineman Danny Watkins with the 23rd pick in the 2011 draft.
Watkins was a left tackle at Baylor, succeeding former No. 2 pick in the draft Jason Smith. A 26-year-old former firefighter, rugby and hockey player from Canada, Watkins made first-team All-Big 12 as a senior, despite it being just his fourth season of organized football.
Watkins was particularly impressive at the Senior Bowl, where his stock soared. He projects as a guard in the pros, and will block for LeSean McCoy in Philadelphia.
This is a bit higher than most had Watkins projected, but right guard is an area of need for the Eagles and the prospect they selected is NFL ready.
In January, NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock described Watkins as “one of the nastiest players in the country.”
Now some journeyman is protecting Mike Vick. This is as funny as the first play of the Greenbay game that the Eagles had 2 weeks to prepare for.
Would’nt it have been easier to just draft the best right guard?
Always trying to outsmart everybody.
BSM – see below – Ol get moved around all the time from college to pros, and many if not most didn’t only play one spot on the line in the NFL. Look at this year’s first round OL drafted (and notice they’re listed on sites as OL, not R this or L that). Most of them got moved around now in the NFL. That’s a fact.
AND NE’s pick is a backup – yep, they picked a backup. So you have the same criticism for bill Bilicheat? What about the first OL drafted going to the other side of the line?
oh please songs, reid, garry, and all the media have given SEVERAL reasons why watkins isn’t starting week one. And they start with no otas/rookie camps, new system under mudd, transition to the NFL and lastly (and least), switching sides. You picked the least significant one because that’s what you do – you ignore the bottom line, the gist, the big picture, and you go after something you can criticize cause you’re a hater. But you just don’t get it – it doesn’t work that way in the NFL (in real life). It’s not that simple.
Look at the drafted OL in the first round – first of all, they are listed on draft boards as OL not “right this or left that”. Look it up (I did and started to type it here but lost the field, I’m not doing it over). Many of them if not most, first changed positions in college – shifting all over the line, and then switched from their last/most prominent position in college to a new spot on the line in the NFL. INCLUDING THE FIRST OL DRAFTED BY DALLAS. AND look at New England’s pick – Nate Solder – tight end converted to OL in college. He’s not starting week one! Oh lord, the pats must suck at drafting because they’re not getting immediate dominance out of him! They drafted a backup! You think he’s going to start in front of Matt Light this year at LT? I don’t
So songs, your criticism sounds really weak when it reveals that you don’t know how things work in real life. It is business as usual for NFL teams to put OL from college at different spots along the line. That’s a fact. It happens every year across the league. PERIOD.
bsm you’re comment that they’re expected to play right away – you keep on repeating it but you still haven’t shown any link to what happens in real life. That’s just not true. They were paid big money as part of a flawed system – not because teams wanted to – hence, the system was just changed (REMEMBER?). And if you look at what actually happens in the NFL, some start right away (especially on bad teams) and many don’t. That’s just what ACTUALLY HAPPENS.
Just cause you repeat something and say “PERIOD” after it doesn’t make it true.
Schill, you know what kills me about you & WM, you both defend this bozo no matter what. Some of us have been pointing out how bad this O-Line still is, since the lockout ended, & you did nothing but rip us, label us non-fans & Negative haters. I said they did nothing to better this line, nothing! I was baffled by the Watkins pick & the lack of aggression in FA, on the offensive line, even though it was 1A on the offseason priority list. It quite possibly can be worse than last years line, & that’s saying alot. You have a injury prone, penalty machine, a 2 mediocre journeymen at gaurds, an inexperienced rookie, & a veteran changing positions, who hasn’t played there since his freshmen days in college. If anyone can defend & be positive about that, is absolutely bonkers, & should be put away for societies safety. When Vick gets battered like cake mix, you’ll all come around. BTW, I won’t say I told you so 😉
“When you move from college to the pros,” Reid said of Watkins, “that’s a tough deal. When you move from tackle to guard, that’s another tough deal. And when you move from the left side to the right side, that’s another tough deal. Then you add on to it missing part of camp. So he’s been playing a catch-up game all the way through.”
Andy Reid
The question is, why all the moves?
Just draft a right guard next time. Oh that’s right. Your the only one left to fire. There won’t be a next time.
Excellent, BSM! Couldn’t have put it better. But you’ll be ripped & labled by the opinion nazi’s. Wait & see!
DD – and BSM – usually in college, the worst OL on the team is the Right guard – not the QB’s blindside, not skilled for quick Des… that’s where you stash your weakest OL. So your philosophy – while well intended, would result in drafting bad football players. Most Ol coming out of college to the NFL weren’t RGs.
Look it up.
See, again, this is you guys sitting here thinking you know more about coachign and drafting then the NFL coaches. It’s just not just Reid. I’m not defending anyone, I’m showing you how your points are misguided. I’m sharing something I’ve learned from being a football fan for years.
Most talented Ol out of college were tackles or LGuards. Period. And most of them get moved to a different spot on the line in the NFL. That’s the truth, not defending anybody or anything.
DD – you claim that WM and I keep defending Reid and co – that’s not the case. I won’t defend the run/pass ratio. I won’t defend the clock managment (though i will point out that the criticism is overblown – they really haven’t lost many games at all if more than 1, for that reason).
But why do YOU and BSM and SONGS CONSTANTLY ATTACK THE FO? Tell me that? That’s why we call you haters – you attack, attack, attack, without even thinking.