I wouldn’t mind adding a redzone threat as that clearly is something the Eagles have been lacking in recent years. The current receiving core is great on long to medium passing plays but when inside the 10 yard line its size that matters not so much quickness and this offense could clearly use a big tall receiver to just throw the ball up to in the corner of the endzone.
One free agent that immediately comes to mind that could fill this void is Plaxico Burress. Burress was linked to the Eagles last year from the moment he stepped out of jail wearing a Phillies cap. He most likely wouldn’t demand a high price and for a 1 year deal I’d take him. He finished 2011 with 612 yards and 8 touchdowns more than DeSean and Jeremy Maclin. Now that he has a year under his belt to remove the rust and proved he’s not out to cause any trouble it might be worth it to bring him in for a redzone presence next season.
As I stated earlier a lot will depend on the outcome of the DeSean Jackson free agency and if he does in fact land elsewhere for 2012 certainly the Eagles will need to make up his yardage and deep threat with another big time wide receiver. Lucky for them the free agent receiving class this offseason is fairly deep and for the right price the Eagles have an opportunity to land someone to fill the void left by DeSean.
The top free agent wide receiver I’d target is San Diego’s Vincent Jackson. Jackson is only 29 years of age 6-5 and 230 pounds. He’s broken a thousand yards receiving in 3 of the past 4 seasons and finished with at least 9 touchdowns in each of those seasons all while being disgruntled and angry about being a San Diego Charger.
Mike Vick is a polarizing figure and guys around the league want to play with him. Jackson is hungry for a new start and Mike Vick is one of the best marketing tools the Eagles have when trying to lure top wide receivers to the Linc and if DeSean walks then replacing one Jackson with another may not be a bad option.
Dwayne Bowe is another receiver the Eagles may want to look at if DeSean walks. Bowe has now been in the league for 5 seasons with Kansas City finishing with over 1,000 yards 3 out of the 5 seasons and posting 15 touchdowns just two seasons ago while finishing with 5 last season. Bowe is 6-2, 221 pounds and only 27 years of age. It appears as if he’s entering his prime right now and with the right quarterback and offensive scheme he could post some huge numbers in the next few seasons.
Marques Colston is another big name on the free agent wide receiver list that the Eagles could target. Colston is 28 years of age, 6-4 225 pounds and has local ties to PA as he’s from Harrisburg. Since entering the league in 2006 out of Hofstra he’s put up over a thousand yards every season except 2008. His career high for TD’s in a season is 11 back in 2007 and he finished with 8 last season while missing time due to a broken collar bone. So far in his career he’s had no less than 5 touchdowns in a season.
Colston also has the benefit of playing with pass happy Drew Brees in New Orleans but with all the weapons Brees has on the Saints offense Colston has proven he can be the standout receiver among a crowded and talented group of wide outs.
All of these guys provide a major upgrade in size compared to DeSean but still can’t match the game breaking speed he possesses.
I’ve been saying since we were still in season. DJax is bye-bye. Sign VJax or Dwayne Bowe. In that order! I want no parts of Plaxico. Bowe will cost less than VJax, who will break the bank. With the new CBA, I believe neither can be franchised either, because they were prior. I could be wrong. Can someone validate?
Colston is a good receiver, but he is injury prone & is more a possession receiver. All three would be upgrades over DJax, since they are complete receivers & the are the Red zone targets, we haven’t had since TO. If Maclin is in complete good health, which shouldn’t be a problem, he is a down field receiver & one of the other three can be the YAC/ possession/ red zone targets that we need.
Vincent Jackson…get him
V-Jax is bad news and too much off-the field baggae, Eagles will not pursue him at all.. I have a hard time believing the Chiefs don’t keep/franchise Bowe
and the same thing with the Saints keeping Colston and the Pats keeping Welker for I don’t believe their QB’s will allow it to happen…
I do however, would like the EAgles to pursue a Robert Meachem, Steve Johnson and even check the health of Braylon Edwards who if healthy,could be had for cheap and have a lot to play for.. Even the Cowboys Laurent Robinson or COlts Peirre Garcon would be great pick-ups and again, not at crazy $$$ the big names would command.. I would go after one of these 2nd TIer WR and draft a Joe Adams/JAruis Wright from Arkansas and forget about D-Jax all together.. but that’s just me.
Desean is gone. I think that’s a given. I would avoid the free agents mentioned. Get a guy in the draft. Free agent WRs coming into a complicated offence going to take at least a half season to get comfortable. Won’t pay dividends till following season and by then Birds will be training a new QB.
Besides, the list of free agents isn’t inspiring.
Vjax too much baggage for sure.
Steve Johnson is another me first guy that I don’t not want on the Birds.
Braylon Edwards? It was annoying anough watching Desean drop catchable balls all year, I don’t want to go through all that again.
I worry about the one year wonder Robinson who’s been on 3 teams in 5 years He might now be “maturing” but I think there’s more of a chance that he was “playing for a contract” (would have been nice to have had the same from Desean)
Perhaps Meachem, but you’ve got to wonder why a guy with all his “talent” continues to put up relatively mediocre numbers on the pass crazy Saints. Still, he is fast.
Garcon. Don’t we already have him in Maclin?
about the O-
if i had to run it today, i would tag Djax. after that, i would (as i say every year) hire the guy that ran that llittle 3 headed attack with Vick and dunn back in ATL. or.. at the very least… figure out what they did and try to do some of it. I know shady had a great season and i would like to build off of that. How amazing would it be if you watched our O line up and run it down a D’s throats knowing there was nothing they could do to stop it. Im not talking about a new Ocord… just afew packages. think of the play action possibilities down field with Djax.
anyone that wants to get rid of DeSean is not too bright, and lacking vital football knowledge. The Arizona game was telling, more than some would want to admit, and it cost us a chance for the playoffs…Stupid to send him home…Stupid to let him walk. I’m not comparing him to any of the free agent receivers, because they all all have arguable circumstances that make them valuable Colston, V. Jackson, and Meachem have Brees, and Rivers. That may be different when they play with Vick. Bowe, benefited because there really wasn’t much talent on KC’s receiving core, and I don’t think he is better than DeSean in terms of impact. Some will argue that point, but thats just your opinion…though it’s respected, it really isn’t realistic. Besides all those guys, except for VJackson will sign with their current teams.
Paul, I believe KC can’t franchise Bowe again due to the new CBA. Same goes for VJax. Can you confirm, one way or the other?
I know V-Jax cannot be and Chargers really have no interest in retaining him
GM Smith will not deal with V-JAx any longer..
I don’t believe Bowe was Franchised before, and think his rookie deal was up last season and he was one of those players who were stuck and couldn’t apply for Free-Agency..I could very well be wrong on this though..
On WR Robert Meachem pedestrian stats, you have to remember that he is only on the field for 35-40 snaps a geame since the Saints spread the ball out to many weapons like Colston,Devry Henderson,Lewis Moore, TE Graham and RB Sproles out of the backfield. The fact that he’s still fresh and not beat up is one of the things that I like about him.. Give me 3-4 WR’s with 50-60 Catches each and thats a pretty hard Offense to stop..
here is the deal with guys like asam and jax. they are hired hands. everyone knows they play for the name on the back, not on the front. I think you can have 1 or 2 of those guys on the team if you have leaders around to put them in their place. We didnt have that… we dont have that. Its not a quailty i see in vick. or in really ano of them. who are our leaders? Peters? id like to think herm is but idk. I think this was a HUGE prob this year. Im not moving on from Djax until a serious upgrade joins our team. I honestly think he may be the best fit for what we are trying to do.
so I’m supposed to read everyone that said reid and castillo would be gone at the end of the year, tell me that d-jax is gone too ?
willlll do.
Howie stays
Reid stays
Juan stays
Johny Lynn goes
and Desean was frozen out of the offense last season until the losses piled up — and he is the problem
eagles0superbowls – who said Desean is the problem? I’ve heard 0 people say that. And what do you mean by frozen out of the offense? He was on the field. He played mediocre.
Schiller —— Mike Mayock on Thursday night football on the NFL channel and the stoogees who spew Eagle propaganda —– Adam Kaplan, Greg Cosell and Howard Eskin
Schiller ——-the Eagles tried to feature Jeremy Maclin in the beginning of the year as the # 1 threat — Jeremy’s body could not handle the pounding and failed in their attempt to be an elite WR
Hey Vinnietheev…. how does this statement make you feel???
“Mike Vick is a polarizing figure and guys around the league want to play with him. Jackson is hungry for a new start and Mike Vick is one of the best marketing tools the Eagles have when trying to lure top wide receivers to the Linc and if DeSean walks then replacing one Jackson with another may not be a bad option.”
Vinnie… do you every have anything positive to say about this team??? The professionals don’t agree with anything you say unless you say it after they’ve already say it. It’s funny how TOP WIDE RECEIVERS want to come to play with Vick but you say shit like “next year they’ll be training a new QB” this is getting ridiculous sir… I fully expect you to go into a coma when the Eagles win a Super bowl with Mike Vick at QB and Andy Reid as Head Coach. I said it before and I’ll say it again… YOU ARE NOT AN EAGLES FAN.
Your negativity is surely depressing…. would you mind going over to the Giants and being the Eagles secret weapon… AKA THE DEPRESSION BOMB.
eagles0superbowls – they said that the main problem with the Eagles football team is Desean? Or do you mean the problem with his contract? Or the renegotiations?
There are far too many idiots around here. Getting rid of DeSean Jackson is the stupidest strategy any NFL team could dream up. 13 years with no Superbowl…well maybe the Eagles could be the team to make that mistake. I’ve said before and I’ll say it again while DeSean Jackson is clearly within reach of being an elite NFL WR where Maclin never will be. The Eagles need a big red zone receiver to pair up with Jackson and Vincent Jackson is the best option to fill that role. I’m tired of the team looking for red zone WRs that are essentially “Role Players” while I liked the idea of the team getting Maclin I never really saw him as the kind of guy that complimented DJax well to begin with and I’ve never viewed him as not being expendable. I tend to think you could play Riley Cooper opposite DeSean Jackson and he would get similar numbers which is good, but not great.
I am a DJax fan Butch, but you also have to admit that he is one concussion away from never playing again. There is a reason why there are so few players of his size in the league…it is a physical game.
I wish that the FO had extended him during the season..I believe it greatly affected his play. But you have to admit that there is a good reason to be cautious in signing him to a big $$ deal.
Without DJax, our current recieving corp will not be anywhere near the production they get with him in the game stretching the field. I want him on the team, but can understand why they may have reservations.
Greenfan he was 165 pounds in college He was 165 pounds when he went to all them pro bowls. Why the f%$k draft him in the first place if your worried about his size. lol What the hell has Maclin ever done? Im still trying to think of a game he dominated.lol. He looks for the first patch of soft grass to lay down on. He is avg at best. Cant ever remember hearing teams talk about stopping him.
Fans: “Eagles need a WR, Eagles need a WR”
Eagles: “Let’s draft 2 WRs”
Fans: “Let one of those WRs leave !!!”
guys, they want Djax here…. they know what he gives. lets just hope they can come to an understanding. Clearly- Djax is not fitz. if he thinks he is… we go nowhere.
thanks captain obvious…I can read a scale too. There is no other player in the league that weighs under 170, go check the rosters.
If you read my post, which I doubt you did, I said that I want DJax back. Do you lack basic comprehension skills also dag??
dag…not to point out the obvious also…but he didn’t go to a pro-bowl this year….like it or not, DJax is not a sure thing. There is good reason why the birds are taking their time (I can’t believe I just wrote that praise of the FO)…take a chill
I am willing to give Maclin the benefit of the the doubt due to his illness most of last off-season where it took him to October to even get his conditioning back and then injured his shoulder/hamstring.. His average season was due to health where D-Jax average season was due to a lack of focus and a poor attitude..Just think how much better he would have been as far as leverage goes, if he went out and had a monter 2011 Season.. He failed to do so, while hurting his own cause.. I have Zero Sympathy for D-Jax, He had the power within him to make a difference and to change his contract situation and whimpered under the pressure and expectations.. He is where he is now, due to his own behavior and lack of focus & maturity in my opinion and I could care less if he stays or goes.. What have the Eagles exactly won with him the last 3-4 Seasons.. That’s right, not much at all…
Lionsden,
1: You clearly don’t understand what “polarizing figure” means.
2: You have also clearly missed how may times I have defended Andy Reid and the FO on this site.
But whatever, as stated before, I totally expect you to read one thing and interpret another. You must have done well in high school.
Oh, and before you go spoutin’ off with the whole Caps Lock, “TOP WIDE RECEIVERS want to come to play with Vick” business…..we should perhaps actually wait and see what WRs are lining up to play here first, don’t you think?
Vinnie baby…. I know what polarizing means… it means people like you who don’t know what they are talking about hate him and the players on the field love and respect him…. those free agents we got last year… came because they wanted to play with Vick. We got the second best corner in the league because in his words he wanted to play with Mike Vick… Those free agents we stock piled all had good value in FA and chose Philly because of the chance at a Super Bowl… Eli specifically was upset with Steve Smith because he left without talking to him. Those are their words not mine.
I know on Planet I Hate Mike Vick it’s hard to give him any credit, but your running out of excuses my friend… cause the league doesn’t agree with you.
Rationally, I think the free agents like Nnamdi, Smith, Jenkins etc. came to the Eagles for money…not for Vick. The political correct statements players make to the media are so obvious…just say its the money and perform up to it and nobody will care.
I think this article was kinda a waste because I see Vincent Jackson staying with the Chargers. He already has said publicly that he wants a long term deal there. Bowe? I would love him in Eagles green but I don’t think he goes anywhere either. The Chiefs know he is such an integral part of their offense i just can’t see them letting him go. Colston stays too I think.I don’t know if I would want the guy anyway since he has some serious knee injuries and plays in such a great offense with a top notch QB that who knows how good he really is.
My recommendation would be to sign Plax if he becomes available and keep Djax. He would be an upgrade over Avant. (Again i dont htink the starting WRs on this team are an issue, how about upgrading the slot if you want more redzone TDs).
If the Eagles know for sure they are not going to ever sign Djax to a long term deal which they know right now but just aren’t telling anyone then you franchise him and trade him before draft day for somebody’s 1st round pick. You draft Jeffery or Floyd (think Blackmon goes way too high for the Birds to have a chance). I could see either of those receivers having a Julio Jones/AJ GReen impact in their first year or atleast something close to it.
If I’m the Eagles I would seriously reach out to the Steelers as well and see if a deal could be made for Antonio Brown. that kid is a beast. Maybe a trade of Djax, Brandon Graham, and Justice for Antonio Brown and a high round pick. Their D is getting old and they could use a player like Graham who fits better and should have been drafted by a 3-4 defense to begin with.
pheages, how can the Eagles trade Djax? He’s not under contract once free agency hits? You’re dreaming – and if the context is dreaming, sure, Antonio Brown is worth dreaming of. But the Steelers would be dumb to trade him for two 1rsts. He’s a keeper, period.
I would think they would place the tag on him if they couldn’t reach a deal before free agency hits in March. No way the FO just lets him walk and says thanks for the memories
Pheags88… you do know that Nnamdi, Smith, and Jenkins all took less money to play with the Eagles right…. besides Jenkins was on the team that beat Vick and the Eagles the year before so why would he leave a very good SB winning team and take less money to come to Philly??? I don’t think money and political correctness were the biggest factors.
Here’s Howie Roseman’s take on it:
“It’s exciting,” Roseman said. “It’s really exciting to put it all together, and we want to see them out here out on the field and get going.”
Roseman said he’s hearing from agents that their players want to be Eagles.
“People want to come to Philadelphia because of the organization, having Coach (Andy) Reid and having a quarterback like Michael (Vick)and the players we have here,” he said. “I think they’re all great selling points. When you talk to agents, people want to come to Philly.”
There I go again…. listening to the talking heads and the experts.
Sorry Pheags88 I forgot to include this part:
Jenkins is the fifth major acquisition for the Eagles, who signed free agent cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha on Friday.
“This is a guy who we didn’t think we’d have the opportunity to acquire,” Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said. “The way things have worked out here in the past few days, when the opportunity came at us, we jumped on it.”
Lionsden did you really just cite some BS statement from the Eagles FO to make a point…really…you are a dope if you believe anything Roseman or the talking heads in the Eagles brass say to the media.
“you do know that Nnamdi, Smith, and Jenkins all took less money to play with the Eagles right”…
Um please tell me where you pull these so called facts out of because I would love to see it. I think the entire NFL knows Nnamdi came here for the money…his market ended up being much smaller than he expected. During those last moments there weren’t even that many teams after him since other teams knew cheaper players with above average quality were out there like Rogers and Joseph. Jets dropped out because they couldn’t afford to give him 12 million when they were already paying Revis crazy money. it was Eagles and the Cowboys, and the Cowboys didn’t have the cap space we did..no secret there. I even rmbr seeing him do an interview on espn after he signed where he actually admitted the money was an essential factor in his decision.
Really steve smith? who else in the NFL was going to pay him 4 million you dope…The giants obviously didn’t offer him that money and didn’t expect anyone else to eitherafter his was coming off major injury which is why they thought he would resign with them for much less but the Eagles surprised everyone. no secret there either.
“Jenkins was on the team that beat Vick and the Eagles the year before so why would he leave a very good SB winning team and take less money to come to Philly” Damn use your brain bro…
Jenkins was an aging player which was coming off an injury, he would of stayed in GB if he was wanted by Gb for the same price. Rmbr he barely contributed in GB making that SB, think he only played like 6 games. The packers thought he was expendable with BJR having a huge post season and knowing they would have to pay big dollar to younger studs that were going to be the future of the team. Dont get me wrong he proved many wrong and was worth the money but again im pretty sure everyone knows he came here for the payday being it was one of the last chances for him to make some serious cash in this time in his career.
Again I could care less if players go somewhere for the money. Its their life not mine. Just saying it was definitely money over Vick that attracted them and players will just not say it was about the money to the media.
Pheags88… you do know that Nnamdi, Smith, and Jenkins all took less money to play with the Eagles right…. besides Jenkins was on the team that beat Vick and the Eagles the year before so why would he leave a very good SB winning team and take less money to come to Philly??? I don’t think money and political correctness were the biggest factors.
“There I go again…. listening to the talking heads and the experts.” Your mistake.
Because of course, you are wrong. As usual. The “want to play with Vick” mythology is BS. (Started, I believe by Bill Barnwell in an article on Grantland)
Quest for Nnamdi..
1) Jets Drop out
2) Cowboys offer 10 million a year
3) Eagles offer 12 million a year.
Sings with Eagles. Clearly because of Vick.
Quest for Jenkins
1) GB don’t offer contract. Jenkins had been very injury prone and they were worried that his big 2010 was just a “pending free agency” rise in production that didn’t mesh with his career averages. Plus, they had 15 free agents to resign, and had to make tough decisions ’cause not everyone can be resigned (something many Birds fans fial to realize)
2) No evidence there were other offers
3) Eagles offer 6 yrs 25 million.
But he came here because of Vick.
Steve Smith
1) Giants say they want himback, but make no formal offers (there’s that whole say one thing (which you eat up) do another thing (which you ignore because its what is said that counts)
2) Eagles offer 2+ million for a guy coming off microfracture surgery. Smith must have been doing backflips (‘cept his knee wouldn;t let him). But he signed because of Vick
All 3 guys signed here because the Eagles’ offered more $$ than anyone else. You go ahead and keep eating the pablum you’re being fed on TV (its Vick Vick Vick!!) whilst ignoring the real reasons those guys came the Philadelphia.
Lol Vinnie I don’t think we agree on much but at least we do on Lionsden. This guy needs a reality check.
So true Pheags.
But hey, I just saw an interview with Peyton Manning. He was asked about his future in the NFL with his neck injury. He said, “I don’t really think about that at all….”
According to Lionsden, because he’s a player I should listen to and believe what is being said Because, of course, Manning can’t possibly be thinking about his injury at all. He just said so!! It must be true!
Even though he probably thinks about his injury every 38 seconds, he said he doesn’t….so we should roll with that.
Roll with what players say, not with want actually happens. Everyone came here because of Vick. They said so! Being offered millions more had nothing to do with it. Nothing to see here. Move along.
I thought Players came to the Philly so they can get called out on GCOBB.Com by the most knowledgeable Sports Fans in the History of the World..
You guys are truly pathetic…
paulman… I think you’re right GCOBB.com does have the most knowledgeable sports fans in the history of the world… After all these are the guys who said Castillo would be canned and after getting that one right well they’re sure to be right about everything else. I think some are predicting that Djax will be gone… well at risk of disagreeing with the almighties…. I will say that Djax won’t be gone even if he doesn’t get the money he wants. I predict that he will be franchised if they can’t reach a salary agreement and kept because this team is very close to winning a super bowl and for the sake of chemistry and continuity that is their best option. Not only will letting DJax go be a bad move business wise, it would hurt the morale of the core players and after this past season I am sure the FO doesn’t want to do anything to mess with the chemistry this team has built.
I know nothing that the experts and players say means anything to you guys because after all of your experiences working in the front office… well… no one know the league better than you guys. It is really true what the rest of the league says about Philly fans… I just never believed it but now that I’ve been introduced to this site and people like Vinnie and Pheags I can’t deny that Philly has some of the worst fans in the league…
Nothing anybody says positive about Andy Reid or about Mike Vick is true to you… You take every opportunity to bash these guys even when current players and coaches praise them. You guys think the entire league is full of shit when it comes to these two. In this very article the author clearly states that players (in this case WR’s) around the league want to play with Mike Vick and I bet you guys think this article is bullshit. The fact that WR’s saying this about Vick should tell you what the league thinks of this guy. I’ve got plenty of links and sources to back up my claims as I always do but it’s useless on here. Unless God himself comes down and tells you guys that Mike Vick is the real deal and Andy knows what he’s doing then you won’t believe it. And then I think you would have to the nerve to say “I’m not to sure that was God… I mean who can’t float on a cloud these days? Besides he said that Mike Vick was a real QB and Andy Reid was a good coach so he can’t be God cause he doesn’t know what he’s talking about!!”
Vinnie… enough with the cynicism already and start learning how to support your team and it’s leaders… all the FA’s had options and money is always going to be a factor but winning and SB’s are also another factor. That shit you posted about Jenkins, Smith, and Nnamdi was total bullshit. When was the last time Philly made these many moves in FA??? when was the last time that these many FA wanted to come to this team?? Regardless, of whether or not you believe the league Mike Vick and Andy Reid are worthy adversaries primed to make a super bowl run. No matter what I show you or pheags or the other cynics… if it says anything positive about this teams leaders you will dismiss it because you know so… even though you get most things wrong. The Castillo prediction is only the most recent…
If they Eagles started taking any of you guy’s advice this team would no longer be worth routing for.
Paulman, hysterical! Lionsden, we all said, that the entire staff NEEDS to be, & SHOULD be fired, not that they will. We all knew that light in the loafers, limp wrist Lurie wasn’t going to can Reid, & when he confirmed it at his press conference, it was all but certain that Castillo was back. BTW, Lionsden you have officially taken the mantle as #1 clueless, delusional, blind apologist, fan on here. I didn’t think Navy & Schiller can be beat. You did it my man! Congratulations! Give the man a cu-pie doll! BTW, players came here because the Birds ill-advisedly through around $$$ like DJax in a Tranny strip club, in the off-season. Not because of Vick. Also there is no way in hell, that they are going to Franchise DJax! He is not worth top 5 $$$, nor will they give that to a cancerous, diva, 160 lb soaking wet, one trick pony receiver! Did you not here the press conference yesterday. If you read between the lines, Reid all but confirmed he is gone. Get your head out of your @$$.