On Eagle signings, the draft and a cold future

By Os Davis  |   Wednesday, April 26, 2006  |  Comments( 0 )

Philadelphia Eagles
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article!
To paraphrase the well-worn saw, prognosticating the NFL draft is about 10% inspiration and 90% confusion. No doubt some Ph.D. candidate somewhere has calculated, via heavy application of chaos theory and quantum mechanics, the number of permutations possible in the draft order. And while some choices appear to be obvious locks – A.J. Hawk to Green Bay, the best available QB to Oakland – followers of several other squads might as well draw ping pong balls. The Philadelphia Eagles are one such team.

Common wisdom (or at least common estimation) and actual evidence appear to clash when we slash through the tangle of odds and attitudes and scouting reports; unless, we are willing to admit the inevitable conclusion involving a bleak near-future for the Eagles, of course.

Case in point is the recent signing of defensive tackle Ed Jasper. The eight-year veteran was originally drafted by the Eagles back in 1997 and remains in decent form, bagging twenty-four tackles for the Oakland Raiders in 2005. With the signing came the announcement that Jasper would be playing in rotation. Said rotation potentially already includes old-timers Paul Grasmanis and Hollis Thomas as well as last year's first rounder Mike Patterson and fellow 2005 draft pick Keyonta Marshall. The rotation is rounded out by solid veterans Darwin Walker and Sam Rayburn.

Nevertheless, an overwhelming number of words have been devoted to the fact that the Eagle braintrust is gaga over Oregon DT Haloti Ngata. Clearly would it be difficult to pass on Ngata should he still be available at number fourteen, but will a combination of Ngata and Patterson work, given their diametrically opposed styles of play? If Ngata comes aboard, heads will roll from this spot on the roster. Or Philly's just grabbing for extra deep depth.

Then there's Shawn Barber, a guy who will no doubt benefit from hindsight in telling the Eagles' brass he shouldn't have been let go three years ago. The Barber signing was an excellent move by Philly, as the linebacker corps that started Dhani Jones and Keith Adams was a deadly weakness last season outside of all-star MLB Jeremiah Trotter. Barber will join Matt "Bones" McCoy and Mark Simoneau on the weak side.

Right, then. It's a strong-side linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round – looks like Chad Greenway, right? A great choice at number fourteen, Greenway will fit right in to the Eagles defensive scheme, but the odds of the Iowa linebacker making it this far down the board are not high. The fear in the hearts of Philly fanatics here is that their decision makers jump at Ernie Sims out of Florida State. Sims is currently riding a wave of hype up the mock drafts thanks to fine performances at the scouting combine and may be as talented as he's looking, but the Eagles simply can't take on another weaksider.

How about Winston Justice, another name bandied about among Philly followers? Even if he does somehow get past early possible suitors like the New York Jets, the Eagles would again be looking at a redundancy of talent, what with the Jon Runyan signing his three-year deal.

Should the distinct possibility that all three prospects be gone by number fourteen, Philly may well trade down. Ohio State linebacker Bobby Carpenter could last to the end of the round, and quite a few QB's (Hey! It's Bruce Eugene over here! Pick me! Pick me!) might still be available, a decent idea should Eagle management feel that Jeff Garcia is in fact not the future for the team.

Exactly how all the predictions turn out is up to each individual NFL organization. After applying a few grains of salt, glancing at the Eagles roster, and checking out what is certain to be another season of brutal competition in the NFC East, the cold Pennsylvania winds seem to be whispering "rebuilding coming, rebuilding coming…"
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article! (0)

About Os Davis

Os Davis has taken a twisted route to get to RealFootball365.com in his nearly 17 years in professional writing, working in any number of capacities in the sportswriting, news reporting and film criticism worlds. In print media, Os has served as editor at a few publications, including Albuquerque's...
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report