NFL

I'm going to forgo the typical game recap this time, mainly because I'm tired of writing the usual "our starting lineup wasn't used at all in the 4th quarter", and "we saw way too much of Thad at the 4". I really don't feel like getting into the debate on WHY Dahntay Jones went off on the Sixers, a fact that Eddie Jordan acknowledged post-game without admitting fault that his crazy lineups presented Jones with a huge mismatch on Louis Williams.

Instead, I'm going to focus on what, to me, is even more infuriating than the teams play: the coach's inability to accept responsibility for this mess.

Listening to the post-game press conference, my jaw nearly hit the floor.

He starts it off by lamenting the fact that when the Sixes had the Pacers in the penalty, the Sixers didn't drive to the basket.

"We made some play calls to get the ball in the post and to open it up for drives to the basket, we just didn't do it", Jordan said.

Alright, maybe that was the case, nobody outside of the huddle can really know for sure. That being said, I don't see the need to point out that they called plays for it and it was the players fault for not executing, outside of trying to absolve yourself from blame. A simple "we needed to do a better job of being aggressive when they were in the penalty" would have sufficed.

Of course, had that been all Jordan said it wouldn't have garnered a post, and probably not even a mention. That was fairly tame in the world of the Eddie Jordan blame game, but it was only the beginning.

Heading into the draft, I really wanted Knowshon Moreno or Brandon Pettigrew. I'm not in love with any of the RB's or TE's after them, and the Eagles really, really needed to come away with depth at bot of those positions.

My first reaction to the drafting of Maclin was that, despite his talent, he's another smallish receiver who may not fit the Eagles need, doesn't address the lack of depth at the previously mentioned positions, and isn't the type of receiver to help the Eagles in their disastrous red zone attack.

After some reflection, I'm nearly giddy.

Maclin isn't necessarily the prototypical wide receiver to start next to DeSean Jackson, but he is a world class talent who very well could develop into a #1 option. And while I mentioned his size earlier, he's certainly not undersized at 6', 200 lbs.

What impresses me more than his phyiscal gifts, and he's as fast and as quick as any wideout available, is the head on his shoulders. By all accounts, he is said to be a hard worker. Any route running concerns he may have heading into the draft should be long forgotten in short time.

With Jackson and Maclin stretching defenses, it should open up the middle for Celek, Westbrook, and any other tight end the Eagles add, including 5th round draft pick Cornelius Ingram.

In fact, I would be absolutely stunned if Maclin isn't in the Eagles top 3 wideout rotation by midway through the season. With Maclin, and the trading for Peters and Ellis Hobbs, the Eagles walked out of the draft with 3 sure-fire contributors, including a former pro-bowler (Peters), and a potential future pro-bowler in Maclin.

That's a very good day.

I'm not as in love with LaSean McCoy as others, as I don't think he has the top speed to turn the corner in the pro's, but he should at the least be a competent backup. I'm extremely happy with the selection of Ingram in the 5th, as if he can stay healthy, he has the tools to be a player with a few years of seasoning.

In all, they addressed the offensive line, adding a potential stud at wide receiver, got depth at tight end, and improved their cornerback depth, which is a need regardless of the Sheldon Brown situation. In all, a solid A- draft.

Former Eagles running back Ryan Moats was pulled over after running a red light on his way to visit his mother in law, who was given minutes to live. After explaining the situation, the police officer went on to hold Moats up for 16 minutes, not missing any chance to give him a lecture. Moats mother in law passed away while he was in the parking lot.

The Police Officer has since been placed on administrative leave, and Moats tickets removed.

Video of altercation.

Police Cheif Apology.

Andy Reid, silent on the issue for 3 weeks since Brian Dawkins signed with the Denver Broncos, sat down with Dave Spadaro of PhiladelphiaEagles.com and discussed the departure of the former Eagle in his State of the Team address.

Nothing absolutely profound was stated, and he praised Dawkins highly. It just simply amazes me that Reid has refused to speak to the media about this issue, and his only statement comes from an Eagles employee. Not that the Eagles shouldn't be able to promote themselves, but it shouldn't come in place of dealing with non-paid members of the media. Take this for what it is, and that's not an interview, but Press Release from the team.

Tra Thomas has signed a 3 year deal with Jacksonville, according to Thomas's agent Peter Schaffer.

While I'm not too torn up over the loss of Thomas, who I think was beginning to show serious signs of decline in the second half of the season (well before the Championship Game debacle), particularly in the running game, having this much youth and uncertainty on your line (particularly with unknowns at your tackle position) is big. Any time the blindside OT changes it's a serious cause for concern, and Tra did have a good year in pass-protection.

The Eagles have found Brian Dawkins replacement, coming to terms on a 1 year deal with free agent Safety Sean Jones, formerly of the Cleveland Brians. Jones missed 4 games at the beginning of the following year due to surgery on his right knee, although he came on strong at the end, contributing 4 interceptions in his last 6 games.

Jones has been a ballhawk in the NFL, intercepting 14 passes in 4 years.

This is a good deal for both sides. This gives Jones a chance to come back and prove he's fully recovered from his injury while playing in a defensive scheme that can showcase him. It also gives the Eagles a good starter at safety, and another year to evaluate Demps.

Eagles left tackle Tra (or William, I lost track) has left Jacksonville without a contract offer. In fact, he reportedly never stepped foot inside the clubs facilities.

The Eagles interest in bringing back Thomas doesn't appear to be very high, although they could be trying to let the market set itself and then hoping Thomas gives them the opportunity to match na offer.

According to Dave Spadaro of PhiladelphiaEagles.com, Shawn Springs will be in town for a visit tomorrow. It's unclear whether the soon-to-be 34 year old will be looked at as a cornerback (prompting either Sheldon Brown moving to Safety or an overcrowded cornerback rotaion) or moved to safety, where he has played snaps in the past.

I would find this move surprising. While Springs was a quality player, it would be an odd decision to replace a 36 year old free safety coming off an injury free year with a 34 year old corner who has missed 14 games in the past 3 years.

Upgrade over Lito because he gets injured. Don't bring back Dawkins because of his age. Then go out and sign an old, oft-injured player?

Doesn't seem to be the most logical direction to me. Will be interesting to see where this goes. Unless it's at a bargain, I don't necessarily like the idea.

I haven't been able to post on this for the past few days hoping that my emotions will die down and I can look at this logically and rationally.

If you haven't yet heard (and I can't imagine how you haven't), Brian Dawkins has signed a 5 year, $17 million deal with the Denver Broncos. The contract has $7.2 million in guaranteed money, with another $1.8 million if voided after two years. Obviously, there's very little chance Dawkins will see the final 3 years. Essentially it's a 2 year, $9 million deal.

This one hurts.

This one hurts more than Barkley or Iverson, guys who basically forced themselves out of town. Or Schilling or Rolen, who were so disgruntled with management you knew it was coming.

You'd have to go back to 1993 when Reggie White bolted for the "greener" pastures of Green Bay to find a departure that hurt so much.

It's not just what he brought on the field. I can see football reasons for letting him go. Granted, I could see the argument more if we had spent the resources to have a legitimate starting-level safety groomed in the wings behind Dawkins. I don't think Demps is it, and I think we waited too long to address the situation. I could see ushering Dawkins out the door for a younger replacement if he were a liability and we already had the replacement in tow.

While I can acknowledge that Dawkins had to be "hid" in coverage, to the point of playing more of a Strong Safety or even outside linebacker role, he was still a valuable contributor. Anyybody who witnessed the last 1/3rd of the season could readily see this. He wasn't just fitting in on a defense playing well. He was leading a defense playing superb football. He wasn't hanging along for the ride, he was a catalyst.

Obviously, the team felt Dawkins was still a valuable contributor, as they reportedly offered him a 2 year deal for less guaranteed money. In the end, this came down to money.

The Eagles had a reported $40+ million in cap space heading into free agency, a number Banner has said we would be unlikely to use all of. That, combined with the possibility of next year being in uncapped year, it would be hard to imagine they couldn't have found a way to fit in the couple million to match Denver's offer.

But this goes beyond that. The Eagles, by and large, have been correct in their assessment of when to move on from players. I truly believe this is a situation where even if they're right, they're wrong. They didn't just lose a productive player who has built a hall of fame resume. They also lost a great teammate, a great leader, and a great member of the community.

There aren't many people who you let go out their terms. Brian Dawkins is one of the select few. This should have been resolved before Dawkins hit free agency. If this were a football decision, one where they felt he could no longer be productive and they had his heir apparent waiting in the wings, I could (begrudgingly) live with this. But as it comes out more and more that the Eagles were interested in bringing him back, the fact that we saved a few million offers me no solace. If every dime of the Eagles cap isn't used up this year, the fans aren't going to tolerate this move.

The thought of Brian Dawkins coming back to the Linc in a Broncos uniform next year is a hard one to swallow. Enjoy the caliber of man you're getting, Denver. He's the type of leader who can never set foot on the field and still make your team better.

Even if the Eagles don't feel the loss of Dawkins on the football field, the fans will be reeling from this development for many months to come. Never has there been a player who epitomizes the city and whom the fans can relate to more than #20. We, as Eagles fans, thank you for 13 years of incredible play, leadership, and off the field work. We couldn't have asked for more.

Just a sad, sad day for Eagles fans.

Of the videos below, one thing that was apparent (other than how obviously hard it was on Dawkins during the Derrick Gunn interview) was the Denver reporters repeatedly trying to bait him into taking shots on the Eagles and Philadelphia fans, and Dawkins shooting that down right away. Maybe Dawkins went for the money (and, at 35, I can't really blame him). Maybe he felt insulted by a lowball initial offer. I don't know. But I do find it obvious that he loved this town, team and fans.

Videos

Dawkins breaks down in interview with Derrick Gunn:



Denver Press conference pt. 1:



Denver Press conference pt. 2:

I have also heard from multiple places that the Eagles are interested in Patriots Free Safety James Sanders should Dawkins need to be replaced. With all the conflicting reports about the Dawkins situation it's hard to really get a feel on where this is going, but Sanders is a capable replacement (at 25 years of age) should Dawkins leave. Will be interesting to see the situation unfold.

Yesterday it was reported that Lito Sheppard was visiting the Jets in preparation for a trade. I've heard from multiple places that a deal is in place which would give the Eagles a 5th round pick in 2009, and a conditional pick in 2010, that could be anywhere from a 2nd to a 4th dependent on playing time. If true, I think this is absolutely the most you could expect for Lito and a great trade. With Lito basically being jettisoned from the team at the end of last year, I had minimal expectations about a potential deal.

According to this article, the Eagles lost out on offensive lineman Jason Brown because they didn't start communicating before the deadline.

"The Eagles showed some really strong interest in Jason, but we had no inkling until midnight passed," Lewis said. "Who knows? Maybe if they'd have called first, they'd have had the first chance to talk. Jason is not the kind of guy who wants to take a tour."

Free Agency starts at 12:01 am.

610 WIP is reporting that Giants RB Derrick Ward will be visiting the Eagles. The 29 year old Ward rushed for 1025 yards on 5.6 yards per carry on the Giants, and would be brought in to back up Brian Westbrook.

PhiladelphiaEagles.com is reporting that Stacy Andrews is visiting the NovaCare complex, and is scheduled to meet with the media tomorrow at 11:30 am. ProFootballTalk is reporting the Eagles have agreed to a multi-year deal averaging $7 million per season.

Stacy is the brother of Eagles lineman Shawn Andrews.