TWIOT: Eagles Postmortem

Protecting Vick is the priority
Photo Credit: Michael Perez/AP Photos
via ESPN.com

Well, another season has passed and another disappointing playoff exit has befallen the Philadelphia Eagles. While this past year was supposed to be nothing more than a rebuilding year, the way the season ended stung just as bad as if there were heightened expectations. With a first round bye at stake, the Birds choked away the infamous Tuesday Night game against the Vikings, a slide that took them through a meaningless regular season finale against the Cowboys and a stinging home exit in the wild card round to the Green Bay Packers. While this team is good and will continue to be good, it needs some improvements if it wants to be great. The following will address those improvements position by position.

Offense
Quarterback - The Eagles came into 2010 with question marks under center and came out of it with an unlikely answer. While Kevin Kolb was slated to start the whole year, injuries, inconsistencies and stellar play from his replacement relegated him to the bench. In his stead, Michael Vick made the offense dynamic to the point where it wasn't a question if they'd be able to take down opposing defenses, but how many points were they going to score this week? Vick is a free agent, but I think he wants to play here and I know the front office wants to keep him. Whether it's by franchise tag while an extension is worked out or a flat out extension, I think Vick will – and certainly needs to – be here for the next few years under center.

So whither Kolb? I think he deserves to start somewhere, but that somewhere isn't here. I'd personally trade him to a QB-needy team like the Titans, Bills, Panthers or Raiders for draft picks and then look to the free agent market for an immediate backup. I like someone who is similar to Vick, so the best fit is probably Seneca Wallace. Mike Kafka is the third QB as he was this past season, and he's the QB of the distant future if anything.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - Michael Vick, Seneca Wallace, Mike Kafka

Running Back - The skill position players weren't the problem with the Eagles, so I'm going to gloss over these ones for now. LeSean McCoy is the best player that Peter King thinks you've never heard of, and I think 2011 is a bust out year for him, especially if Marty Morhinweg gets a head coaching job somewhere and Brad Childress comes back as offensive coordinator. Jerome Harrison was nice to have in the backfield, but he's going to command more money than what the Eagles are willing to pay for a backup RB, so he walks. I say go with McCoy, special team standout Eldra Buckley, Martell Mallet and a late-round rookie, say a Roy Helu, Jr.

At fullback, as much as Leonard Weaver gave the offense a boost in '09, his injury in '10 didn't really do much to hinder the running game or the offense. I'll take Owen Schmitt at a discount, thanks.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - LeSean McCoy, Roy Helu, Jr. (r), Eldra Buckley, Martell Mallet, Owen Schmitt (FB)

Wide Receiver - Lemme just put it out there, this is the best receiving corps the Eagles have ever had, and they're only getting better. Jason Avant has taken some crap for some drops, but he's still as good a third receiver behind DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin as you could want. Riley Cooper as the fourth option in a spread set is alright by me as well. Sinorice Moss is a nice project at the fifth spot. One request though – dump Chad Hall. The dude reminds me of Reno Mahe, only without the talent. Yeah, he's that bad.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Jason Avant, Riley Cooper, Sinorice Moss

Tight End - No complaints here, although it would have been nice if Brent Celek didn't disappear for stretches during the season. Then again, when you've got a competent QB in Vick who doesn't need to rely on the TE and can hit your stud WRs, well, it's not like we missed production from Celek, who improved his blocking game this year.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - Brent Celek, Clay Harbor, Cornelius Ingram

Offensive Line - I hate making bad puns (OR DO I?), but the offensive line was downright offensive in 2010. Ugh, even healthy, they were a hot mess as a unit. It's amazing that the offense was as prolific with this leaky group up front. I guess it's just a testament to how well Vick has played, but I reiterate, how awesome would the team have been if there was a decent group in front of whomever was the quarterback all year long? It's maddening, really.

The thing is, they really shot themselves in the foot by locking up Jason Peters and especially Winston Justice at the tackle spots. Peters is alright if not worth the money paid to him, but Justice has been a liability all year long. I almost would rather see what we have with King Dunlap there rather than Justice. I guess it depends on the cap hit we'd take when this new CBA comes into effect.

The middle of the offensive line was pretty rank too. Hell, the whole line probably has to be retooled in some way. I think that we should really consider spending our first round pick on an interior lineman. There are a few good ones available. Stefen Wisniewski from Penn State is projected to be there when the Eagles pick. He's the top rated center. Mike Pouncey out of Florida at guard is another intriguing possibility. His brother Mark is a Pro Bowl center for the Steelers. There are also some interesting free agent options available, specifically Logan Mankins and Alan Faneca. I don't know, I just don't want the year to be wasted again because Michael Vick is forced to run for his life three out of every four plays.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - T: Jason Peters, King Dunlap, Danny Watkins (r) G: Logan Mankins, Todd Herremans, Reggie Wells C: Stefen Wisniewski (r), Mike McGlynn LS: Jon Dorenbos

Defense
Defensive Line - What a clusterfuck. Outside of Trent Cole, who remained the only Eagle on the edges who could get sacks on a consistent basis, and Brandon Graham, who may not have gotten sacks but got a ton of pressures and was more disruptive than people might notice for the rookie, the line was wholly ineffective in getting results up front. To add injury to insult, Graham tore his ACL and may not even be ready for 2011 (if there is a 2011 season). There are really big portions of the line that need to be overhauled.

Of the current group, I'd only really want to have Cole, Graham, Antonio Dixon and maybe Ricky Sapp back, with the rider that he's healthy. The thing is, there's no way that we'll be able to lose the albatross that is Mike Patterson's contract. The guy looked fearsome earlier in his career, but he's slowed down in a big way. Not good. Broderick Bunkley is a free agent though, and I'd be more than content to let him walk. Then again, who'd step up to start, given that Sapp would be entering his rookie year and Graham would be shelved? Again, not a whole lot of moves to make at tackle, so I'd be happy with Trevor Laws starting aside Dixon next year. At end though, there needs to be improvement, big time improvement. Ray Edwards is a free agent again, so why not go after him like I wanted them to last year? Mathias Kiwanuka is another option. I don't know, but we need help up front.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - DE: Trent Cole, Ray Edwards, Brandon Graham, Ricky Sapp, Pierre Allen (r) DT: Antonio Dixon, Trevor Laws, Mike Patterson, Jeff Owens

Linebackers - This position has almost never been a priority to the Eagles, and every year, that lack of focus bites us on the ass. This year was no different, as the inability to cover the tight end, stop the run and generate a decent pass rush from the blitz were all big reasons why the defense was a huge liability. Stewart Bradley was an utter failure as a middle linebacker, and anyone who still wants to make excuses for him are doing so because they like the guy. I get it, he's a very likable dude. I wanted him to succeed, but there was only so much overpursuit and being out of position I could take. Jamar Cheney stepped in, and he was a big improvement, but that still leaves liabilities on the outside positions. I don't know about you, but I don't think I can take another year of Ernie Sims and his propensity for 15 yard fouls and blown coverages or Moises Fokou doing anything other than playing special teams.

I'm willing to give Bradley one more shot playing one of the outside spots, but it would have to be the Will position. He can't cover a tight end, even healthy. I have flashbacks to the playoff game against the Giants a few years back where Bradley was getting blown up by Kevin Boss on a regular basis. Kevin Boss. Not a bad tight end, but not a guy who should be made to look like Jason Witten or Antonio Gates. As for the weak side? I say draft a linebacker, and draft him high, like second round. Yeah, I know the Eagles don't do that, but they should. Justin Houston would be a nice fit, but he may not be there when we pick at #22 in the second round. Then again, if there's a Kolb trade that nets us some high draft picks, then by all means, we should take Justin Houston.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - Jamar Cheney, Stewart Bradley, Justin Houston (r), Akeem Jordan, Keenan Clayton, Wayne Daniels (r), Moises Fokou

Secondary - This was probably the strength of the defense, although given the state of the defense, that wasn't much of a compliment. Asante Samuel, as FFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUU-inducing as he can be, played well enough this year, despite his injuries, but the corner position on the other side of the field was a mixed bag all year long, ESPECIALLY after Ellis Hobbs went down with a career-threatening neck injury. That second cornerback position needs addressing, and thank Christ, there's an elite option out there. Nnamdi Asomugha. The disgruntled former Raider is on the market, and luckily for us fans, the Eagles love signing big money corners. Asomugha is the blanket cover corner we need to shut down the top receiver so that balls are thrown more at Samuel. When Samuel's receivers get more targets, he gets more chances for INTs. When he's able to force turnovers, well, that's when the fireworks start. I wouldn't care if Dimitri Patterson was on the roster next year or not, because he kinda sucked as the season wore on. Then again, this was after Hobbs got hurt. I don't know.

I think we're good at safety as long as Nate Allen recovers fully from his knee injury. Allen was a revelation at free safety, giving us what could be a suitable replacement for Brian Dawkins. When an icon leaves, it can be hard to replace him. The Dolphins are still looking for a QB to fill at least one of Dan Marino's shoes. Quintin Mikell deserves a new contract at strong safety. Really, the secondary is pretty much set right now.

Desired 2011 Depth Chart - CB: Nnamdi Asomugha, Asante Samuel, Trevard Lindley, Joselio Hanson S: Nate Allen, Quintin Mikell, Colt Anderson, Kurt Coleman

Special Teams - It's not a well-kept secret that David Akers wants to test the market. While you might not think kicker is an important position, well, try telling that to the half-dozen NFL teams who have to change kickers midseason because of inconsistency. If there has been one constant on this team, it's been that Akers is the kicker and the Eagles have one of the surest kicking games in the league. Don't let that performance in the Green Bay playoff game fool you. Everyone's allowed a bad game, and if the defense didn't royally suck to the point where James Starks (JAMES STARKS?) ran through them like they were Swiss cheese, it wouldn't have come down to Akers' misses costing us the game. The Eagles would be foolish to let him walk.

A good kick returning game would be nice too, although punts are covered with DeSean Jackson as a threat to take one to the house whenever he's back there. I'm fine with the punter.

In Closing - The Eagles have a lot of holes to fill, but with the cap room we have and the personnel in place, there's no reason why we can't win the NFC East in 2011. You know, if there is a 2011 season. However, of all the needs that must be addressed, offensive line is the biggest, because if Michael Vick takes another beating next year like he did this year, then the window for a Super Bowl will be shut before too long.

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