4-Year Deal For Rookie RB
And then there was one! Running back LeSean McCoy, the team's second-round pick in April's draft, agreed to terms on a four-year contract Monday night. The Eagles have now come to terms with seven of the eight members of their 2009 draft class.
Who Steps Up As Leaders On This Defense?
Soon, it will be a big story. When the Eagles gather again at training camp, and they will answer the question: Who steps up as a leader on the defense? And invariably, the answer will come not from what the players say, but from what they do in crunch time during the season. The defense, while returning 10 starters from last year, also has to find its identity as a group.
McCoy's Greatest Challenge Waits At Lehigh
The contract part, well, that was never really a concern. The Eagles have an excellent history of signing their draft picks in plenty of time for training camp, so getting second-round draft pick LeSean McCoy to agree to terms on his rookie contract is no surprise. But it is nice to have it out of the way, and it clears a path for McCoy to have the most exacting test of his young life starting Sunday, July 26.
What To Expect From McNabb This Year
In year number 11, with a fortified offensive line in front of him, with depth as he has never had at wide receiver around him, with a system in place that works, with great talent in the backfield, more success is in the making for quarterback Donovan McNabb. He showed it in the June Organized Team Activities. The offense clicked. The timing was right. The confidence McNabb showed in throwing to his tight ends, his receivers, his backs ... it all looked so promising.
Striving To Give You Everything We Can
I'm a sports fan, and Thursday was a sports fan's night. I love the NBA, so I flipped around the Internet dial to see what was going on, see what my Sixers were doing ... tuning in as a fan, and as a critic of Internet coverage. I came away disappointed by it all, and I learned so much in the process: I'm here to give Eagles fans the ultimate outlet, and as the entire organization pauses for a week to catch its collective breath, I want to know how we're doing here at PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
Cleaning Out Items On The "Talk-About" List
Is there ever a no-news day in the NFL? I hope not. I've got the itch, even as the number of players who are still hitting the gym at the NovaCare Complex on a daily basis slows to a trickle and the coaching staff is taking its well-deserved vacation prior to training camp. As usual, there are some things to talk about as they relate to the Eagles season ahead ...
We're entering a dark period of the NFL life right now. Nothing is going on. Players and coaches are on vacation. With that we look at 10 quarterback situations worth looking at before training camps start in late July, because, well, it's always about the quarterback.
The situation: It's the same old argument. Do you start the rookie or the veteran? The No. 1 pick of the draft is Stafford, but the vet with a chance to win a few games is Culpepper. Stafford is the future but you don't want to damage it. For every Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco there's a Ryan Leaf and Vince Young.
Solution: Start Culpepper and wait until 2010 for Stafford.
Last month, NFL Network's Jamie Dukes argued that it was "hypocritical to say [Brett Favre] should stop playing because you think it's time for him to stop." Never mind that no one has ever argued that. Instead, most fans -- even those with just a casual interest in the sport -- would prefer Favre not fake retire every offseason. I don't think that's asking for a lot.
Dukes is back. The just-concluded NFL Rookie Symposium prompted Dukes to writes that, "... there is an expectation among the populous that NFL players are supposed to be perfect because they were given the right to play football. THAT NOTION IS LUDICROUS!"
If the television thing doesn't work out for Cris Carter, he's got a future in motivational speaking. Carter was the final speaker at this week's NFL Rookie Symposium, and his message was what you might expect -- don't do drugs, don't fall for groupies, don't start a dog-fighting enterprise, so on and so forth -- but his delivery was what made it memorable.
What possess a man to leave one team that finished third in its division for another that didn't win a game the previous year?
Well, we asked cornerback Phillip Buchanon the other day why he left the Bucs, who finished third in the NFC South, for the Lions, and his answer was simple.
"I did want to stay in Florida," Buchanon said. "Tampa was going in a different direction and I truly feel like I'm still a starter, and Detroit was one of the teams that was actually there. There were a few other teams, but Tampa was taking their time and I didn't want to wait. You either want me or you don't."
To veteran NFL players, the preseason is a necessary evil, a four-game stretch in which they get paid peanuts (relatively speaking) and just hope they don't get hurt. But to young players trying to prove themselves, the preseason can represent a major opportunity. And Redskins backup quarterback Colt Brennan says he's going to make the most of that opportunity.
We're entering a dark period of the NFL life right now. Nothing is going on. Players and coaches are on vacation. With that we look at 10 quarterback situations worth looking at before training camps start in late July, because, well, it's always about the quarterback.
Last month, NFL Network's Jamie Dukes 
If the television thing doesn't work out for 
What possess a man to leave one team that finished third in its division for another that didn't win a game the previous year?