Wellness

[Spurt]

On 3/24/2014 gardenman said:

Yellowrose. Yeah, it's been a decent off-season so far for the Eagles. We've got some new pieces in weaker spots and we've solidified some of our strengths.

There are lots of rumors/reports out there now that the Eagles are getting Mark "Butt Fumble" Sanchez for a backup. I'm not so sure about that. I still think Chip Kelly is fine with Matt Barkley as the backup. The local media have been panicking over Barkley as the backup, but I just don't see the cause for concern. Barkley was put into nearly impossible situations last year and made some bad decisions, but he also moved the team well between interceptions. I just don't see a need for Sanchez in Philly. It's hard to understand why Sanchez would want to come to Philly. He's not going to beat out Nick Foles and there's a pretty good chance he can't beat out Matt Barkley for the backup spot. We'll have to see what happens there.

I truly believe Manziel is going to fall and fall a lot in the draft. I just don't see him going in the top ten. There are too many 'sure things' in this year's draft to take a chance on a guy like him. We'll have to see what happens, but he doesn't impress me all that much.

GARDENMAN,

What a bizarre choice for Sanchez......I guess he wants to look "pretty" holding a clip board on the sideline.....Perhaps there was no other interest.

Of the proposals I like #3, #7, #9.....

[gardenman]

SPURT. Yeah, it's an odd choice for Sanchez. There are maybe ten teams where he'd have a shot to start, but he apparently wants to come to Philly.

[Spurt]

Lindy's is always first NFL Draft magazine out and usually the most INACCURATE but I've got football fever and looking to read anything I could find at this point---Anyway here is what they have according to nfldraftscout.com had to say--

1. Texans Blake Bortles QB USC

2. Rams-Clowney DE SC

13. Rams-Taylor Lewan OT Michigan

16. Ravens Mike Evans WR Texas A&M

17. Dallas Aaron Donald DT Pitt

22. Eagles HaHa Clinton-Dix S Alabama (that got better change his name before he gets in a NFL locker room)

Second Round -we get to participate yeah!

1. Texans Kle Van Noy OLB BYU

2. Redskins Kyle Fuller CB Virginia Tech

15. Ravens Antonio Richardson OT, Tennessee

16. Dallas-Dakota Dozier OL Furman

22. Eagles Carl Bradford OLB ASU

[brewhaha]

I like taking Taylor Lewan with the thirteenth pick but taking Clowney with the second pick does not make a whole lot of sense to me. I still think another team will trade up to take him.

Monica Lewinsky is going to sell legal marijuana cigars and call it HaHa Clinton-Dix.

[brewhaha]

On 3/25/2014 gardenman said:

SPURT. Yeah, it's an odd choice for Sanchez. There are maybe ten teams where he'd have a shot to start, but he apparently wants to come to Philly.

No ands ifs or butts about that. Brown nosing can be a good thing. After all, his linemen have to protect him from the pass rushers.

[gardenman]

Chip Kelly just survived his "breakfast with the press" session at the owners' meeting and basically said nothing conclusive for an hour. I suspect we won't see him again until just before the draft when the NFL mandates another press availability for the head coach. I think Chip would prefer to see an untrained, blind dentist with Parkinson's than face the local press.

If you read between the lines, it sounds like DeSean Jackson is still available for the right price. Evan Mathis our starting left guard and Pro Bowl offensive guard apparently is also available. He's 32 years old and due $5 million this year. The Eagles would like him to take a pay cut and he wants a raise, so there's a wee bit of a divide there. I suspect they might be getting a bit worried about the age at the two guard spots in Mathis and Herremanns and also left tackle Jason Peters. They're all in their thirties and while they're performing well now, mixing in a younger guard might not be a bad idea.

Personally I'd pay Mathis and get rid of Herremanns who signed his last contract as a tackle after being moved outside and is still being paid as a tackle rather than a guard. Tackles generally make more money than guards and Herremanns was less than stellar last season.

Chip was a bit surprised to see the crush of reporters waiting for him. Local reporters were waiting a full hour before his scheduled 7:15 AM appearance. He reportedly had the largest crowd of reporters around him of any head coach. I'm pretty sure we won't see him again until there's another gun pointed at his head and he absolutely has to face the press.

[gardenman]

And Jared Allen who last week had supposedly signed with Seattle has now actually signed with the Bears. That kind of came out of no where. The last I'd seen it was Seattle or Dallas with Seattle having a big leg up.

[teganslaw]

It looks like Mark sanchez is headed to Philadelphia, if he can pass some tests regarding his injuries. If he deosn't pass the tests, I don't know what will happen. Maybe he would be the back up to Foles, taking Barkley's place. I'm not sure why the Eagles would sign Sanchez; he has been inconsistent and a risk. The organization must see something in him to be so interested.

Irsay's trial hearing was postponed. He is in a rehab facility out of state, so that might have something to do with it. The exact location is a secret, though, for privacy reasons.

The Jared Allen signign was a surprise. I didn't know Chicago was even considering him.

[gardenman]

Sanchez to Philly was a surprise, but Chip likes him. We think of the butt fumble, eating hot dogs on the bench, and wiping his nose on a teammate's jersey when we think of Sanchez, but he did have some pretty good years in NY too. He took them to two AFC Championship games in his first two years (2009 & 2010) in NY. They weren't the most talented team around and he wasn't the best quarterback around, but he did manage to get the Jets to those championship games. Since then the bottom has largely dropped out, but the Jets have never really surrounded him with talented players, or a consistent system. Maybe he'll bounce back in Philly under Chip Kelly's system.

He wouldn't seem like a perfect fit, but he is a veteran who's had some reasonably recent success at the highest level. He's not coming in to be the savior, he won't have quite as much press scrutiny (probably) as he did in NY. He'll likely sign for a reasonable price, so who knows? Maybe Chip will polish him up and make him a viable NFL quarterback again.

[teganslaw]

Ray Rice has been indicted on one count of aggravated assault. Bad news for the Ravens since they will be trying to come back for last year's record. He could face up to five years in prison if found guilty. The organization is backing him, so we'll have to see how this all plays out.

Maurice Jones Drew is now with Oakland. That could be good news for the Colts, since they won't have to face him. Indy usually beat Jacksonville, but sometimes they had a difficult time stopping Jones-Drew.

Seems that Johnny Manziel has impressed the NFL on pro-day. He has been compared to Steve Young (I don't recall who made the comparison, though.) That might change things in the draft. This could prove to be interesting.