Eagles Working Out Different DEs

by Bob_Q on Oct 2, 2009 6:52 PM EDT in News Comment 13 comments

According to Adam Caplan's Twitter feed, the Eagles have been bringing in new defensive ends for workouts this week. In the past few days, veteran Marcus Howard and undrafted free agent Terrance Carter have both visited Philadelphia for tryouts. The undersized Howard, 23, spent a year as a reserve for the Indianapolis Colts where he racked up 9 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble. The 22 year old Carter was a two year starter at Colorado State, where he totaled 29 tackles, 4 sacks, and a forced fumble.

This begs the question: are the Eagles unsatisfied with their defensive end depth? Are they considering a roster change or are they merely looking to alter their practice squad? There are currently only three defensive players on the practice squad: CB Jack Ikegwuonu, S Reshard Langford, and LB Jeremy Leman - no defensive line depth there.

As for the active roster, Trent Cole, Victor Abiamiri, Juqua Parker, and Darren Howard should all be safe for the time being. That leaves newcomer and preseason hero Jason Babin, and second-year Eagle Chris Clemons. Much like Bryan Smith last year, the 29 year old Babin had a lights-out performance during the preseason, but hasn't produced so much as a tackle so far this year due to extremely limited playing time. Clemons, on the other hand, has seen the field via special teams and the occasional substitution, but drew three penalties over the first two weeks. Could Andy Reid be looking to replace his limited-production DE reserves with younger prospects? We might not get our answer soon as the Eagles have an entire week off to contemplate any possible roster changes.

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Babin was solid the entire preseason. I really hope he gets a chance to prove himself in a game before they release him.

by captain nodar on Oct 2, 2009 8:16 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

word.

by madderwulf on Oct 2, 2009 8:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Why haven’t they activated Babin yet? With the exception of that TD against the Panthers Abiamiri has been particularly quiet. Why not give Babin a chance one of these games. Whats the point of re-signing a guy to a better contract after the pre-season and not using him in the regular season?

by macjack09 on Oct 2, 2009 8:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

abiamiri has been pretty good, not too bad. he has good awarness. But Jason really needs to be activated. Do they really need another DE? omg they are filled at that position already

eff you we winning anyway

by eagleswin on Oct 2, 2009 8:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Can't have too many DEs

RIP Jim Johnson, best ever.

by Imp on Oct 2, 2009 9:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

well..

i’d say we’re pretty solid, with our DE depth. i don’t think we need another, but then again, with all the injuries and such, it wouldn’t be a bad move. there’s other positions that need more work than this one though.

by antoniak on Oct 2, 2009 10:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think the problem is...

…that the only guy that scares other teams is Trent Cole. Other than him, you have a bunch of good, not great, rotational guys. Imagine another standout to play opposite Trent – what would our line look like then…

by ajay on Oct 3, 2009 3:37 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The problem is though, they are looking at a undrafted free agent and a 2nd year player who was cut in the preseason. I would hope with the guys they are looking at, they are only considering practice squad moves, and no more.

by captain nodar on Oct 3, 2009 8:38 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

well

i think howard is more of a hybrid lb .. like a gocong .. but prob better than that bum .. idunno about this other guy ,,.. never seen him play

by jack is better than asante on Oct 3, 2009 12:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Marcus Howard is fast as hell, but he’s barely pushing 240. Gocong is a much bigger player.

About 10 minutes ago, I was pondering my own existence. Then I decided that it didn't matter.

by IronHank on Oct 3, 2009 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Biggest weakness besides MLB

Everybody crows about FS or the LBs but the Eagles just don’t have another decent lineman who can rush the passer with any kind of consistency besides Cole. Abiamiri isn’t a pass rusher and frankly has played poorly the past 2 weeks. At best he holds the line of attack. In fact, I think he is going to largely go down as a bust given he was a 2nd rounder.

Howard and Parker aren’t bad situational rushers from time-to-time but the Eagles have to be wondering if Howard can stay healthy/have the impact he did last year (thought before the season that he was one of the completely ‘under the radar’ key players that got almost no attention in training camp) and if Parker isn’t going to notably wear down again. Parker has played well the past 2 seasons earlier in the season but he has also notably worn down the last 4-5 games both years too.

Maybe Babin deserves a shot because Clemons is a stiff who can’t even reliably contribute on kickoff/punt coverage but I can see why the Eagles are trying out DE. McDermott loves to rush the passer and like Johnson likes to rotate 3-4 DE constantly through the game to keep them fresh.

by MG77 on Oct 3, 2009 4:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I hope its just the practice squad

Last year we had a very tall defensive line which in my opinion gave more than a few deflected passes and this year I’ve tested the average height of one defensive lineman (I’m doing this from memory) was 6-5, the lowest was 6-0 and the heighest was 6-8. Last year the average was 6-3, the lowest was 5-11 and the heighest was 6-6, I believe. Most of the height coming from the DE’s this year with 6-6, Trent Cole and 6-8, Victor Abiamiri.

You can't soar with the Eagles when you're surrounded by turkeys.

by Aeries god of soar on Oct 4, 2009 9:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs