Philadelphia Eagles Free Agency Predictions 2014

NFL free agency is almost here! The chaos all begins today, Tuesday March 11th at 4:00 PM EST sharp. While we wait, let's take a look at some predictions. Evan Silva of Rotoworld released a 2014 NFL free agency forecast. His stated objective is "to give you a feel for the best players available, where they might fit, and how much money they might cost."

Here's a look at who he predicted the Eagles to sign and my take on the predictions.

36. Defensive lineman Antonio Smith -- Can play 3-4 end and 4-3 tackle. At least five sacks in three straight years. Hasn't missed a game for health reasons since '05. Entering age-33 season.

Free Agent Forecast: Eagles on three-year, $12 million deal.

Now this is a projection I haven't seen before. The Eagles certainly aren't shy in adding former Texans to their roster (DeMeco Ryans, Connor Barwin, Donnie Jones, James Casey.) But does Smith make sense? Perhaps. Smith's pass rushing ability is strong, as Silva alluded to. That's an area where Cedric Thornton struggled last season. But then again, I'm not so sure the Eagles are eager to add help on the defensive line given the youth and talent there already. The team likes Thornton and it doesn't seem like they're in a rush to bench him for a veteran like Smith. Nevertheless, it's an interesting mention.

...believe it or not, that was the only player that Silva connected to the Eagles in his top 50! One player who was not included in Silva's rankings, but could soon be a free agent, is cornerback Darrelle Revis. As I mentioned in a previous post, Silva considers the Eagles as the best fit for the talented cornerback.

Silva also made mention of one of the Eagles' own free agents:

48. Quarterback Michael Vick -- Enough juice left to be high-end NFL spot starter, but definitely not for a full season. Turning 34. Turnover and injury prone. Sadly, this year's top free agent QB. Has close ties to Jets OC Marty Mornhinweg from their time in Philadelphia.

Free Agent Forecast: Jets on two-year, $10 million deal.

I think the Jets make a lot of sense for Vick. I wouldn't be surprised to see him end up there.

Here's where Silva projected some of the players who I think the Eagles could target in free agency:

Jairus Byrd - Redskins

Lamarr Houston - Bears

T.J. Ward - Broncos

Antoine Bethea - Colts

Malcolm Jenkins - Rams

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Do you like Silva's projection(s) for the Eagles? What would you change?