Eagles News: Philadelphia’s front seven ranks in the top 10

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Top front sevens in 2017? Texans, Seahawks, Panthers - NFL.com
Philadelphia's cornerbacks made this group look worse that it really was last season. The Eagles' front consistently applied pressure under Jim Schwartz. And the unit boasts enviable depth, with players like Chris Long and Beau Allen not listed above. Cox and Graham would be bigger stars if the Eagles weren't knee-deep in that 7-9 bull---- the last two seasons. Jernigan and Barnett should add more juice than departed Eagles Connor Barwin and Bennie Logan supplied.

Fantasy Football Rankings: Carson Wentz among four Eagles featured in Top 150 NFL players - BGN
Man. As we talked about last week on BGN Radio, some people are really sleeping on Jeffery. I get why people might be skeptical in terms of injuries and the potential suspension factor. But still, there’s a very high ceiling here for Jeffery. He’s clearly the No. 1 target in the Eagles’ passing game. Jeffery is playing for a long-term deal so he’s going to be more motivated than ever to have a strong season. I think Jeffery could be a real steal in fantasy this year if he’s being rated this lowly. Silva had Jeffery at No. 15 last offseason.

BGN Radio on 94WIP: Besides cornerback, what's the Eagles' biggest concern? - BGNRadio.com
Cornerback is an obvious area of concern for the Eagles. But besides that position, what will the Eagles' Achilles heel be in 2017? What's their biggest weakness outside of CB? John mentions the offensive line, and BLG gives his X-factor for the entire team.

Mailbag: What are the cap ramifications if the Eagles release Ryan Mathews while still injured? - PhillyVoice
If the Eagles were to cut bait with Mathews today, they would be releasing him with a failed physical designation. That could potentially put them on the hook for his Injury Protection Benefit, which would be 50 percent of his salary, up to $1,150,000. By releasing Mathews now, they would either be depending on another team to pass them on a physical to offset that benefit, or be willing to just write the check.

Lawlor: Will 2017 Resemble 2000? - PE.com
One year can make a big difference. The 1999 Eagles went 5-11 with a rookie head coach in Andy Reid and a rookie quarterback in Donovan McNabb leading the way. The Eagles went 11-5 the next season, made the playoffs, and even won a postseason game. The 1999 team was tough and competitive, with several close losses. The 2000 team found a way to win those games and played much better football. There was definitely more talent on the 2000 team, but one of the key reasons for the improvement was the year of experience that team had. We don't know whether or not the 2017 Eagles will make the playoffs and win a playoff game for the first time since 2008, but we can expect there to be a jump in the level of play. Doug Pederson is no longer a rookie coach. Carson Wentz is no longer a rookie quarterback. Young players are ready to improve. Even veterans can be better now that they are in their second season in the new schemes.

Eagles Mailbag: Linebackers, stats for Zach Ertz and Derek Barnett - CSN Philly
Barnett: Six sacks. This would be a pretty good rookie season. I'd set the over/under number at 6½, so I have Barnett slightly under just because he'll have to fight for time with a few players.

Dillon Gordon: Eagles' next fixture at tackle? - Daily News
In Peters, though, he found a willing mentor. "Basically, he just took me under his wing and tried to teach me all the stuff that he knew he needed to know his rookie year to transition to offensive line," he said. At the moment, Gordon's second NFL season seems unlikely to break dramatically from his first. All of his consequential hours will come between Monday and Saturday. Then, as he did for all but one game last season, he'll don a pair of sweatpants and watch from the sideline as game-day inactive. Peters' breakout did not come until his third season as a pro, when he beat out incumbent Mike Williams for the starting spot at right tackle.

Dwindling yards per carry show there's a 21st-century RB dilemma - ESPN
In a nutshell, 21st-century offensive schemes are taking help away from running backs to get additional receiving threats on the field. The problem is defenses are still motivated to stop the run from a personnel standpoint. Teams are also throwing more than ever before, having called pass 61.4 percent of the time last season. That's up from a 10-year low of 57.2 percent in 2008. Tailbacks accrued 11,267 rushing attempts during the 2016 regular season, which was 790 fewer attempts than what we saw during that 2008 campaign. So teams aren't running as often and aren't providing their backs with as much help, but to what extent does this impact the run game, and what can we learn?

Ranking the NFL secondaries, from 32 to 1. | Sports on Earth
21. Eagles: Philadelphia managed to finish second in pass defense DVOA, but 32nd in PFF's secondary rankings from January. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle -- I just have a hard time imagining much success from Robinson and Mills if they are the starting corners. I also wouldn't hold out hope for rookies Douglas and Jones this year.

An NFL Memorial Day Medley - The MMQB
There might be a national touch football league coming. If a 7-on-7 touch football game featuring some big names like Mike Vick on June 27 in San Jose shows well, a New York financier named Jeff Lewis intends to start a national touch football league in 2018. Big if, obviously. But with the fear of continued head trauma in the tackle game, and the enthusiasm about touch football from NFL stars like Drew Brees, Lewis thinks it's time to try taking the game national.

Jim Harbaugh responds to Brandon Jacobs, who says he’ll ‘expose’ him, get him fired - SB Nation
Former NFL running back Brandon Jacobs played for Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh when both were with the 49ers in 2012. Jacobs does not seem to like Harbaugh much. Jacobs joined Tiki Barber and Brandon Tierney last week for an interview on their radio show. Here’s a partial transcript, after Tierney egged him on a little:

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