Mailbag: Should the Eagles sign Darrelle Revis?

Welcome to the latest edition of the Bleeding Green Nation mailbag! Every so often I'll be taking some of your Philadelphia Eagles questions and answering them here in this post. As always, thanks to everyone who sent me a question on Twitter (@BrandonGowton). We already answered some of your questions during the BGN Facebook Live session I hosted. (Shameless plug alert: please like on the BGN Facebook page and the BGN Radio Facebook page.) Watch the Q&A below or click here.

Question: Should the Eagles sign Darrelle Revis?

I’ve been asked this question in virtually every Facebook chat I’ve done this offseason. The answer is: no.

I understand why this question comes up. Cornerback is obviously the most glaring concern on Philadelphia’s roster.

The problem is that Revis just isn’t the player he once was. The veteran cornerback was very honest in talking to reporters about his body was “breaking down.” Pro Football Focus graded Revis 65th out of 111 corners last year. It’s hard to imagine Revis will bounce back considering he turns 32 years old later this week. His best football is behind him.

Another complication with the Revis thing is that he’s due $6 million from the Jets this year after being cut by New York. That money will be offset if he signs a new contract so he reportedly wants $8+ million so he can gain at least $2 million. That would be a lot of money for the Eagles to commit to an aging corner. And that’s assuming he would even want to sign with Philadelphia, who isn’t viewed as a slam dunk championship contender.

The Eagles are better off sticking with what they have at corner. It’s not going to be pretty at times. Patrick Robinson is probably only here for a year. Jalen Mills was rated as the league’s worst corner last year and is prone to getting beat deep.

But there’s hope for the Eagles cornerbacks in the long run. Sidney Jones was thought to be a top 10 talent prior to his injury. If he comes back healthy next season, he could prove to be a solution for the Eagles. 2017 third round pick Rasul Douglas also has good starting potential.

Revis doesn’t make sense for the Eagles. And the Eagles don’t make sense for him, either. Revis should just collect his $6 million guaranteed this season and focus on getting healthy for a potential comeback in 2018.

@ByPatrickWall: What would you say Carson Wentz's acceptable floor would be this season, stats-wise?

Good question, Patrick. Wentz threw for 16 touchdowns to 14 interceptions as a rookie. And that was working with the NFL’s worst wide receiving corps. The expectation is he’ll improve in Year 2.

I’ll be writing more about Wentz tomorrow (training camp position preview spoiler alert) so I’ll keep this answer brief. I’d realistically like to see at least 20 passing touchdowns and no more than 12 interceptions.

@Stephen_Lee20 asks: Do you expect Nigel Bradham to display the same consistency and produce the way he did in 2014 and 2016? LB depth is an area of concern.

I do. I think many were surprised by how good Bradham was in 2016. Not to sound like I’m a know-it-all (which is exactly what I sound like), I wasn’t surprised based on my conversation with Bills writers from last year. He was pretty good in Schwartz’s scheme in Buffalo so it only made sense he had success in Philadelphia as well. I expect another good season out of Bradham barring he can stop being — in the words of Schwartz — “a dumbass.”

@MichaelJKist asks: Over/Under for Derek Barnett/Brandon Graham sack totals?

I’ll start with Brandon Graham first. He had 5.5 sacks last year. He also led the NFL in total pressures, so I feel good about taking the over on last year’s total. I’m going to predict he gets to at least 7.5 this season.

As for Derek Barnett, I’m confident he’ll make an impact as a rookie. It’s just a matter of how much playing time he gets considering Vinny Curry and Chris Long will also be in the rotation. The number that jumps out in my head is 4.5 for Barnett. That’d be a pretty nice rookie season for him.

@ms_dooubleu asks: What's the deal with Ryan Mathews? Darren Sproles seems to think he will be on the roster.

For those wondering, here’s the tweet referenced in this question.

Sproles was probably asked about Mathews directly. He’s not gonna be like “Oh yeah we’re gonna cut that guy.” But that’s the case. Mathews will be cut at some point. Still just a matter of time.

@JALupwoitz asks: What do you know about Dane Evans? Is he a developmental candidate for the PS, or more likely camp fodder?

Not much, other than at best he is the second best quarterback to ever play at Tulsa. The first being G.J. Kinne, of course.

Evans could very well be this year’s version of Aaron Murray. The Eagles might only keep two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster (like they did last year) with Wentz and Nick Foles. Then Evans would be on the practice squad.

@TheBenNatan asks: Who is the best dancer on the BGN staff?

I’ve never really seen any BGN staff writers dance ... except for maybe John Barchard? It might be John. Tweet at @JohnBarchard and ask him to show you his dance moves.

He’ll probably try to tell you that I’m the reigning Bucks County Dance Champion, but that’s just not true because I don’t dance.

@NeverAlone522 asks: Why does a round pizza come a square box?

Round boxes wouldn’t be easy to store and fold.

The real question here is: why doesn’t all pizza come in a box made out of pizza?