Eagles News: Carson Wentz - the NFL’s first $200 million quarterback?

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Who Will Be the NFL’s First $200 Million Quarterback? - Bleacher Report
Chance of being the first $200 million man: 20 percent. The Eagles will need to prorate bonuses for cap reasons, which means extra contract years. So a five-year deal with a $40 million average (with lots of cash stashed in the post-CBA future) is a real possibility. But is he worth the money? When playing at his peak, Wentz is more like Mahomes than Goff or Prescott, making him more likely to pay dividends on a whopping deal than to leave the Eagles wishing they could afford someone to protect him or catch his passes. Wentz also has the most troubling health history of the players on this list. Injury guarantees will be a major component of his next contract.

Is it a “Jaguars or bust” market for Nick Foles? - BGN
This week is potentially significant for Nick Foles and his future. The NFL Combine isn’t just a time where there’s a lot of focus on upcoming NFL Draft prospects. It’s also an event where league executives and agents are getting together to discuss upcoming free agency signings and trades. In other words, it wouldn’t be surprising if we soon hear some kind of update regarding Foles and the Philadelphia Eagles’ plans for him.

Fireside Chats #8: Kyle Crabbs of The Draft Network - BGN Radio
Michael Kist is joined by Kyle Crabbs of The Draft Network to introduce TDN’s new site layout, their mock draft machine, and build your own big board feature, PLUS discussions involving the NFL Combine and breaking into the business!

Ranking the Eagles’ worst 20 draft picks over the last 20 years - PhillyVoice
13) 2017: Donnel Pumphrey, RB, San Diego State, 4th round: In four years at SDSU, Pumphrey racked up a ridiculous 7444 yards from scrimmage, making him one of the most productive running backs in NCAA history. However, at 5’8, 176 pounds, he had an extremely slight build, and not enough juice athletically to make up for that deficiency. The selection of Pumphrey is further tainted by the fact that the 2017 NFL Draft was looooaaaaded with quality running backs. Even with the Eagles’ barren backfield, Pumphrey has not yet appeared in a regular season game for the Eagles, and likely never will.

For Chris Long, the climb to change the world continues - ESPN
He has yet to decide whether he’ll play in 2019. “I don’t know, man. It’s all about the situation to me,” he said. “I never mean to make a headline where it’s like, ‘Chris Long unsure.’ I never try to make it sound like I’m under the impression it matters either way if I play or anybody cares. But I think after you’re 30, you should always take some time late in your career to think a little bit. I think anybody should take their time. Not that a second-, third-year player in the league thought about retiring, but it takes so much out of you if you’re really pouring everything into it, and you’ve got to be in for the ride. ”It’s kind of like at the amusement park, when they click that seat belt on, the roller coaster going -- you can’t get out. There’s no quitting. Some guys might think differently, but when you’re in, you’re in, so I want to make sure I’m in. I think most players need to do that, and I’m just honest about it. Maybe some guys just aren’t telling the truth. But it’s all about the situation for me. I know I can still play. I think I played well, especially in the second half of the year this year, once I got healthy and I got more snaps, so we’ll see.”

A step-by-step Eagles offseason plan with Joe Banner - The Athletic
“I’m not sure the Giants or (Washington) are interested, but obviously, I don’t think they’d trade him to either of those places. I don’t think Miami is interested. I think Jacksonville may be interested, although that could go two ways because I could see them having (Blake) Bortles as a backup — because his contract makes it challenging to get rid of him — and then drafting somebody and playing whichever one’s better early and hopefully getting to the rookie soon. So I don’t think there’s a huge list of teams that are likely to be in line for Nick Foles, especially at $20 or $25 million, which is what he would want to cooperate with a trade if it’s a team that he feels good about and a place that he can get a long-term deal that provides some financial security. So the only way they tag him in my mind is if they know they have a trade and that they think that is better than waiting the year for the compensatory pick. I think the chances of that are maybe 25 percent.”

2019 Free Agency Profile: Ronald Darby - PFF
Darby earned a career-high 78.3 overall grade in 2017 and could return to such form if his health allows in 2019. He missed the final six weeks of the season and the Eagles’ two postseason games with a torn ACL last year.

DE Joe Ostman Keeps Chasing His NFL Dream - PE.com
In the meantime, the Eagles are going to challenge the defensive end position. They’ve got some questions to answer in the weeks to come – Brandon Graham’s pending free agency is at the top of the list – but Ostman will be in the mix. Are you looking for a long shot? Do you love the Rocky stories? Ostman is one of those, but he’s here in real life, pushing for something more. And as the NFL prepares for another Scouting Combine, Ostman is on his own, doing what he does best: Working harder than everyone else, dedicating himself to chasing the dream of a lifetime. Ostman knows nothing is going to be handed out, but that’s just fine with him. He’s never been given a thing in this game, so why start now? It feels so much better earning every step of the way.

Sleeper Alert: Mid-Round Defensive Tackles You Want - The Draft Network
Two of those players aren’t getting much buzz right now, one due to the obscurity of his team, the other due to his lack of major production. Arkansas’ Armon Watts did almost nothing for his first three years as a Razorback, posting just seven tackles and barely seeing the field. That all changed in 2019, when he broke out for 49 tackles, 8.5 TFL, seven sacks and three forced fumbles for a woeful 2-10 Arkansas squad. Winning wasn’t the problem for Trysten Hill over at UCF, getting on the field was. After starting the first 26 games of his career, the junior came off the bench in all but one contest last season as part of a heavy rotation for the Knights. Hill still posted career highs in TFL (10.5), sacks (3) and tackles (36). Nothing crazy, but highly impactful considering his role at times.

Earl Thomas Could Be a Bargain for His New Team. Will it be the Cowboys? - Sports Illustrated
I think Thomas has a destination in mind and I think that team also has Thomas in mind, so long as they get one other major piece worked out. It’s interesting to think that Jerry Jones could walk away with two of the best five free agents on the market (counting Demarcus Lawrence). Securing Thomas and placing him behind a defensive backfield that includes Byron Jones and Chidobe Awuzie would make Dallas the early favorites in the NFC East (and, if at all possible, increase the massive amount of pressure already on Jason Garrett’s shoulders to succeed). Even if Dallas falls though, this shouldn’t be a complicated free agency for Thomas, even if he decides to take a veteran summer and sign a bit closer to training camp.

Evaluating Third-and-Long Strategy with Expected Points - Football Outsiders
Defensively, Cover-1 and Cover-3 are used most often in pass coverage on third-and-long, just as they are in other situations. Though Cover-1 outperforms Cover-3 in this context, neither is a bad call. There is significant separation, however, between coverages like Cover-2 and Cover-4. Among the main coverages, Cover-4 is the most effective third-and-long scheme. Cover-2 is the least effective. Plays on third down with at least 8 yards to go against Cover-4 result in -0.07 EPA on average for the offense (a positive outcome for the defense). Conversely, plays against Cover-2 result in 0.10 EPA on average for the offense (a negative outcome for the defense).

5 players (and one very good dog) who stood out in the AAF’s Week 3 - SB Nation
Seantavius Jones, Atlanta Legends WR. The AAF has a few rules unique to the fledging league (some of which the NFL should borrow). One of them is that there’s no such thing as an onside kick. Instead, the AAF’s version is the “onside conversion.” If a team is behind with less than five minutes left in the game (or trailing by 17 points or more), it can go for it on fourth-and-12 from its own 28-yard line. Through the first two and a half weeks of the AAF, we had yet to see a successful attempt. The Legends remedied that on Sunday when Matt Simms heaved the ball to Jones, who made a terrific adjustment to come down with the ball off his own deflection. [BLG Note: This guy is actually a former Eagles player.]

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