Eagles News: Jaguars writer says Jacksonville signing Nick Foles would be a “mistake”

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Confession: I think Nick Foles would be a mistake - Big Cat Country
The reality for me is, if you evaluate Nick Foles in a vacuum, he’s just a mediocre quarterback with a lot of variance in his career. He’s 26-18 as a starter in the NFL, buoyed by an 8-2 and 6-2 start with Chip Kelly back in 2013 and 2014, however beyond that he’s been very mediocre. He had the incredible 2013 season that ended up being mostly smoke and mirrors, crashing back down to Earth the next few seasons. [...] While I think Foles is a solid quarterback, I think he falls into the mess of quarterbacks who are the ones who are not going to absolutely mess things up for you, but also isn’t going to be the one to consistently elevate those around him. You don’t find those on the open market often and with that being said, there are other alternatives to Foles out there. I don’t know that Foles is that much better than someone like Case Keenum, Tyrod Taylor or Ryan Tannehill or if he’s just been in much better situations with the Eagles.

Free agent quarterbacks are a bad investment, historically - Big Cat Country
There is no denying that Nick Foles is the best of the free agent crop of quarterbacks, even the ones who could be available via a trade, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to work out or that he will replicate his success in Philadelphia. It will be interesting to see what else the Jaguars will do on the offensive side of the football now that it seems Foles is in the fold, because just simply inserting Nick Foles isn’t going to fix their issues.

Nick Foles Is This Season’s Top QB Free Agent, But He Comes With Plenty of Risk - Sports Illustrated
Is Foles a great quarterback, or is he a good quarterback who caught a wave while playing under two of the most groundbreaking offensive coaches of the last 10 years? While Kelly is an NFL punch line now, his tempo-based offense early in his career had other teams scrambling. Similarly, the combination of analytic play designs and the integration of certain run-pass option concepts under Doug Pederson greatly boosted an Eagles offense and gave it new life. Obviously Foles is talented, and his time hiking the team onto his back and lifting them into two different playoff races in two years is experience no quarterback can simulate. He is the best free agent available at the position, and so long as you’re willing to pay—another big if—he’ll come aboard and provide an instant upgrade over a mid-level starter.

Eagles reportedly interested in trading for Duke Johnson - BGN
Duke Johnson could potentially replace Sproles’ role in the Eagles’ offense. The 25-year-old back isn’t so much a lead ball carrier — with just 4.7 rush attempts per game over his career — as much as he is an offensive weapon. In four years with the Browns, Johnson has logged 235 receptions for 2,170 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. He’s been a relatively efficient runner with 299 carries for 1,286 yards (4.3 yards per attempt) and five rushing scores.

Multiple teams reportedly interested in Duke Johnson - Dawgs By Nature
Johnson may have had a strange year in 2018 with career lows in rushing attempts and receptions, but he still averaged five yards per carry and 9.1 yards per reception. He is also still the same player who set franchise records for a running back with 74 receptions and 693 receiving yards in 2017. Johnson had more than 500 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons, joining Herschel Walker as the only running backs in league history to achieve that mark. Hopefully Dorsey was telling the truth about wanting to keep Johnson on the team, because there is no doubt the Browns are better off with the Duke on the roster.

At the Podium: Meet the Prospects - BGN Radio
At the Podium has fresh interviews from NFL Draft prospects at the 2019 NFL Combine! Thanks to BGN contributor Alexis Chassen, we have chats with edge rushers, pocket pushers, deep threats, and pass protectors! Interviews include: Montez Sweat, Marquise Brown, Terry McLaurin, Parris Campbell, Christian Wilkins, Yodny Cajuste and Andre Dillard!Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

Ike, Tim and Rumors - Iggles Blitz
With Brandon Graham and Derek Barnett slated to be the starting DEs, Bennett is expendable. He is 33 and due $7.2M this year. That’s not huge money for a productive pass rusher, but the Eagles need to know what their options are. They can’t keep everyone. If they could deal Bennett and get some decent compensation, that would make some sense. The Eagles traded a fifth round pick and WR Marcus Johnson for Bennett a year ago. He actually had a better year in 2018 than 2017, despite playing less. I wonder if the Eagles could get a fourth rounder for him. Wouldn’t be higher than that. And it is possible the Eagles would have to settle for a fifth.

Clemson DT Christian Wilkins would be perfect fit with Eagles - NCBSP
Wilkins knows his best position is as a 3-technique, which is exactly what he would be with the Eagles. They could pretty much plug-and-play him next to Fletcher Cox. I’ve seen plenty of folks mention his teammate Dexter Lawrence as a possibility for the Eagles, but he isn’t as good of a fit. Lawrence is a bigger, run-stuffing tackle. Wilkins has the ability and athleticism to beat 1-on-1s, which is the most important thing when Cox is getting constantly double-teamed. It would also offer the Eagles a relatively cost-effective way to get a productive player next to the All-Pro Cox for the next four years. Wilkins seems to have the right blend of pass-rushing ability in a one-gap defense to go along with enough run-stuffing ability needed as an interior lineman. While some defensive linemen put up freakish numbers on Sunday, Wilkins had a really good performance. Maybe teams will rush to take the combine warriors and let a solid, athletic player like Wilkins last longer than he should.

Jordan Hicks stands at the top of the free agent linebacker class - PFF
Hicks rebounded from an Achilles injury that limited him to just 268 snaps in 2017 to record an overall grade of 80.7 in 2018, tenth-best among 92 qualifying linebackers. It was the second time in his first four seasons that Hicks has found himself among the top ten at the position. In 2016, he graded at 88.3, which put him behind only Luke Kuechly and Jerrell Freeman. His only two seasons that didn’t end on injured reserve produced two campaigns where Hicks showed himself to be among the top ten players at the position.

Isaac Seumalo: ‘My best football is in front of me’ - PE.com
“It’s been a blessing to play every spot and kind of excel at that, but at the same time it’s good to be at one spot and be able to focus on that,” said Seumalo in an exclusive telephone interview on Monday, minutes after the Eagles announced his contract extension through the 2022 season. “I want to be a master of the craft at left guard and I feel like I’m on my way. I’m happy about that. I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better the more I’ve played the position and I think my best football is in front of me.”

Rating how active every NFL team will be in 2019 free agency - ESPN
2. Active, but not breaking the bank: The Eagles have about $2 million in cap space right now, but they’ll free up some room between now and the start of the league year in order to be modest players. Running back and a deep threat at receiver are among the priorities.

Jets rumblings from the combine: Le’Veon Bell isn’t the only free-agent running back on the team’s radar - The Athletic
Free-agent-to-be Le’Veon Bell was among the more talked-about topics at the combine. Credit his agent, Adisa Bakari, for keeping his client’s intentions clouded in uncertainty. I heard from one high-profile agent who is well versed in the running back market that the Jets are “undeniably the favorite” to sign the Steelers running back. Another, however, said that while the Jets would pursue Bell and shouldn’t be ruled out, they aren’t alone, with the Eagles and Buccaneers also in the running.

Sunday Combine Notebook: It’s Officially a 4-Man Race to Be the No. 1 Pick - B/R
Redskins interested in trading for quarterback Josh Rosen, per Tony Pauline at DraftAnalyst.com. Bad idea. Rosen is a fine prospect who deserves a second chance…or even a first chance (Tom Brady would struggle with the system and offensive line Rosen dealt with last year). It’s just that you know Washington will end up bidding against itself and give away two first-round picks or something.

A tag for Landon Collins? Deadline is here, and the answer looks like ‘no’ - Big Blue View
This is a hard move to understand, if indeed it is what happens. It doesn’t seem like good on-field business for the Giants, a team that needs help on all levels of what was a leaky defense in 2018, to risk losing a 25-year-old who might be their best defensive player.

Jason Fitzgerald from OverTheCap argues that the Cardinals should draft Kyler Murray and keep Josh Rosen as well - Hogs Haven
Whatever amount of compensation is agreed upon (if the trade happens), Arizona fans will likely think it too little and Redskins fans likely think it too much. In my opinion, the Redskins need the trade more than the Cardinals do, so I think that the deal — if it happens at all — sees Cardinal fans slightly happier than Redskins fans when all is said and done.

Poll: If the Cowboys can’t get the deal they want with DeMarcus Lawrence, what should they do? - Blogging The Boys
The idea that Lawrence and the Cowboys are far away in terms of price could just be the typical song-and-dance that goes with these types of negotiations. But it could also mean this thing could drag out a while. More concerning is that Lawrence still hasn’t undergone shoulder surgery and is postponing that until a new deal gets done. If he puts off surgery until later, then this could make his status come training camp uncertain. He would also sit out all team activities until a new deal is done. The last thing the team wants to see happen is commit to a player for a bunch of money only to have them not be ready to go for the new season. The Cowboys need to get this taken care of soon.

Franchise Tag Weakens Free Agent Pool, Little Interest in Antonio Brown, More NFL News - MMQB
Lawrence and the Cowboys aren’t close to a deal, and I’d expect this one to be pretty bumpy over the next four months. Last year, Lawrence signed his tender right away. This year, he has no plans to sign his $20.572 million tender. Would he miss games? History says no. But he doesn’t need be there between now and the July 15 deadline to sign a long-term deal, and it wouldn’t cost him a cent to continue playing stay-away right up to Week 1. So we’ll see where it goes. Lawrence’s isn’t the only contract situation Dallas must sort out. QB Dak Prescott, RB Ezekiel Elliott, WR Amari Cooper, LB Jaylon Smith and CB Byron Jones are all headed into contract years (though the Cowboys have the fifth-year option on Elliott for 2020).

The Cowboys franchise tag unhappy Demarcus Lawrence, just the first step in an important offseason - SB Nation
Besides, if the Cowboys don’t extend his deal, there’s a good chance that Lawrence will hold out through OTAs and longer, an outcome the team would like to avoid. His production could be more important than ever in 2019. Dallas will have to replace Randy Gregory’s presence up front after the defensive end, who had six sacks last fall, ran afoul of the league’s substance abuse policy this offseason. He’s facing a fourth suspension as a result, and his future with the team is much murkier than it’d been at the end of the 2018 season. In the short term, a new deal with Lawrence would give immediate cap relief to Dallas and ensure some stability in the team’s pass rush. However, he’s not the only Cowboy star looking for a massive deal this spring.

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