FanPost

Locks & Roster Bubble




Happy Friday BGN,

Here's my attempt to make sense of the locks to make the 53-men roster, and, consequently, define the roster bubble and key considerations.

Offense

QB - Wentz, S(t)udfeld (2 / 2)
I am pretty certain that Thorson makes the 53-men roster, but just can't pencil him as a lock.

RB - Howard, Sanders, Clement (3 / 5)

WR - Jeffery, D-Jax, Agholor, Whiteside (aka JJAW) (4 / 9)
Again, I am pretty certain that Hollins makes the 53-men roster, but his absence from OTA makes one wonder if his place is in danger

TE - Ertz, Goedert, Rodgers (3 / 12). Easiest position group.

OL - Peters, Seumalo, Kelce, Brooks, Johnson, Wiz, Dillard, Big-V* (8 / 20)
*Unless he gets traded. Absent a trade, Big-V is a lock to make the 53-men roster.

Defense

DT - Cox, Jackson, Jernigan (3 / 23)
Obviously, there will be at least one more DT in the roster, but neither Hester nor Ridgeway are locks.

DE - Graham, Barnett, Curry (3 / 26)
Remains to be seen who will win the two/three remaining spots.

LB - Bradham, Brown, Kamu, Fort (4 / 30)
Some might question Fort being a lock. Listen to Roseman - he is a lock.

CB - Darby, Mills, Maddox, Douglas, Jones, LeBlanc (6 / 36)
I might be getting carried away with having all six as locks, but with Darby and Mills's injuries, Jones inability to stay healthy and the ability to move Maddox around, I don't see the team giving up any of them (unless they get a good trade offer for Douglas or Jones).

S - Jenkins, McLeod, Countess (3 / 39)

Special Teams

Elliot (K), Johnston (P), Lovato (LS) (3 / 42). As easy to predict as the TE position.

What's Left (or: the Roster Bubble)

After taking a cautious approach regarding locks (I know, 6 CBs is reckless, deal with it, all six are making the team unless one of them gets traded), we are left with 11 roster spots.

However, it is really much less, if we look at "locked" spots.

Position Battles
Out of the 11, at least 8 are clear in terms of the position groups.

1 spot goes to the WR4 / 5 - if Hollins is healthy, no real battle. I doubt whether the Eagles keep 6 WRs.
1 spot goes to the RB4 - likely Smallwood (who somehow always ends up in the roster), but Scott is a dark horse.
1 spot for OL - Pryor is a near lock in my view (much like Hollins, I was tempted to include him as a lock). I also think (see below) Mailata makes the team as well if they are worried he won't clear waivers (he won't).
1 spot for DT - it is very possible that both Ridgeway and Hester make the team, but only one spot is guaranteed.
2 spots for DE - arguably the most interest position battle. Miller, Sweat, Ostman, Hall all have a good chance
1 for LB - Gerry, Worrilow, Edwards - whoever shows greater value as ILB and on special teams gets the position.
and
1 for S - Sendejo is the clear favorite but giving up a 4th round compensatory pick for him might be to big of a price. If Tre Sullivan has a great summer, his chances are good.


In addition to these 8, I would be surprised if the team does not keep Thorson (or Kessler, if he really impresses and Thorson looks terrible). Which brings us to two last spots.

So who is on the bubble?

WR - everyone but for Hollins (if he is healthy). I don't think anyone makes the team as the 6th receiver.

RB - no bubble other than position battle. 4 RBs is the most the team keeps.

TE - next.

OL - As I noted, Pryor's versatility makes him an almost certain lock. The team will keep another OL, so I think the last spot goes to Mailata or one of the UDFAs (Bates? Opeta? Herbig?)

One final spot left, and this is where it gets interesting.

There are four potential options:

1. 6th DE - least likely, as Sweat, Miller and Ostman are all eligible for practice squad.

2. 5th DT - the loser of the position battle between Ridgeway and Hester might still make the team. If Hester beats Ridgeway, I think the team only keeps 4 DT. If the other way around, Hester might stay due to ST value (the chip @Chicago).

3. 6th LB - mostly for special teams. If the team keeps 6 CBs (a clear indication of its intention to utilize more nickel formations), the 6th LB will need to show great contribution to ST to make the team.

4. 5th S - Countess is mostly a ST player. If Sullivan beats Sendejo, no 5th safety. If he doesn't, it might make sense (although Maddox can also double as a safety).

I really have no idea how the last spot will end up, as this will likely be a position for a player who can be a stud on special teams.