Eagles News: What does the future hold for Sidney Jones?

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The Eagles believed Sidney Jones would become a ‘premier cornerback.’ How much longer will they wait? - The Athletic
The Eagles have been willing to be patient because of Jones’ upside, but this offseason will reveal whether that patience has waned. Jones is a Rorschach test for an underachieving player: One can see the player he’s been or the player he could be. There’s an argument about letting talent have every chance to fail, knowing that the development curve affects players differently, and there are mitigating circumstances to success. There’s another school of thought that a player must be judged for what he does, not for what he was. It took Brandon Graham six seasons to become a full-time starter. Then again, the Eagles felt comfortable moving on from 2011 first-round pick Danny Watkins after two seasons. Jones turns 24 in May — he’s just seven months older than projected No. 1 pick Joe Burrow. The torn Achilles tendon from 2017, while significant, is in the past. Jones has had soft-tissue injuries the past two years that he must show he has overcome. He has experience in the slot and on the outside, although he hasn’t proven capable of playing special teams. Because of the time Jones missed as a rookie, he will be a restricted free agent after next season. The Eagles considered that a benefit when viewing Jones’ window to contribute.

NFL Mock Draft Roundup: There’s a clear favorite for the Eagles’ pick at No. 21 - BGN
The 2019 season is over and the 2020 NFL Draft will be here before you know it. Mock draft season has already begun and there’s no shortage of opinion as to whom the Philadelphia Eagles could select with the No. 21 overall pick. Let’s take a look at which players the experts have the Eagles taking in this week’s roundup.

Podcast: The Eagles’ coaching staff is finally complete - PhillyVoice
Any concerns about Press Taylor’s and Carson Wentz’s relationship? Can Taylor be tough on Wentz? Also, while Taylor might be a bright mind, and it’s not crazy to think that he can bring good ideas to the table (Philly Special, etc.), were his ideas not already being used?

Amari Cooper, Donnel Pumphrey and more in Roob’s 10 Eagles observations - NBCSP
You know what scares me? Here are the big-ticket free agent corners the Eagles have signed or traded for since Howie Roseman became GM in 2009: Ellis Hobbs, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Nnamdi Asomugha, Cary Williams, Bradley Fletcher, Leodis McKelvin, Nolan Carroll and Ronald Darby. Byron Maxwell was Chip’s and doesn’t count, and I didn’t include Patrick Robinson because he was a one-year, $775,000 contract. But however you line it up, it’s pretty grim. And the corners they’ve drafted in the first three rounds since Lito and Sheldon are Matt Ware, Curtis Marsh, Eric Rowe, Rasul Douglas and Sidney Jones. Those aren’t all on Howie, and they did find Jalen Mills in the 7th round and he’s been OK. But as far as searching for an elite corner? The Eagles are really 0-for-more than a decade.

As the Eagles-Pats game kicked off, a fan was dying in the stands. Could EMTs have helped sooner? - Inquirer
Nocero sat down. His body started moving oddly, and he became unresponsive. As soon as the group noticed, someone ran for help. A security guard and a police officer arrived several minutes later, his friend Conrad Muth said, and the officer began working on Nocero. But the EMTs took longer, according to Muth’s account. “I was screaming to the security guard: ‘Where are the EMTs?’ ” Muth said. “I was just really angry with how long it took them to get to him.” Nocero suffered some kind of fatal cardiac event that afternoon. His official cause of death was later determined to be a type of heart disease. The 41-year-old Eagles fan never saw kickoff.

Report: DT Leonard Williams could seek as much as $15 million per year - Big Blue View
The New York Giants will have some big decisions to make when 2020’s free agency period rolls around. Not only are they expected to try and find answers for right tackle and pass rusher, but they will have some decisions to make with regards to their own roster. None of those decisions may be bigger than whether or not to re-sign defensive tackle Leonard Williams. Ralph Vacchiano of SNY writes that Williams could well be one of the Giants top paid free agents, perhaps even the top of their free agent class if they are unable to sign an offensive tackle or pass rusher.

Steve Spagnuolo wants to be a head coach again - Arrowhead Pride
Spagnuolo popped up on social media Saturday visiting “Arrowhead East” — Big Charlie’s Saloon in Philadelphia. As can be seen in the photos, Chiefs fans have taken to Spagnuolo, who with the help of general manager Brett Veach, turned the defense from one of the worst units in the league to champions. It would be great to see “Spags” get another head-coaching opportunity soon — just not too soon.

Former Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin serves as ‘catalyst’ for New York Guardians in XFL debut - PennLive
McGloin set the tone for the New York Guardians in their 23-3 win over the Tampa Bay Vipers at the Meadowlands when he piloted the offense on an eight-play drive to open the game with a touchdown. But it meant something more to the former Penn State quarterback, who was playing in his first extended action since the 2018 preseason finale. When McGloin flung the ball to the Guardians fans in the lower bowl, he showcased an emotion that had been absent from his game in recent years: Joy. “What better way to start off the New York Guardians 2020 season than you go right down the field and score,” McGloin said. “But it was exciting. A lot of guys were emotional. The energy was high, and it was good to kind of get a drive like that. It kind of let everyone settle and relax a little bit. But it was fun. It was as fun as I’ve had playing the game of football in a long time.”

The Revamped XFL Off to Promising Start - MMQB
I was reminded of this bit of reporting I did for a series of pieces on the Alliance’s downfall this weekend as Vince McMahon’s XFL debuted with two games apiece on Saturday and Sunday. The league did not seem to have that singular moment of virility—or perhaps we’ve grown a little bit more cynical since the last spring football league lobbied for our attention. But after watching a handful of games this weekend, I left believing that the XFL would probably survive, even without one of their poor quarterbacks being flogged for the sake of free advertising. At its best, the XFL will snuggle neatly into the rotation with non-playoff hockey and non-tournament college basketball. It will exist within the football infrastructure and appeal to the offseason fan by not taking itself too seriously, which is noticeable in the way they broadcast live play calls, stream the booth review process and experiment with rule alterations that would have made the NFL’s cadre of dusty owners clutch their pearls.

First XFL game draws 3.3 million viewers on ABC - PFT
The XFL’s debut game drew 3.3 million viewers. ABC announced that number today and added that the viewership peaked at the end of the broadcast, which is a good sign that the game kept fans interested. Last year, the Alliance of American Football drew 2.9 million viewers for its first game. The AAF never reached anything remotely close to that again and shut down before completing its first season.

All the touchdowns from XFL Week 1 - XFL.com
Missed a touchdown from Opening Weekend of the XFL? Don’t worry. We have you covered.

Which XFL team should you root for? - SB Nation
The NFL season is officially over and the Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions for the first time in 50 years. Now it’s time for sports fans to turn their attention to the NBA, NHL, and college basketball seasons, which are all in full swing. But for some, there’s never enough football. Luckily for those folks, the XFL is here. The Vince McMahon-led league ran for one season back in 2001. It was a wild ride, complete with weird rules, WWE flair, and surprisingly good football. Now it’s back with more off-the-wall rule changes, albeit less wrestling influence.

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