Eagles News: LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson discussing potential reunion in Philly

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NFL rumors: Free agent LeSean McCoy hints at possible return to Eagles, DeSean Jackson wants a reunion - PhillyVoice
Former Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy, who was abruptly traded to Buffalo back in 2015 by then-coach Chip Kelly, is now a free agent after winning a Super Bowl with the Chiefs last season. And on Friday afternoon, the Birds all-time leading rusher made it pretty clear on his Instagram that he’d welcome a return to Philly. Yes, that’s former teammate DeSean Jackson, who made his own return to the Eagles last season, in the comments calling for a reunion with Shady.

NFL Draft Mailbag: Justin Jefferson vs. Jalen Reagor vs. Tee Higgins - BGN
Tee Higgins is the best receiver of these players, in my opinion. I know that is a contentious opinion, but he is proven with great size and consistent production as an outside receiver. Reagor is extremely exciting as a spark plug for any offense, even if he needs some polish. I certainly would understand the Eagles taking Reagor over Higgins, even if Higgins is the better player. Jefferson is a very good player but I don’t know if he is what the Eagles need, especially in the first round. Jefferson is a high level slot receiver, which is valuable, but the Eagles desperately need an outside pass catcher.

At the Podium: Howie Roseman Conference Call - BGN Radio
Join Howie Roseman for his conference call with the media to get his thoughts on a range of Eagles off-season topics like the inactivity at WR, the new signings on defense, the weird 2020 NFL Draft process and more! Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

Howie Speaks - Iggles Blitz
Howie also talked about Alshon, as if he might be coming back. That caught me off guard. Is this legit or is there an agenda? If Howie wants to trade Alshon, he’s got to make it sound like the Eagles still value him. This could simply be Howie trying to create any kind of a trade market for his veteran receiver. That would be smart business.

Eagles think WR cupboard isn’t completely bare after missing out on free agents - NBCSP
Alshon Jeffery is a 30-year-old receiver, coming off a Lisfranc injury, whose production has been dropping in recent seasons. On top of that, there are certain chemistry concerns and an albatross contract. DeSean Jackson had one great game last season but is a 33-year-old speed receiver coming off a core muscle injury and surgery. J.J. Arcega-Whiteside was a disappointing second-round pick in 2019 who, despite having a great opportunity and ample playing time, never made any sort of sustained contribution as a rookie. Greg Ward Jr. certainly played well down the stretch and deserves his opportunity in 2020 but he began last season on the practice squad and has seven career NFL games under his belt.

2020 NFL Free Agency: The boom and bust nature of the Darius Slay and Byron Jones signings - PFF
In 2019, Patricia asked his defensive backs to play 347 snaps of man coverage, the most of any defense in the NFL. The Lions allowed 229 combined first downs and touchdowns, the second-largest total league-wide, while yielding a 28th-ranked 107.5 passer rating to opposing quarterbacks. Slay gave up three of the Lions’ 33 touchdown passes allowed — the latter figure being the fourth most among teams — and he allowed 1.40 yards per coverage snap, his worst single-season average since his rookie year. While playing a high volume of man coverage snaps, Lions defenders played blind with their backs to the quarterback, and they were limited to a league-low seven interceptions, with Slay hauling in just two picks himself. Combined, the Lions’ defensive backs forced an incompletion on only 11.2% of their targets in coverage, which ranked 18th among the league’s 32 secondaries.

Eagles also exercise options on Carson Wentz, others - PFT
A report earlier Friday revealed the Eagles have picked up the 2021 option on tight end Zach Ertz’s contract. That isn’t the only option the team has picked up. They also have exercised the options on the contracts of quarterback Carson Wentz, receiver Alshon Jeffery, defensive end Brandon Graham and offensive guard Isaac Seumalo, according to the NFL’s transactions report. The moves are procedural.

2012 NFL Draft do-over: Colts take Luck; Foles saves Browns? - NFL.com
12) Lavonte David - LB. With Fletcher Cox gone, the Eagles turn to David, who would have provided an immediate impact at linebacker. He finished 2012 in Tampa with 139 tackles, including the most tackles for loss by a rookie (20) in 11 seasons.

Eagles, Cowboys are betting favorites to win NFC East in 2020 - DraftKings Nation
Philadelphia Eagles (+120). The Eagles somehow won the division in 2019 while dealing with key injuries to multiple starters of the offensive end. DeSean Jackson only played in three games while Alshon Jefferey notched nine appearances. But Carson Wentz was able to rally Philadelphia to a first place finish with a ragtag group of receivers. The Eagles have a narrow lead over the Cowboys at +120, and their chances haven’t gotten better or worse since adding Javon Hargrave to the defensive line and a host of defensive backs in free agency.

The NFL draft is going to be very different as teams, agents, and prospects try to work through a pandemic - Inquirer
“I talked to an NFL general manager yesterday, and he said that in all his years, 20-plus years in the business, his organization and other organizations have never drafted a player that did not get a physical,” said Richboro-based agent Ed Wasielewski. “The medical component of this process is going to be missing for a lot of prospects. Maybe they’ll get information from their schools … but a lot of teams take the approach that they want [a prospect to] get in front of their doctors for an actual physical examination, and have their doctor clear a player. There’s different standards for each team.” Wasielewski has done what he can to vet his players medically, but teams don’t usually get their medical information from the player’s agent.

New York Giants bring tight end Eric Tomlinson back - Big Blue View
Tight end Eric Tomlinson, who played three games for the New York Giants in 2019, is returning to the team. Tomlinson posted an Instagram photo Friday evening of himself signing a contract, and several reports have indicated that contract is with the Giants. [BLG Note: This dude was an Eagles UDFA signing back in 2015.]

How important is an elite pass rush? - Hogs Haven
The PFF authors revisited their work a few months later, this time to look at whether coverage or pass rush was more important to dictating the QB’s time to throw in the pocket, which, unsurprisingly, is incredibly important for determining whether pressure occurred on a play. They found that their coverage scores correlated positively with longer time in the pocket - good - and that their pass rush scores correlated with shorter time in the pocket - also good. But they also found that while the shorter time in the pocket caused by pass rushes caused QBs to throw faster, even fast, short throws can lead to play success. Accordingly, their conclusion was that the role of coverage in reducing play success was “much higher” than that of a pass rush.

Ask a former NFL player: Do you think the 2020 season will be canceled? - SB Nation
With all that being said, there’s another big concern about starting the season on time that isn’t the virus exactly. It’s the lack of preparation time for NFL players. Gyms and facilities are closed, and players are having to be creative to get their prep work in right now. This is a huge problem, in my opinion, and could be the reason the start of the season is delayed. If gyms aren’t open by May 1, I’ll start to be more worried about the new season starting on time.

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