Eagles News: Duce Staley issues farewell message to Philadelphia

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Dear Philadelphia, thanks for everything … Love, Duce - NBCSP
I am very sad to leave this great organization and city and fans, but I am looking forward to the growth opportunities that lie ahead despite the uncertainties. The way you embraced me, gave me the best nickname I’ve ever heard (Duuuuucccceeee), the way you expect the best from your athletes, the fact you deserve our best given what you’ve invested in us — all of this motivated me to reach heights I never thought possible growing up as a country boy in South Carolina that loved playing football more than I was necessarily good at it. This has been an incredibly tough year for our fans dealing with issues like COVID and social justice. Regardless of where the rest of my career takes me, I will continue to lead from the front to help our community on these and other issues. While you know I will give my all to every team I have the pleasure to work for, you should also know I consider myself an Eagle for life. Best wishes to the best sports city of all time and never forget what we accomplished together. The grit and character of this city will allow you to accomplish even more going forward. E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES!!

Nick Sirianni gives his first answer on Carson Wentz, Jalen Hurts, and the Eagles’ quarterback situation - BGN
Ah, Nick. I’m sure you know how the old saying goes: ‘If you have two quarterbacks, you have no quarterback.’ I’m quite sure people are going to have their own interpretations of his answer. And, for some, it’ll be based on what they want to glean from it. My takeaway is that Sirianni didn’t come out and definitively commit to either player as the Eagles’ undisputed starting quarterback. He was more effusive about Wentz and spoke about him longer than he did about Hurts. Does this mean the Eagles will have a quarterback competition? Sirianni will likely be asked that question directly on Friday. So far, it seems like a training camp battle is not out of the realm of possibility.

Are the Eagles’ New Coaches Better or Worse Than the Other Guys? - BGN Radio
On Episode 166 of BGN Radio, Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation, Jimmy Kempski of Philly Voice, and special guest Dan Klausner play “better or worse” as they analyze whether the Eagles’ new coaching staff under first-time head coach Nick Sirianni is better or worse than the old guys. Also: Thoughts on the Sirianni hire and the lack of buzz surrounding it. Sirianni’s work with QBs doesn’t suggest he’s easily going to fix Wentz, while Wentz reportedly “feels a little bit off in his relationship with the entire [Eagles] organization.” Why are the Eagles trying to recreate the Colts? People upset that Duce was passed over again (and thus left to Detroit). The great John Dorsey is gone. Senior Bowl prospects to watch.

The best landing spots for Zach Ertz - Fake Teams
New England Patriots. I promise I’m not just writing this as a Patriots fan myself. Given how depleted the Patriots’ receiving core was in 2020, I have to think the team is going to be hyper aggressive about adding pass catching talent this offseason. We know this offense is certainly conducive to high tight end production (see: Gronkowski, Rob) and Ertz would enter New England as honestly their top pass catcher. Julian Edelman is 34-years-old and returning from season-ending knee surgery and while I love Jakobi Meyers and N’Keal Harry, neither proved themselves to be a reliable no. 1 receiver last year.

Grading NFL head-coaching hires in 2021: David Culley to Texans, Nick Sirianni to Eagles, Dan Campbell to Lions - ESPN+
Grades for Philadelphia hiring Sirianni — Fowler: C. Just seems like the Eagles telegraphed this one, firing Pederson for a coach who’s an extension of the Pederson tree, trying to fix Wentz without doing it with Pederson. Sirianni is an ascending coach with good demeanor for the job, so maybe that will translate in Year 1. My guess is some other candidates weren’t thrilled about this job. — Graziano: C-minus. I don’t know. If he can get Wentz fixed, the hire is going to look really good. But if that’s his primary responsibility, then how’s he going to do with the gazillion other things a head coach has to handle. I’ve heard good things about Sirianni as a coach, but it feels a bit early for him to have a job like this.

Examining the new NFL coaching hires: Arthur Smith to Atlanta, David Culley to Houston and more - PFF
Sirianni was a non-playcalling offensive coordinator with the Indianapolis Colts, a franchise that has been extremely well-run over the past three years under Chris Ballard and Frank Reich. While Carson Wentz’s downfall was disheartening, Jalen Hurts’ presence and the possession of the sixth overall pick — along with the hiring of former Chargers assistant coach Shane Steichen — mean that not all is lost in the City of Brotherly Love. Jonathan Gannon was hired to be the defensive coordinator after a stint with the Colts as their defensive backs coach. Indianapolis has been one of the league’s more solid units over the past few years, reviving Xavier Rhodes’ career in 2020. He’ll have to do the same thing with an Eagles defense that atrophied significantly since the team’s Super Bowl run in 2017.

Ken Whisenhunt has worked with the Eagles’ Nick Sirianni and Shane Steichen, says they will earn players’ respect - Inquirer
“He had a great passion for the game,” Whisenhunt said of Sirianni. “You could obviously tell that when you talked to him. Little [wide receiver] techniques — the splits, the stances, the depth of the routes, how you come out of the route.” Whisenhunt, who played tight end at Georgia Tech and in the NFL, said one of the first things he learned about Sirianni was that he was proud of his days as a Division III Mount Union wideout. “He was a good college player. We talked about that and laughed about it a number of times, because he had some tape,” Whisenhunt said. He noted that Sirianni’s father and his two brothers have all coached.

5 principles Nick Sirianni believes will lead to winning football for the Philadelphia Eagles - PE.com
2. Compete with each other: “We want to compete with each other at all times,” he said. “We’re competing in the meeting room. We’re competing on the field. We’re competing outside of the meeting room when we’re in between going from one meeting to another and there will be different ways to do that. I think competition is such a big thing that we want to establish here and build on here.” 3. Accountability: “Being accountable. Holding each other accountable. My job is to hold everybody accountable,” Sirianni said. “Hold the players accountable for what they do on the field and hold the coaches accountable, but then I also want the coaches and players around to hold me accountable because we’re all in this together. Being accountable is going to be one thing.”

The Cowboys’ contract situation with Dak Prescott is even more difficult with a changing NFL QB landscape - Blogging The Boys
Dallas has procrastinated the inevitable for far too long and the day of reckoning is coming. They are either going to finally have to blink or accept that they are fully headed in a Prescott-less direction which didn’t exactly look promising in 2020. The great Bob Sturm said it best this week. “The Cowboys are in a corner and have about 45 days to sort out their mess. Every option might now be on the table behind closed doors, and I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised if they actually let Dak get to free agency. Maybe their QB will do them a favor and take Russell Wilson’s deal from two years ago to get this done, but odds are he is annoyed enough that he wants to show them that this time, it is going to go the other way. This all could have been avoided, and every fan of this franchise has every right to be upset. They should just hope the team avoids the worst-case scenario.” This all could have been avoided. All of it.

Report: Raiders receiver Nelson Agholor told teammates “they sucked” after loss to Dolphins - PFT
Via Vic Tafur of TheAthletic.com, “Agholor . . . said his teammates were selfish and didn’t work hard enough, and that they had quit against the Dolphins as well as in the previous two losses. He said there was no accountability in the locker room, and on winning teams players play for one another and the coaches. . . . Agholor told his teammates that they sucked.”

5 Deshaun Watson trade packages that actually make sense - SB Nation
I know there’s been trade speculation from fans that the Jets could include Sam Darnold in a deal here, but I think if Houston parts ways with Watson they’ll want more future assets, not a gamble on a quarterback who hasn’t shown a lot so far. The No. 2 overall pick would give Houston their pick of quarterbacks not named Trevor Lawrence. It would also be a future bet against the Jets, believing the outstanding No. 1 picks would be considerably higher than any other team. The big question here is whether the Jets would be a location acceptable to Watson. It’s a big market, with plenty of earning potential — but in terms of winning that’s more iffy. There’s a lot of work to be done on the roster, and losing a future of bevy picks could only make that worse. However, the Jets now have Robert Salah, a talented coach who could turn things around. It’s just going to be trickier than usual.

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