Eagles Wake-Up Call: Seahawks/Pats Free Agents


Courtesy of USA Today

Courtesy of USA Today

No, Malcolm Butler is not available.

The undrafted rookie corner out of West Alabama has two years left on his deal. And considering he won’t ever pay for a drink in the New England area again after snaring a Super-Bowl clinching interception Sunday, why would he ever leave?

There are some noteworthy players from both the Patriots and Seahawks that are scheduled to hit free agency, though. Here are a handful to keep in mind as the Eagles and the rest of the NFL tries to catch up to the champs:

Patriots

CB Darrelle Revis

The Patriots have the option of keeping Revis but he comes with a $20 million price tag and a $25 million cap hit. The 29-year-old helped turn New England’s secondary into a strength this season. He was the fourth-highest rated corner in the game, per Pro Football Focus, and finished with two interceptions and 14 passes defensed.

S Devin McCourty

McCourty was another strength of the defensive backfield. Revis called him “probably the best safety I’ve been around in all my years.” The 27-year-old former cornerback has played in 77 of a possible 80 games since being selected by the Pats in the first round in 2010. He had five tackles in the Super Bowl.

RB Shane Vereen

Vereen, 25, had 11 catches for 64 yards against Seattle. He had 904 all-purpose yards and scored five times during the regular season. Stevan Ridley is also scheduled to become a free agent, but is coming off an ACL tear.

Seahawks

G James Carpenter

Seattle’s starting left guard has had his share of injuries during an up-and-down pro career, but is coming off his best season since being drafted by the Seahawks in the first round back in 2011. Carpenter (6-5, 321) attended the University of Alabama. Ed Marynowitz was the program’s director of player personnel when Carpenter was there, so he should have a good feel for what the 25-year-old is all about.

OLB O’Brien Schofield

Schofield, 27, played just 34 percent of the snaps this season but posted nine quarterback hits and 15 hurries per PFF to go along with a pair of sacks.  He has experience in a 3-4 scheme and might not be a bad option if the Eagles are looking for someone to fill out the rotation at outside linebacker. He registered a QB hit on Tom Brady Sunday.

CB Byron Maxwell

Rotoworld has Maxwell as their top free-agent cornerback. At 6-1 and 207 pounds, he has the body type and skill set that Chip Kelly looks for in his defensive backs. Maxwell had 12 passes defensed and two picks this season while playing a variety of roles. He had five tackles on Sunday night.

WHAT YOU MISSED

Some notes on LeSean McCoy and the running back market.

The Super Bowl coaches are in favor of Chip Kelly’s expanded role in the front office.

A former Eagles exec with some very candid remarks about his old boss Howie Roseman.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Reuben Frank believes Roseman needs to be removed from the equation.

Maybe Kelly and Roseman and Marynowitz can all navigate through this complex minefield of relationships and job responsibilities for the next few years, but as Andy Reid said soon after he was fired when asked what went wrong here, “You can’t have everybody pulling in different directions.”

And as long as Roseman is here, that’s going to be the case.

Lurie’s loyalty to a guy who joined the franchise as an intern a decade and a half ago is admirable.

But for the long-term health of the Eagles, for the long-term success of the Eagles, for the long-term sanity of the Eagles, Roseman has to move on.

Bob Ford isn’t sure Roseman and Ed Marynowitz will be able to co-exist.

Roseman better keep a tight grip on his football administration staff as it analyzes and projects the salary cap and contractual side of things, because Marynowitz can play that game, too. He holds two postgraduate business degrees, which is exactly two more than Roseman. When the Eagles eventually haul out the GM title again, even-money is that it will be given to Marynowitz.

“We intend to build a collaborative and competitive work environment with our coaches, one built upon trust and respect with a focus on winning,” Marynowitz said in a statement released Thursday.

There wasn’t anything in the statement about seeking collaboration elsewhere in the building. It will be interesting to see whether that is even possible.

COMING UP

Sheil provides an Eagles slant to the Super Bowl.