What They’re Saying About the Eagles


Here’s this week’s roundup of what the national media are saying about the Eagles.

Peter King of The MMQB has the Eagles ninth in his power rankings:

Normally, entering the offseason in the NFC East, the outlook would be pretty even for the four teams, seeing as though they knock each other off so regularly. But I think the Eagles have separated themselves from the pack—Dallas’ 5-1 division record notwithstanding.

ESPN.com’s Mike Sando writes about a couple free-agent wide receivers: Seattle’s Golden Tate and the Eagles’ Riley Cooper:

This GM also thought the Philadelphia Eagles needed to re-sign Riley Cooper. The other GM made it clear other teams wouldn’t necessarily value those players the same way. “Tate will be seen with the slot-type guys and people in my position feel they can come up with those guys,” this GM said. “People will not say, ‘I have to have Golden Tate.’ People will say the system made Cooper, not the other way around.” There are other wide receivers to consider. Denver’s Eric Decker and New England’s Julian Edelman are among them, but the feeling here is that Peyton Manning and Tom Brady will be fine with or without them.

Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com mocks Michigan State CB Darqueze Dennard to the Eagles:

Dennard is one of the more consistent players in this draft class. He has good size and is physical in press coverage. If he does get beat off the line, he has enough speed to recover. He does have a little stiffness when he flips his hips but it’s not glaring. In off-coverage, he has a fluid pedal and he is quick to key/read/drive on throws in front of him. He made plays on the ball in every game I viewed. He is also a very aggressive run-defender. He works through blockers and is a very reliable tackler.

Bucky Brooks of NFL.com has the Eagles taking Louisville safety Calvin Pryor:

The Eagles’ secondary hasn’t been right since the departure of Brian Dawkins. Pryor is a firecracker with the skills to shine as a run or pass defender in the Eagles’ scheme.

Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com likes Pryor to the Eagles as well:

Though Charlie Strong’s other big prospect, Bridgewater, will get the bulk of the media attention, I think Pryor’s a first-round pick, as well. The Eagles’ defensive backfield played a lot better than many expected in 2014, but there’s room for upgrades all over. Pryor had 69 tackles, three interceptions, and was all over the field for Louisville in 2013.

Think the Eagles had real interest in Oregon’s Dion Jordan last season?

Salguero went even further:

Tim linked to this earlier, but in case you missed it, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. released his first mock draft. He’s got the Eagles taking Florida State WR Kelvin Benjamin at No. 22:

I’d consider this more of a “best player available” pick than an outright need, but Benjamin would fill a distinctive role for the Eagles. Riley Cooper has decent size, but doesn’t create separation with speed (and is a free agent), and DeSean Jackson is exceptionally quick still, but lacks a physical presence. Benjamin combines some of both, with a huge frame for a wide receiver at near 6-5 and a lean 230-plus pounds. He possesses not just speed, but a lot of change-of-direction burst. He can simply overwhelm defenders and make plays, and would be a nice weapon for Chip Kelly.

Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.
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