Maclin?

ESPN's John Clayton says "the Eagles got a steal at wide receiver with Jeremy Maclin."

On the other hand, ESPN's Len Pasquarelli says, "Missouri's Jeremy Maclin, Philadelphia's selection at No. 19, doesn't play as big as his size (6-1, 208) and isn't as quick on the field as he is running for a stopwatch.The Eagles have five veteran receivers, including 2008 second-round pick DeSean Jackson, and Maclin could find it difficult to carve out playing time as a rookie.

If he can't carve out rookie playing time, it a) would not be surprising for rookie WRs and b) a positive sign for the Eagles' WR production.

Future Picks

From the Boston Globe. The Patriots trade picks for future considerations - 3rd rounders this year for 2nd rounders in a subsequent year. The Patriots have done it the most times since Belichick became coach. The Eagles are right behind them. I can't help but wonder how many times the Patriots have traded out of the first round. That is a Reid hallmark draft move.

When it comes to the draft, coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots have been futures traders. Like Dillon, nose tackle Vince Wilfork, wide receiver Randy Moss, and linebacker Jerod Mayo, the reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, were acquired from deals in which the Patriots flipped picks forward into future years. With a surplus of picks this season - the Patriots own 11, including three in the second round - it's a safe bet that Belichick, who touted his team's flexibility, could swap a selection or two for future picks in hopes of cashing them in at a later date.

An analysis of information provided by the NFL on draft-day deals since 2000, Belichick's first year with the Patriots, shows that 41 trades have been made in which a team got a future pick in return. During that span, no team has done it more than the Patriots, who made 11. The Eagles were next with eight.

Burgess Back to the Eagles?

That's what Chris Mortensen says is a possibility.

Quiet Man Making Noise

Sheldon Brown has always been the overlooked/underappreciated member of the Eagles’ secondary. Brian Dawkins got all the acclaim, Lito Sheppard was the first round pick, and Michael Lewis was also drafted ahead of, and got to a pro bowl, before him. There are also some shades of Brian Westbrook to Brown in that he seems to have carried a chip about where he was selected in the draft.

 

But Brown has been a steady presence at corner. Not as skilled in coverage as Sheppard, he made up for it in physicality (especially for a corner) and in rarely giving up a big play. Indeed, there is perennial speculation of moving Brown to safety as the heir apparent to Brian Dawkins’ ability for run support/pass coverage par excellence.

 

Brown is most noted for nearly de-cleating Reggie Bush during the opening drive of the Eagles-Saints divisional playoff game and for being conspicuously quiet during the secondary’s turmoil last year after Asante Samuel signed for big money and Lito Sheppard demanded a contract re-negotiation.

 

Turns out, Brown was as unhappy with his contract in the wake of the Samuel signing as Sheppard. But Brown sought a behind the scenes effort to redo his deal while Sheppard loudly made his displeasure known and subsequently demanded a trade. But it appears that what has really set Brown off is the Eagles’ denial that they are aware of his displeasure.

 

Brown has developed into a real leader on the team. And with the departure of Dawkins and Sheppard, the secondary has already lost a lot of depth and needs Brown’s veteran presence more than ever. Then again, signing an 8 year contract extension wasn’t the brightest thing in the world. And Brown’s experience is a cautionary tale to upcoming free agents who are thinking about long-term deals prior to a new CBA.

The Dearth of Investigative Sports Journalism, Part 1035

The Sports Guy takes the Boston media to task for not better covering the Kevin Garnett injury obfuscation over the past two months. Simmons' blames the decline of newspapers. I agree somewhat but think the larger issue is the inability of most media outlets (both locally and nationally) to do investigative journalism. Simmons' take is below, but the same situation he refers to could easily be applied to the Patriots' spy-gate. How in the world no newspaper or media outlet has published an even remotely complete or detailed story about legendary coach and super bowl champs cheating - and then the resulting league coverup - is amazing. What was worse was the snide tones in articles reporting to the only halfway proactive investigation, conducted by Sen. Arlen Specter of all people. or the ridiculous stance of the papers that some former Pats' video assistant cum golf pro had to provide the goods and if he didn't everything was hunky dory. A pity no one ever bothered to ask Roger Goodell a hardball question on the issue. 

What remains amazing was the media's willingness to accept Boston's strategy that could only be described as "stringing everyone along." Garnett didn't have an identifiable injury. This wasn't a case of "he tore his MCL, he'll be back in four weeks" or even "he's got some bone chips in there, we might have to clean them out." Really, the dude just has old knees. He put too many miles on them and played with too much intensity for too long. When the knees go, they go. That's just the law of the NBA. It's as simple as that.

There's a hidden sub-story lurking here: It involves the fall of newspapers, lack of access and the future of reporting, not just with sports but with everything. I grew up reading Bob Ryan, who covered the Celtics for the Boston Globe and remains the best basketball writer alive to this day. Back in the 1970s and early '80s, he was overqualified to cover the team. In 1980, he would have sniffed out the B.S. signs of this KG story, kept pursuing it, kept writing about it, kept working connections and eventually broken it. True, today's reporters don't get the same access Ryan had, but let's face it: If 1980 Bob Ryan was covering the Celtics right now, ESPN or someone else would lure him away. And that goes for the editors, too. The last two sports editors during the glory years of the Globe's sports section were Vince Doria and Don Skwar ... both of whom currently work for ESPN.

For the past few years, as newspapers got slowly crushed by myriad factors, a phalanx of top writers and editors fled for the greener pastures of the Internet. The quality of nearly every paper suffered, as did morale. Just two weeks ago, reports surfaced that the New York Times Company (which owns the Globe) was demanding $20 million in union concessions or it'd shut down the Globe completely. I grew up dreaming of writing a sports column for the Globe; now the paper might be gone before I turn 40. It's inconceivable. But this Garnett story, and how it was (and wasn't) covered, reminds me of "The Wire," which laid out a blueprint in Season 5 for the death of newspapers without us fully realizing it. The season revolved around the Baltimore Sun and its inability (because of budget cuts and an inexperienced staff) to cover the city's decaying infrastructure. The lesson was inherent: We need to start caring about the decline of newspapers, because, really, all hell is going to break loose if we don't have reporters breaking stories, sniffing out corruption, seeing through smoke and mirrors and everything else. That was how Season 5 played out, and that's why "Wire" creator David Simon is a genius. He saw everything coming before anyone else did.

Ultimately, Garnett's injury doesn't REALLY matter. It's just sports. But I find it a little chilling that the best player on the defending NBA champion could be sidelined for two solid months, with something obviously wrong, and nobody came close to unraveling the real story. We still don't know what's wrong with his knee. We just know it's screwed up. And, yeah, you could say that Garnett has always been guarded -- with just a few people in his circle of trust -- and yeah, you could say that only a few members of the Celtics organization know the truth (maybe coach Doc Rivers, GM Danny Ainge, majority owner Wyc Grousbeck, the trainers and that's it). But this was a massive local sports story. Its coverage is not a good sign for the future of sports journalism or newspapers in general.

Scenes from Washington

Phillies fans at the Nationals' home opener, Monday, April 13, 2009

Initial Scheduling Thoughts

Initial reaction to the Eagles' 2009 schedule.

Tough 3 game stretch all against division rivals from Oct. 26- Nov. 8 - made harder by a cross-country trip to Oakland the week before and the Skins game being on Monday night means a short week against the Giants the following game.

Two really hard openers - on the road vs. Carolina and at home against the Saints. A very real 0-2 start is possible.

Was the season finale at Dallas league payback to Jerry Jones after the debacle his team suffered on the road at the Linc in last year's closeout.

Why do the Eagles play road games on weeks immediately following West Coast road games? Not once, but twice!!

The go out to Oakland and then have to go to Washington the very next week. They go out to San Diego on November 15 and then have to travel to Chicago immediately afterward.

The league could have done them a favor by scheduling their bye after one of their transcontinental road trips...but no.

Danny Ozark is alive!

A friend writes:

reading a round-up of reactions to Harry's death, I came across this reaction. Who knew Ozark was still alive?

Former Phillies manager Danny Ozark: "I first got to know Harry when I was managing Spokane in the Pacific Coast League. He had started his career in Hawaii in the same league. He loved the game of baseball back then. When I got to Philadelphia, I learned first-hand how much he loved the Phillies and their fans. He was a great human being with a great voice. He will be sorely missed by millions of fans."

For You Harry

“This is to the Philadelphia Fan

To Laud your passion as best I can

Your loyalty is unsurpassed

Be the Fightins in first or last

We come to the park each day

Looking forward to another fray

Because we know you'll be there

We know you really care

You give the opposing pitcher fits

Because as one loyalist shouts, "Everybody hits"

To be sure in Philly, there might be some boos

Because you passionate fans, like the manager, hate to lose

Your reaction to the action on the field that you impart

Spurs us as broadcasters to call the game with enthusiasm and heart

We feel your passion through and through

Philadelphia fans, I love you.”

- - Harry Kalas

 

We love you, too, Harry. We’ll miss you.

Harry the K

High praise for Harry Kalas. “He was a Philadelphia guy,” said Bob Boone.

Jamie Moyer

Jamie Moyer gets a profile in Sports Illustrated this week (the one with UNC on the cover).

The point is that even after tours with seven major league teams, Moyer has never forgotten working-class Souderton.

With 246 career wins which will probably increase to at least 255 by the end of the season, it's fair to speculate about Moyer's Hall of Fame potential. 

Currently he's 48th in all-time wins. 255 would get him to 40th - which would place him above Jack Morris, Carl Hubbel, Bob Gibson, Whitey Ford and Juan Marichal.

 He's made one all-star appearance - in 2003 when he was with the Mariners (at age 40!). The same year he won 21 games. He's won 20 games in two seasons.

His career ERA is 4.19 and he has 2250 strikeouts. 

All in all, a fabulous 24 year career for a local guy who made good with less than major league "stuff." But other than wins - based on his longevity - it's hard to see him making the Hall.

Moving Picks

Rich Hoffman tries to figure the trade up and trade down scenarios with the Eagles' 21st and 28th picks.And he points out that the top 10 just ain't what it used to be. While you win big with these premier players, if you get it wrong you lose big too (and not just the lost huge salary).

Their first pick and their second-round pick could probably get them in the top 10. Their first- and third-rounders could probably get them to about 15th.

The Eagles have had good success with their second rounders. The last round of the first day, however, has been a disaster. Given their atrocious recent track record with 3rd rounders (Matt McCoy, Ryan Moats, Tony Hunt), the Eagles would probably be best served by giving up the trey to upgrade one of their first rounders into the top half of the draft.

Phillies Fans...Come on Down!

A lot of controversy here in Washington over Nationals’ President Stan Kasten’s appeal to opposing teams’ fans to come watch their team play vs. the Nationals. The biggest issue, by far, has been the outreach to Phillies fans.

Another Slow Start

Glad to see the Phillies are off to their typically torrid April start. Hopefully they’ll have at least one win and 4 runs scored by the time of Monday’s game when I go see them for the Nationals’ home opener.

 

My friend did some quickie research on the recent Awful Aprils of the last 6 seasons. The best start they have had is '03, when they went 15-12. Otherwise, 1 time in the last 5 seasons they were above .500 for the month of April. Here are the last 5 Aprils:

'04: 10-11
'05: 13-17
'06: 10-14
'07: 11-14*
'08: 15-13

* -- In April '07, they started 2-8 and, remember, Charlie almost lost his job.

Dawk Helping out Former Eagle Employee

BDawk is going to give his Broncos-Eagles tix to former Eagle employee Dan Leone, who was fired after criticizing the Eagles for letting Dawkins depart via free agency. Just another notch in BDawk's good guy belt.

From the Daily News:

Of course, Dawkins will be back at the Linc this season as a visitor, with the Broncos scheduled to play here at a date not yet announced. He said he has decided what he will do with the two tickets each visiting player gets for an away game. They won't go to a high school player this time, but to a former Eagles game-day employee, Dan Leone, who was fired by the team after he vented his displeasure over the Birds losing Dawkins to Denver on his Facebook page.

"I thought it'd be a good gesture,'' Dawkins said. "Had I not . . . signed with Denver, that guy would still have his job. Obviously, he made a decision and out of emotion said something. He was one of probably thousands and thousands of Eagles fans who felt that way. That didn't surprise me, that someone said that on their Facebook. It did surprise me that he was let go, though. That really did surprise me. I felt it would be a good thing, to reach out to that individual and just let him know how much I appreciate it.''

Separated at Birth

I've had Carolina on my mind as Villanova prepares for tonight's game. Maybe this is a stretch, but don't UNC's Tyler Hansbrough and Friday Night Lights' JD McCoy (nee Jeremy Sumpter) look alike. More than physical appearance, they share some other characteristics: God-given talent, leader of the team, good-boy image, etc. (btw, I know FNL is a fictional show).

Here's Hansbrough. And go to the following link for McCoy.


http://www.tv.com/jeremy-sumpter/person/68529/viewer.html?ii=4&grti=104&gri=68529&flag=

More 24

Again more retrospective on that magical moment 24 years ago this week. Thanks again for Villanova being in the Final Four this year so we can remember it all in detail.

Cutler

Surprisingly, the news out of Denver has created a fan frenzy in Philadelphia to trade McNabb for the disgruntled Bronco. Have fans got clued in that should McNabb leave the team isn’t interested in getting a QB in return since they have the successor-in-waiting already on the roster in Kevin Kolb?

24 Years Ago Today

On April 1, 1985 Villanova played the “perfect” basketball game and pulled off the greatest upset in college basketball history by defeating defending national champion Georgetown University, 66-64, in Lexington, Kentucky to win the national championship.

 

Also on that date, I received my acceptance letter to Villanova.

 

Prior to the game, my brother and I hung a bedsheet on the side of our house proclaiming “Nova is #1,’ only to have some dumb woman stop while we were hanging it and ask why we were “saying our car was #1?”

 

Again, the great thing about Villanova being in the Final Four is you get to hear all of these old stories again and relive that magical moment.

A Fun Run

As my brother has long argued, one of – if not the best things – about your team being in the playoffs or championship game is that you are able to maintain your fan interest for as long as possible. That is, you enjoy a full (entire) sport season when your team does well. The other great thing about your team being in the playoffs/championship is that there is a ton more media coverage, and national attention, about your team. So it’s a win-win. You get to follow your team for as long as possible and the farther they go the more there is to follow (read) about them.

 

That is the great thing about Villanova making the Final Four. Though significant underdogs to North Carolina on Saturday, by virtue of making the Final Four Wildcat fans are guaranteed to remain interested in the college basketball season for all but the final two days, and even then could still be going for them too.

 

So regardless of whether they beat UNC on Saturday, it’s been a great, fun run.