Eagles draft thoughts

By Joe Miegoc | Published: May 3, 2013 | Leave a comment

Here is the column I wrote on the Eagles draft for Friday’s paper.

While the returns from this year’s class won’t be known for a few years, the Eagles theoretically did quite well for themselves in last week’s NFL draft.

I’m not much for grading picks, since none of the players selected has even taken a snap during a mini-camp, but getting value for each selection is key and the Eagles did as well at that as any team in the league.

With six offensive linemen chosen in the first 11 picks, the Eagles secured the draft’s third best tackle in Oklahoma’s Lane Johnson at No. 4. While Johnson has only been playing tackle for two years — he was a quarterback, tight end and defensive end before growing into an O-lineman — he has as much upside as any player in the draft.

The best athlete of the linemen, Johnson will start his career with the Eagles at right tackle and eventually slide over to the left side when Jason Peters’ time in Philadelphia ends. Peters is coming off multiple Achilles tendon tears and it’s unknown if he can return to the level of play that made him the NFL’s top linemen in 2011, so having Johnson is a good fallback option should Peters struggle.

What Johnson’s selection does in the short term is allow Todd Herremans to kick inside to guard, by far his best position, and signal the end of the road for first-round bust Danny Watkins, who has been an utter failure after being a monumental reach in the 2011 draft.

The Eagles made a luxury pick in the second round by taking Stanford tight end Zach Ertz, but that’s OK because they stuck to their board instead of forcing a pick for need like they did two years ago in the second round by taking Temple safety Jaiquawn Jarrett. Ertz will team with Brent Celek to form a duo that can attack teams short (Celek) and deep (Ertz). A notch behind Notre Dame’s Tyler Eifert as the draft’s best tight end, Ertz gives the Eagles a threat down the seam they haven’t had in ages. He has a ways to go as a blocker, but in today’s NFL, blocking tight ends are a thing of the past.

Third-round pick Bennie Logan out of LSU was the only pick that didn’t sit well with me. Logan is a talented defensive tackle, but his effort at LSU ran hot and cold and guys like that raise red flags. It’s hard to count on a guy playing harder once he’s gotten paid, but in the third round it’s a bit easier to live with a player like Logan. He can spell nose tackle Isaac Sopoaga at times and also provide depth as a defensive end when the Eagles employ a three-man front.

Unlike Logan, I had zero issues with the Eagles spending a fourth-round pick on USC quarterback Matt Barkley. If he had come out as a junior Barkley might have gone in the top five, but he returned for his senior season and it was a disaster.

USC came into the season ranked No. 1, but the Trojans severely underachieved on their way to a 7-6 season. To make matters worse, Barkley hurt his shoulder, which caused him to miss the Notre Dame game and the Trojans’ bowl game. I won’t call Barkley the Eagles quarterback of the future (those aren’t usually found in the fourth round), but they only gave up a seventh-round pick to move up four spots to draft someone the Eagles ranked as one of the top 50 players in the draft.

While Barkley doesn’t have the strongest arm, he’s accurate, is a leader and was a four-year starter at USC. I don’t see him playing much this season, but Barkley adds intrigue down the road.

Fifth-round safety Earl Wolff was a three-year starter at N.C. State. He was highly productive for the Wolfpack (361 tackles and eight forced fumbles) and ended his career as an All-ACC first-team selection. Wolff has good size (5-foot-11 and 209 pounds) and speed (4.44 seconds in the 40-yard dash a the combine). So why did he fall to the fifth round?

He plays a bit reckless at times in both run support and coverage, and only had six interceptions in 51 games in college. That said, Wolff will contribute immediately on special teams and bring a physical presence in the secondary.

Defensive ends Joe Kruger and David King weren’t sexy picks, but in the seventh round both offered good value. Kruger won’t turn 21 until June 4 so there’s potential to add bulk to his 6-6, 269-pound frame and he comes from good bloodlines (he’s the brother of Paul Kruger, the former Baltimore Raven who signed a huge free-agent deal with the Cleveland Browns).

King played at a high level at Oklahoma, and while he won’t add much for the pass rush (5 ½ sacks in 43 games), he has the size (6-4, 281) to play as a 3-4 defensive end.

Another good value pick in the seventh round was Oregon State cornerback Jordan Poyer. A productive player for the Beavers (13 career interceptions), Poyer played better than he tested (4.65 in the 40 caused his draft slide).

He’ll be another special teams contributor (he was the gunner on the punt team at Oregon State) who can also help in the return game (Poyer averaged 14.1 yards per punt return and 27.8 yards per kickoff return in college).

The Eagles undrafted free agent class has potential. LSU punter Brand Wing had as much talent as any punter but also had some off-the-field issues. Stony Brook running back Miguel Maysonet ran for 1,964 yards and 21 touchdowns as a senior and defensive end Damion Square made 31 starts for Alabama.

The Eagles did great job of adding talent to their roster on paper. We should know in three years if it translated to the field.

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Sixers can blame themselves

By Joe Miegoc | Published: April 26, 2013 | 2 Comments

Here is the column that I wrote for Friday’s paper.

While 16 teams compete in the NBA playoffs, the Philadelphia 76ers sit at home left to stew over how a season that started with such promise unraveled so dramatically.

It would be easy to blame all the woes of a 34-48 campaign on Andrew Bynum, and while his large absence in the middle was a big reason for the Sixers’ struggles, there are many reasons why this year was one to forget in south Philadelphia.

There were awful free-agent signings, a coach who admitted he didn’t feel like coaching any longer around Christmas and a former No. 2 overall draft pick who again failed to take big steps forward.

The biggest blunder by far was the decision to give a two-year contract to Kwame Brown, who has to be in the discussion of worst No. 1 picks in NBA draft history, with the second year a player option. One of the many horrible personnel decisions made by Michael Jordan, Brown was picked by the Washington Wizards in front of All-Stars and Olympians Tyson Chandler and Pau Gasol in 2001.

Not only did Brown’s long history of laziness make signing him a bad move by the Sixers, but there was no reason why they needed another big man with Spencer Hawes and Lavoy Allen already on the roster. What did the Sixers get out of Brown for the $2.8 million they paid him? Twenty two appearances in all, while many games he remained on the bench as “did not play, coach’s decision.” With Brown all but certain to exercise his player option, the Sixers will be forced to negotiate a buyout with him because he is not the kind of player you want around a young team.

While Nick Young was far more productive than Brown, he was another player with questionable character that Doug Collins, who had final say on personnel moves, chose to bring in. Throughout his career, Young has never had a problem scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game for three teams during a six-year career, but scoring seems to be the only thing he cares about and that reflects in his other career numbers — he has averages of 1.9 rebounds, one assist, .5 steals and .2 blocks over that time. That didn’t change in Philadelphia, but the Sixers gave him a one-year deal so he won’t be back.

That Collins chose to resign at the end of the season three years into a four-year deal that paid him $4.5 million annually wasn’t a big surprise. Collins had never lasted more than three years at any of his previous three coaching stops, but it’s quite disturbing that he told the media last week that he knew around Christmas that he no longer wanted to coach. Over the past few months he repeatedly preached about how he put his all into his job, staying up nights trying to think of better ways to do his job or get more out of his players, while chastising his players for not doing the same. After a loss to Orlando in February, Collins delivered a tirade about how his team didn’t give enough effort while he was expending all his energy. You really have to wonder how truthful he was being after he mentally quit on his team less than three months into the season.

The only comfort I can take about Evan Turner was that no player drafted after him at No. 2 overall in 2010 has become a perennial All-Star. Yes, Indiana’s Paul George has made an All-Star team and is a very good player, but he was never in the discussion at No. 2. What frustrates most fans about Turner is his questionable shot selection, an inconsistent effort and the inability to progress to being an impact player his draft position says he should be. There’s no guarantee Turner will be back either as a new coach and general manager may try to trade him in the offseason.

Now to Bynum, who draws the ire of most for this season’s failures.

Trading for him in the first place was a gamble because of his injury history and questionable work ethic. Fully understanding that when healthy Bynum is one of the top-five centers in the NBA, the price of Andre Iguodala, Nicola Vucevic, Moe Harkless and a 2015 first-round pick was way too much. Ending the relationship with Iguodala was the right move because the Sixers weren’t going to go any further with him, but Vucevic was a player who had a variety of skills, Harklass had just been chosen in the first round by the Sixers and future first-round picks are a valuable commodity. Of course, everyone knows the outcome as Bynum never played a minute thanks to two balky knees, the right one injured bowling while he was supposed to be rehabbing the left knee. Now Bynum is a free agent, after collecting more than $16 million from the 76ers, and he’s looking for a big payday. Will the Sixers try to bring him back? A two-year deal with an option for a third year might make sense, but if Bynum is looking for a max contract the Sixers have to let him go.

Where do the Sixers go from here? They’ll have more than $20 million in cap relief, but it’s hard to see free agents like Dwight Howard or Chris Paul being interested in coming to Philadelphia. What they can’t do is take another gamble or make mistakes in free agency like they did a year ago.

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Phillies not down yet

By Joe Miegoc | Published: April 12, 2013 | 1 Comment

Here is the column I wrote for Friday’s paper:

Contrary to what has been said the Phillies’ season is not over.

Sure, Cole Hamels has been shelled, Roy Halladay is a shell of his former self, the team blew two four-run leads at home, the bullpen allowed 12 of their first 13 inherited runners to score and Ryan Howard is hitting a paltry .200 with 12 strikeouts in 35 at-bats.

Still, Cliff Lee has been fantastic, Chase Utley is off to a great start, the Phillies managed a ninth-inning rally againstKansas Citywhen all looked lost, they just won two of three against the Mets and they head toMiamifor a three-game series against the hapless Marlins with a chance to get over .500.

A lot will have to go right for the Phillies to return to the postseason, but with two wild cards there’s plenty of reason to believe they can do it.

Lee has been the ace of the staff through his first two starts following a year in which he won just six games despite having an ERA of 3.16 and a WHIP of 1.11. In 16 2-3 innings this year, Lee has allowed just three runs (two earned), has struck out 14 batters and walked nobody. Lee, who didn’t win his first game until July 4 last season, even threw in an RBI single in Tuesday’s 8-3 victory over the Mets.

Utley, in the final year of a seven-year $85 million contract, has 11 hits in his first 33 at-bats, but the best news is that he’s driving the ball like he used to. Both of his home runs went to center field and a .636 slugging percentage shows that his balky knees, which limited him to just 186 games over the past two seasons, are finally well enough for him to perform at a high level.

Another good sign is that Michael Young, who was acquired in the offseason fromTexas, is 12-for-32 to go with five walks for an on-base percentage of .459. While his defense has been far from spectacular, Young hasn’t been the butcher at third base many claimed he was while with the Rangers.

There are still plenty of concerns that make some believe this could be a long season in southPhiladelphiawith the biggest issue being Halladay, the two-time Cy Young winner who has been beaten to a pulp in his first two starts.

Even with the drop in velocity (down to 89-91 mph from the 93-95 he was at when he first came to the Phillies in 2010), Halladay has enough stuff to still be a top-of-the-rotation starter. The problem he’s had early in the season has been the command of his pitches, especially his curveball. Take Monday for instance: with two runners on base (one whom he hit with a 1-2 sinker) he opened with two curveballs to Mets catcher John Buck and neither was even close to being a strike. Halladay had no choice but to throw a fastball and he paid dearly when Buck smoked an 89 mph meatball into the right-field seats. Halladay, who has allowed 12 earned runs in 7 1-3 innings, is being hit at a .353 clip and has walked six, which is unheard of for guy who walked a combined 65 hitters in 484 1-3 innings in 2010-11.

There is reason to be hopeful about Halladay, who just two years ago was one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. While the fastball isn’t what it used to be, at times it still shows the downward sink Halladay needs it to have to be successful. On competitive spirit and guile alone, Halladay should still be one of the top-10 pitchers in the National League and you’d like to think he’ll figure it out sooner than later.

The biggest worry at the plate is Howard, who continues to show zero discipline. I have no idea why an opposing pitcher would even throw him a strike because Howard doesn’t seem to mind swinging at balls. While his home run Tuesday and two-hit game Wednesday are reasons for optimism, the fact that 12 of Howard’s 28 outs have been made without putting the ball in play is worrisome. I’d be fine with that number if he was also drawing walks, but Howard has just two walks, so he clearly isn’t seeing the ball well or he’s putting too much pressure on himself to hit.

The season is just nine games old and while the Phillies should be 6-3, they very well could be 1-8 if not for Lee and Kevin Frandsen’s two-out, three-run double that beat the Royals on Saturday. While there are legitimate concerns, there are also reasons for hope and optimism. I do know from firsthand knowledge, though, that those are tough words for Philly sports fans to believe in.

 

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Flyers stand pat

By Joe Miegoc | Published: April 7, 2013 | Leave a comment

I meant to post this a few days ago, but I forgot (memory is the first thing to go, right? or is it hearing?).

Anyway, I wrote a column for Friday’s paper about the Flyers standing pat (except for one minor trade) at the trade deadline and it being a good idea. Here it is in all its glory (I swear its much better than the Flyers’ embarrassing second period against Winnipeg on Saturday).

Wednesday’s NHL trade deadline came and went with the Flyers making the smallest of moves that won’t drastically improve the team now or down the road and that’s OK.

General manager Paul Holmgren wisely didn’t mortgage the future for the short term to get a much-needed defenseman because there just wasn’t a game-changing one on the market. Instead the Flyers, who are five points out of the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, shipped out one backup goaltender for another (Michael Leighton along with a 2015 draft pick to Columbus for Steve Mason).

Nothing Holmgren could have done would have solved the woes of his defense, which has been the Flyers’ biggest issue this season. Part of that is poor performance, part is bad personnel decisions and the last part is the organization’s continued run of bad luck with concussions to franchise players.

When the Flyers traded for Chris Pronger in 2009 they thought they had shored up their defense and point on the power play for seven years (the length of the contract the Flyers gave Pronger when they acquired him from Anaheim). The move paid off immediately when Pronger helped the Flyers reach the Stanley Cup finals in 2010, but everything came crashing down at the beginning of the 2011-12 season when Pronger sustained a concussion after being hit in the eye with a stick.

Pronger, who was the Flyers’ captain for just 13 games before the concussion, hasn’t played since thanks to post-concussion symptoms and will likely never take the ice again. That puts him in an unenviable class of past Flyers captains like Eric Lindros and Keith Primeau, who both saw their careers destroyed by concussions.

With one hand tied behind his back thanks to Pronger’s hefty salary, Holmgren succeeded in adding young scoring punch as he tries to bring a Stanley Cup to Philadelphia for the first time since 1975.

He did well by getting rid of Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and their God-awful contracts prior to last season, netting Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds, Jakub Voracek and a draft pick that became Sean Couturier in return. Holmgren also strengthened his blue-line by trading talented, but underachieving forward James van Riemsdyk to Toronto for defenseman Luke Schenn prior to the start of this season.

It’s Holmgren’s move for goalie Ilya Bryzgalov prior to last season that has netted the harshest response from media and fans, although a bit unjust.

Bryzgalov, whose exclusive free-agent rights Holmgren traded for from Phoenix before giving him a nine-year, $51 million contract last year, hasn’t been the equivalent of Martin Brodeur or Henrik Lundqvist (who is really?) during his short stay in Philadelphia, but he’s been good enough that the shortcomings of the Flyers shouldn’t only rest on his shoulders. There is some thought the Flyers might amnesty Bryzgalov and give Mason a shot, but that would be a huge gamble.

Where Holmgren has really struggled, though, is assembling a defense in front of Bryzgalov minus Pronger.

The backline Holmgren has put together is either old (Kimmo Timonen), immobile (Nicklas Grossmann) or bad (Braydon Coyburn and Bruno Gervais, who are combined minus 25 this season). The worst part is Coyburn, Grossmann and Timonen are all signed through next year thanks to contract extensions given to them by Holmgren. There’s no top prospect on the way either and this year’s free-agent defensemen class doesn’t inspire much confidence (Edmonton’s Ryan Whitney would be a nice addition, but he’s 30 and will command top dollar, and that’s not available with money already committed by the Flyers).

Holmgren’s only chance to get a defender who can help the Flyers challenge for a Cup would be to use a talented young scorer (Matt Read, Brayden Schenn or both, maybe?) as a trade chip, but I’d only be guessing as to who would be available. Like pitching in baseball, teams aren’t exactly lining up to give away talented defensemen either.

One smart thing Holmgren did do was to stand pat Wednesday and that’s a good start.

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Breakdown of Eagles free agent signings

By Joe Miegoc | Published: March 18, 2013 | 1 Comment

I’m going to keep this short (I want to link a story more than anything), but here is a fantastic breakdown of the contracts the Eagles gave to the eight free agents they signed over the last week or so.

Of the eight signings the only one I’m not a huge fan of is cornerback Carey Williams, who got a three-year deal worth $17 million including $10.5 million guaranteed. I don’t hate the deal because I like the toughness Williams brings to the Eagles secondary (which was softer than jello last year), but I’m not sure he’s worth that kind of money.

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Ramonia Benitez named MVP

By Joe Miegoc | Published: February 12, 2013 | 1 Comment

The Mountain Valley Conference coaches picked Pocono Mountain West senior guard Ramonia Benitez as the conference MVP.

Benitez, a three-year starter, three-time All-MVC first-team pick and two-time Pocono Record All-Area first teamer, was joined on the All-MVC first team by teammates Jackie Benitez, a sophomore, and senior Steph Davis. East Stroudsburg South’s Cy Lippold and Hana Swinton also made the first team.

Here is a complete list of players picked by the coaches:

FIRST TEAM

Jackie Benitez, Pocono Mountain West

*Ramonia Benitez, Pocono Mountain West

Stephanie Davis, Pocono Mountain West

Cy Lippold, East Stroudsburg South

Hana Swinton, East Stroudsburg South

*Most Valuable Player

SECOND TEAM

Keri Dekmar, Pleasant Valley

Mackenzie Dorney, Pleasant Valley

Jenny Faust, Stroudsburg

Jordan Meckes, Pleasant Valley

Indigo Ramirez, East Stroudsburg South

Cheyanne Ruggierio, Pocono Mountain East

HONORABLE MENTION

Shayna Almodovar, East Stroudsburg North

Madison Hagy, Stroudsburg

Naomi Jimenez, Pocono Mountain West

Alpreshia Parker, Pocono Mountain East

Brittany Poje, East Stroudsburg South

Kaitlyn Poje, East Stroudsburg South

Tiffany Thompson, Lehighton

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Checking my Eagles list

By Joe Miegoc | Published: December 25, 2012 | 3 Comments

With it being Christmas and wish lists so prevalent at this time of year, I thought I’d share my list of Eagles players I’d keep after what has been the worst season I’ve seen since I became an Eagles fan in 1988.

It’s been clear for months that Andy Reid won’t be back for a 15th season as the Eagles head coach. There are some people trying to sell the theory that he will return because of the $6 million he’s owed next year, but if Jeff Lurie does allow Reid to stick around then he will garner Norman Braman levels of ire from Eagles fans.

Let’s get this clear, I like Reid. I think he’s a good coach and he’s done a lot of great things in Philadelphia, but he’s made some epic errors over the past few seasons. It started when he pulled the rug out from Kevin Kolb and handed the keys to his offense to Michael Vick early in the 2010 season. I don’t know how Kolb would have panned out, but I knew then that Vick was a turnover machine and, although he conned Reid into thinking he wasn’t, that’s exactly what he’s been. It got worse when he hired a defensive line coach (Jim Washburn) before hiring a defensive coordinator, meaning that anyone interested in being the Eagles defensive coordinator would have to use Washburn’s gimmicky Wide-9 scheme. That led Reid to moving offensive line coach Juan Castillo, who hadn’t coached defense since doing so at a Texas High School in 1989, to defensive coordinator, a move that reeked of desperation and cluelessness. The last miscalculation came after the Eagles blew a 14-point fourth-quarter lead to the Lions this year, which prompted Reid to fire Castillo and promote secondary coach Todd Bowles to defensive coordinator. Since Bowles took over the Eagles have played some of the worst defense in NFL history thanks to players who either aged rapidly (Trent Cole), had little experience (Fletcher Cox and Mychal Kendricks) or just didn’t try all that hard (Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie).

Along with Reid, all of his coaches will be fired, too. If you ask Eagles fans, they might be happier to see special teams coach Bobby April go than to see Reid canned.

So without further ado, I’ll go through each position group and list the players I’d keep and why I would jettison others.

Quarterback – Nick Foles has earned the right to start in 2013, but who knows what kind of offense the new coaching staff will install. It’s clear Foles has talent, but he is extremely limited athletically. He’ll need a very good offensive line protecting him to succeed and if the Eagles get some players back from injury their line can be very good. We’ll get to that later. Still, I might bring someone in to challenge Foles for the starting job. Having Trent Edwards be the backup wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Vick’s time in Philadelphia is over. He fooled the Eagles into thinking he had become an actual quarterback, one who put protecting the ball at a premium. Instead, in his last 30 games Vick has played four turnover-free games. FOUR! If he had played only 15 games without a turnover in that stretch it would be bad. The best part of cutting Vick is if the Eagles do so within three days after the Super Bowl they owe him nothing. That’s if he doesn’t get injured against the Giants on Sunday, which if he does he could net $3 million.

Running backs – I’d keep everyone on the roster. LeSean McCoy is a star, Bryce Brown has worlds of potential and just needs to go to the Tiki Barber school of protecting the ball and Dion Lewis has been underused in my eyes. I’ll lump fullback into this group, too, so come on down Stanley Havili. He’s not as big as Leonard Weaver, but I think he can be used in a similar way in the passing game.

Offensive line – Jason Peters, Todd Herremans (if he kicks inside to guard), Jason Kelce, Evan Mathis and Dennis Kelly are definite keepers. I think Jake Scott could be a valuable backup at both guard spots. I’m hesitant to keep Danny Watkins because I don’t think he’s all that good and now it’s been revealed that he has a chronic ankle problem, but since he’s a first-round pick that probably buys him another offseason with the team. He’ll have to perform well to earn a roster spot, though. You can’t even say King Dunlap would be a good backup because backup offensive linemen usually end up playing and Dunlap is no good. Dallas Reynolds, Matt Tennant and Matt Kopa, it was nice knowing you. Demetress Bell, it was awful knowing you.

Tight ends – I’d keep Brent Celek and Clay Harbor, let them fight for the starting job and then trade the loser. In that battle I’d pick Celek because he just tries so damn hard. Evan Moore, well, you could have caught a touchdown late in the Redskins game and dropped it. And you had a false start. See ya.

Receivers – Some people don’t like Jeremy Maclin because he seems to be hurt all the time, but he’s been very productive in four years. He’ll be playing for a contract next year, either from the Eagles or someone else. Jason Avant is one of the best third-down receivers in football. DeSean Jackson isn’t the same player he was a couple years ago and that’s too bad. I thought getting paid would make him care more, but he’s big on talking and not so big on walking. Still, he’s ultra-talented and I’d put him back to catch punts, throw a couple deep balls and run at least one reverse a game to him. Riley Cooper is so so and I think he’s comfortable, which is not a good thing in professional football. Damaris Johnson has a lot of potential to be a good slot receiver. I’d bring Greg Salas to camp to give him a look. Marvin McNutt and Ronald Johnson would not be so lucky.

Defensive line – Here’s where I’m making changes. I want a 3-4 defense because I still don’t think the Eagles have the linebackers to play a 4-3. If Cullen Jenkins is cool with it I’m moving him to nose tackle and making Cox an end. I’d like to see what Cedric Thornton could do as a 3-4 end, but I’m probably drafting someone in the second or third round to compete with him. Trent Cole, you’ve been a great Eagle and have so overachieved as a pro it’s not even funny, but I don’t see you being a 3-4 OLB and you make too much money. Vinny Curry, Brandon Graham and Phillip Hunt all get shots to be 3-4 OLBs. Darryl Tapp has been awful and Derek Landri has been a big disappointment this year. I like Mike Patterson as a person and if he can get back into shape I’d bring him to camp and let him fight for a job. He has the size to be a 3-4 nose guard, but he’s kind of short.

Linebackers – I know he struggled to be a 3-4 ILB in Houston, but I think DeMeco Ryans can do it now because he’s healthy. He wasn’t with the Texans last year. Jamar Chaney is gone. He seems to never know what to do and, after I saw him give up on chasing a Redskin who was nearing the end zone on Sunday, Chaney’s ticket out of town is punched. Kendricks might be too short to be a 3-4 ILB and I don’t know what his pass rushing skills are like, but he’s back because he’s so athletic and young. Akeem Jordan is back, but only as a special teamer. Casey Matthews does nothing for me at all. Gone.

Defensive backs – More sweeping changes. I’m only bringing back Brandon Boykin, Curtis Marsh and Brandon Hughes. That’s it. Everyone else is gone (I’m keeping Colt Anderson, but only to play special teams). DRC has been awful this year. Doesn’t try. Can’t tackle. Gives up on plays too often. Nnamdi Asomugha has been a fraud since he came to Philadelphia. Great person, below average player anymore. Kurt Coleman can stay, but only as a special teamer. I can’t bare to watch him miss anymore tackles on tight ends or slow receivers. Nate Allen is another player who I think is comfortable. I don’t like comfortable players. I don’t know if Marsh can play, but that’s because he’s barley played. Put him on the field and we’ll see. Boykin is a slot guy only because of height, but I think he can be a good one. Hughes I like as a dime back and special teamer. David Sims, maybe you come to camp, but you’ll have an uphill battle. Maybe special teams for him.

Special teams – Alex Henery may have been the Eagles MVP this year and that’s just sad. Still, he’s accurate and I think there’s more leg there than he’s been allowed to show so far. Punter is a place I’m bringing in a couple guys and let them fight for the job. If former East Stroudsburg South and East Stroudsburg University standout Ken Parrish is still interested, I’d bring him to camp and give him an honest shot (something I don’t think he was ever given). And unless Jon Dorenbos magically turns into a tight end I’m not bringing him back. I need a long snapper to be able to do something other than snap. Even it’s be a third tight end. Anything really. And magic tricks don’t count.

I won’t even touch the practice squad. Don’t know much about them. If I have to say something, I’d given former Penn State linebacker Nate Stupar a shot at a special teams job.

So there you have it. Lots of changes, lots of cuts and lots of job openings. Now, I’ll say this after you’ve read everything, I’m not sure on salary cap hits for some guys. Some guys I cut might cause a lot of damage to the cap if released. I’d renegotiate those guys’ contracts and give them another shot with good faith from a new coaching staff.

Oh yeah, one more change, but not to the team. Get rid of Howie Roseman, who has zero background in evaluating talent and had a lot of say in the 2010 and 2011 drafts, both of which were putrid. I know he just signed a contract extension, but Roseman has no business being an NFL general manager. And I know with Reid as the Executive Vice President of Football Operations that he has final say on personnel, but for some reason Roseman has Reid’s ear and that’s really hurt this team.

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Reid is to blame

By Joe Miegoc | Published: October 16, 2012 | Leave a comment

Enough is enough.

Even though he tried to divert attention from his own failures by firing defensive coordinator Juan Castillo on Tuesday, there is no question that Eagles head coach Andy Reid is fully to blame for the dysfunctional football team he “runs.”

His biggest blunder was putting Castillo, who had been the team’s offensive line coach since 1998, in charge of the defense last spring. After an “exhaustive” search that saw several prominent candidates spurn the Eagles, Reid decided it was a good idea that his new defensive coordinator would be someone who hadn’t coached defense since he did so at a Texas high school in 1989. Seriously? I know people will say Reid took a chance on a guy who basically begged for the opportunity, but you don’t take wild chances like that in the NFL. You do and you get beat and that’s what teams have done to the Eagles.

The Eagles lost to the Arizona Cardinals last year and this season because they allowed wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, the Cards’ lone offensive weapon, to run free in both defeats. Against the San Francisco 49ers last season and the Detroit Lions on Sunday, both at home mind you, with both teams’ offenses showing no signs of life, the Eagles’ D lifted their foot off the gas and allowed both to rally and win. With three high-paid linemen (ends Jason Babin and Trent Cole, and tackle Cullen Jenkins), another well-paid end (Darryl Tapp) and two first-round picks (end Brandon Graham, who has been a huge bust, and tackle Fletcher Cox, who decided to punch a helmet-wearing Detroit Lion in the head Sunday) the Eagles have generated zero sacks in the last three games.

The first two are Castillo’s fault, no question about it, but the last one is on Reid. Since he is the Eagles’ Executive Vice President of Football Operations, Reid has the final say on personnel decisions. Don’t be fooled by title of general manager given to Howie Roseman or previously to Tom Heckert, now the general manager of the Cleveland Browns. That was title only. Which players to sign, not sign or let go and who to draft are Reid’s decisions and they’ve been awful as of late.

Let’s look at free agency first.

Last year the Eagles assembled the “dream team” according to backup quarterback Vince Young, one of worst signs by Reid in his 14-year tenure. Young was awful last year, no more so than against the Seattle Seahawks on a Thursday night when his interception for a touchdown in the fourth quarter sealed the Eagles’ fate of staying home during the postseason. They also brought in Ronnie Brown, whose key fumble at the goal line against the 49ers last year will never be forgotten because of its stupidity, Nnamdi Asomugha, who is no more than an average player right now making superstar money, Steve Smith, who decided to dive to the ground to avoid taking a hit only to end up short of a first down against the Cardinals last year, and Jenkins, who looks old and slow this season after showing signs of life in 2011. Reid also allowed David Akers, the best kicker in franchise history, to leave town for San Francisco, where Akers had a record-setting 2011 campaign. In Akers’ place Reid chose Alex Henery, who has been no more than OK so far, in the fourth round of last year’s draft, far too high for a kicker when there were other pressing needs.

And speaking of drafts, let’s look at the past three.

The Eagles selected 33 players since 2010 and currently just five (guard Danny Watkins, safety Kurt Coleman, safety Nate Allen, linebacker Mychal Kendricks and Henery) are starters. That doesn’t include center Jason Kelce, who is out for the year with a torn ACL. Five (or six if you want to include Kelce) out of 33 is a terrible ratio for a team that supposedly prides itself on its ability to draft. The Eagles’ selections are more notable for their wild misses (2011 second-round safety Jaiquawn Jarrett was cut earlier this year and 2010 third-round defensive end Daniel Te’o-Nesheim, who was cut last year, was taken instead of Penn State linebacker NaVorro Bowman), foolish trades (moving up to take Graham when Texas safety Earl Thomas and South Florida defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul were on the board) and down-right headscratchers (selecting Watkins, at the time a 25-year-old who had only played football for four years). This April, the Eagles took Marshall defensive end Vinny Curry, who has yet to dress for a game this year despite the Eagles’ desperate need for pass rushers.

But the biggest mistake regarding personnel was the decision to make Michael Vick the franchise quarterback.

Vick has been absolutely awful this year, but it’s not just this year. In his last 27 starts, Vick has only three turnover-free games. Three!!! He has 39 turnovers in that time, 29 interceptions and 10 lost fumbles. Even it was half that number it would be bad, but 39 is just comically inept. If you watched Sunday’s game against the Lions, you heard how Vick carried a football around all week to remind himself not to fumble. You heard how he said he wouldn’t throw anymore interceptions this year. So what happens? With an inexperienced center and the playclock dwindling Vick decides to change the play only to have Dallas Reynolds snap the ball right past his head. Two more interceptions, including a terrible deep pass to a wide-open DeSean Jackson, which Vick blamed on the wind of course, raised his season total to eight. It could easily be twice that number if defenders could catch the ball.

I understand why Reid chose Vick over Kevin Kolb in 2010, I do. The Eagles’ offensive line was average at best and there was no way Kolb would survive playing behind it. At least Vick could escape at times when pressure came. Plus, there was no quarterback at the time (Robert Griffin III is that quarterback now, but he is actually a quarterback and not just a great athlete playing the position) who had the raw skills that Vick possessed. It’s easy to get mesmerized with the things Vick can do. The game where he put it all together came against the Redskins on a Monday night in November 2010. With one of the worst defenses in NFL history, Washington allowed Vick to complete 20-of-28 passes for 333 yards and four scores and run for 80 yards and two TDs in a 59-28 victory. Since then Vick has been the same careless quarterback he was with the Atlanta Falcons.

People might read this and say, ‘Hey, Joe, I thought you were an Eagles fan? Shouldn’t you support the team and not rip them like this?’ Trust me, I’d love to. I’ve been an Eagles fan all my life and my dad has had season tickets since 1995. There is nothing I want more than to see the Eagles win a Super Bowl. For the longest time I thought Reid would get it done, but he has made nothing but terrible decisions the past three years. And that is why they’re 3-3 going into the bye, with a home game against unbeaten Atlanta and road game against New Orleans looming. Certainly not because of Castillo’s failures.

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Hard to believe Harry, Part 2

By Joe Miegoc | Published: September 12, 2012 | Leave a comment

It’s been more than two months since my last post and my how things have changed.

Back then, the Phillies were dead in the water. They were playing lifeless, sloppy and excruciating-to-watch baseball. They were making errors, not running out groundballs and pop ups and giving away games left and right. Seeing Charlie Manuel summon the likes of Chad Qualls in from the bullpen made fans at the game want to pull their hair out and those at home to want to throw their remotes through the television.

The Phillies were so far out of playoff contention that general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. traded outfielders Shane Victorino, a key member of the five straight division titles, and Hunter Pence, which the Phillies traded the farm for last year to extend that postseason run, at the trade deadline.

Fast forward six weeks from the end of the July and all of a sudden the Phillies find themselves three games back of the second wild card spot with 19 games to play.

How have they done it? It’s simple – pitching.

Cliff Lee has turned into Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels has shown why the Phillies gave him a $144 million extension and Roy Halladay, while not his dominant self, has been pretty good since returning from a disabled list stint for a strained muscle in his right shoulder. Throw in a very good Kyle Kendrick and two good outings in his first three starts by Tyler Cloyd and the Phillies have been able to win games without having to wear out the scoreboard.

But as good as the starting pitching has been, the bullpen has been even better.

Gone is Qualls, and it was a month over due, and it looks like Charlie Manuel has given the eighth inning to rookie flame-thrower Phillippe Aumont. The key player in the trade that sent Lee to Seattle after the 2009 season, Aumont was a bust in his first year in the Phillies system. He started then, walked far too many hitters and had runners on base constantly. He switched back to relieving, which he did with the Mariners farm teams, last year and the results have been good. While sometimes still a bit wild, Aumont has something you can teach – a sinking fastball that runs up to 98 mph. He also has a knee-buckling curve that when it’s on just isn’t fair to hitters. Will he continue to pitch like he has the past month (1.08 ERA in 8 1-3 innings with nine strikeouts)? Probably not, but maybe he does. Jeremy Horst (1.19 ERA in 22 2-3 innings with 25 Ks) and Jonathan Papelbon (34 saves in 38 chances) have been outstanding as well. Even Antonio Bastardo has been good lately, giving up just 1 run while fanning 20 in his last 11 appearances.

And the amazing thing about this run is that the two guys the Phillies thought they needed back to make a run – Ryan Howard and Chase Utley – have been pretty much invisible. Howard is striking out a ton, even for him, and Utley just isn’t close to the same player he used to be because of achy knees, but John Mayberry Jr. has been playing better lately and Eric Kratz has been fantastic with Carlos Ruiz out of action for about a month. With Ruiz, the team’s best player all season, now back the Phillies have to feel even better about their chances.

And if that doesn’t help, how about their schedule?

They open a four-game set Thursday with the dreadful Astros. Next, they’ll play three with the Mets, who have been in a free fall since July but also are 10-5 against the Phillies this year. A six-game homestand starts with the Braves on Sept. 21 and then three against the Nationals before a season-ending three-game trip to Florida.

This is very doable people. Of those 19 games, I say 13 wins could get the job done, and I see the Phillies winning more than 13 games mind you. I’ve also been a Phillies fan since I was six years old so I know enough not to get too far ahead of myself.

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Hard to believe, Harry

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 8, 2012 | 1 Comment

If you’ve been a Phillies fan longer than the team’s recent five-year postseason run, you’ll understand the title of this post. If not, those were often the words of Hall of Fame player and fantastic color analyst Richie Ashburn to his good friend and fellow announcer Harry Kalas time and time again as the two worked Phillies games until Ashburn’s death in 1997.

I can only imagine what Whitey (that’s Ashburn for you new Phillies fans) must be thinking with the All-Star break here.

The Phillies, a team with a payroll of $175 million, were swept at home by Atlanta this weekend to end a first half that had only one real positive, the breakout performance by Carlos Ruiz. Not even a career year (done in half a season) by Chooch could save a sinking ship that was taking on water before the first pitch was even thrown.

I was at Saturday’s listless 6-3 loss (I’ve never heard Citizen’s Bank Park so quiet) with my girlfriend, and on the drive home she asked me how a team that had been so good could be so bad so quickly. It took the whole 90-mile ride home to explain it to her and I didn’t even get to everything. Lots of people like to point the finger at a player or a manager, but a team doesn’t go from losing 60 games in a whole season in 2011 to losing 50 games in the first half during this dreadful year with just a few problems. And that’s worrisome going forward.

Forget a sixth straight division title. That’s over. Making the wild card? No way, not with the lack of effort and heart (Shane Victorino, who is making $9.5 million this year, was scratched from the lineup Sunday after a meeting with Charlie Manuel about his recent, and really season-long, slump – 8-for-40 over the last 10 games and a woeful .240 average and punchless .680 OPS this season) on this team. The Flyin’ Hawaiian, who should absolutely be traded and for peanuts if necessary, isn’t the only culprit on this team, though. Far from it.

John Mayberry, Jr. had a fantastic year last season in a part-time role, hitting .273 with 15 homers and an OPS of .854. This year, with a chance to win himself an every-day job in the big leagues and earn tons of money in the future, Mayberry has been awful with a .232 average, .646 OPS and 61 strikeouts in 207 at bats.

Antonio Bastardo was lights out for the first five months last year, but since then he’s been no better than a mop-up reliever. After posting a WHIP of 0.93 last year, Bastardo has allowed 43 base runners in 28 2-3 innings this season. He came into a 0-0 game Friday against Atlanta and faced seven batters, walking three, allowing a single and giving up a grand slam that brought on the fiercest boos of the season from the crowd according to several reporters at the game.

After signing a three-year, $30 million contract to return to Philadelphia, Jimmy Rollins was a player who had to play well early while Ryan Howard and Chase Utley (I’ll get to him in a minute) were babied back to health. Instead, Rollins was awful the first two months of the season. Sure, he played well in June, but this is a guy who has been in the majors since 2001. Taking the first two months off, when you’re team is in desperate straits because of injuries, is unacceptable from J-Roll (I loathe that nickname by the way).

It’s not just on those three guys, though. They’re part of the problem, but really outside of Ruiz, Cole Hamels at times, Jonathan Papelbon more often than not and Hunter Pence (who has had a pretty good first half offensively, but is just an awful, awful defender), this whole team has been a huge disappointment. And it started before spring training even got going.

While the rest of the Phillies were on the practice fields in Clearwater, Fla., Utley was nowhere to be found. He had missed the beginning of last season with a bad knee, but going into the offseason there were reassurances given by both Utley and the Phillies that there would be steps taken to make sure that Utley would be ready for 2012. But as the days crept by with Utley missing in action, it became apparent that the knee problem had resurfaced. This time it was worse. Now both of Utley’s knees were bothering him and there was no time table for him to even begin working out let alone start playing. It took until May before he could even take ground balls. He was so-so during his rehab games, finishing up with a 3-for-5 game with the IronPigs, before homering in his first at bat of the season against the Pirates on June 27. Watch that homer again, though, and you’ll see the prettiest hanging breaking ball you could ever imagine. I wrote about Utley’s return in my last blog post and still feel the same way. That was reinforced when I saw him hit a pop up to left field on a 90 mph fastball Saturday. The old Utley drives that ball in the right-center field gap or maybe to the seats. I know, he didn’t have a spring training and was given just 37 at-bats on his rehab assignment, but the guy has no legs. Enjoy him this season and next because that’s when his Phillies career is over.

It doesn’t help that the Phillies’ two highest paid pitchers are hurt (Roy Halladay) and an underachiever who seems bored (Cliff Lee), their highest paid set-up reliever (Jose Contreras) blew out his elbow and their biggest free agent pickup for the bullpen (Chad Qualls) outside of Papelbon was awful in every aspect of the word awful. Throw in losing young reliever Michael Stutes to a shoulder injury, having Joe Blanton be good for a start and horrible for three and getting the worst season of his career across the board from someone like Victorino in the final year of his contract and it adds up to a 37-50 first-half.

How is it fixed? Addition by subtraction is a start.

Victorino should be traded ASAP. A team that needs a decent center fielder with an OK arm, a guy who has a history of getting on base and can steal some bags might give up a mid-level prospect or two. I highly doubt any team would trade anything but a little bit of money for either Placido Polanco, who has been below average this season, or Blanton, and I’m not sure who would replace either if they were shipped out, while also forcing the Phillies to eat some of their salaries, but it could send a wake-up call to the team. Or it could cause the players to tell the media that it sent a wake-up call only to go out and sleep walk through a series like they did against Atlanta this weekend.

The biggest question surrounds Hamels, who is due to be a free agent after this season and could get a six- or seven-year offer for upwards of $150-175 million. Could the Phillies afford that? Probably, but that would be four guys (Halladay, Howard, Hamels and Lee) all making more than $20 million a season with the need to also work on extensions for Pence and Ruiz and fill in holes in the bullpen and on the bench. The Phillies should try to get Hamels to sign an extension over the next two weeks and if he won’t explore the possibility of trading him. If they can’t get two blue-chip prospects and one or two mid-level guys, hold on to him, let him walk as a free agent and get three draft picks.

And we’re at 1,303 words for this post and I’m not even halfway done. It’s been that kind of season, well half a season really.

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