• March 28, 2024

Eagles Who Played Well Enough To Make The Team

After the game last night Andy Reid told us how he felt about making the decision about which quarterbacks would stay and which one would go.

“I want it to be hard,” Reid said regarding his quarterback personnel decisions. “I thought he played well and did a nice job. Howie and I will go back and look at it tomorrow and see what we think.”

Well he got what he wanted.  I don’t think there’s any question that Trent Edwards earned a spot on somebody’s NFL team even if it’s not on the Eagles.  If I were making the call, he would be a member of this team and Mike Kafka would not.  Kafka has never looked as comfortable as Nick Foles or Edwards looks in the pocket and running this offense.

The only advantage Kafka has over Edwards is that fourth round pick which was used on him.

Edwards completed 22 of 32 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns in three quarters.   He has started 33 games in his career.  He is a competent NFL quarterback.  I can’t say the same about Kafka, so there’s no question about what I would do.

Jaiquawn Jarrett and Phillip Thomas should be the backup safeties on the roster.  O.J. Atogwe who has been hurt throughout the training camp and preseason.  He didn’t do anything when he was healthy, so I would say good-bye to Atogwe.  Jarrett has played better and I like what I see from Thomas in both his tackling and pass coverage.

I thought Mardy Gilyard earned himself a place on the ballclub last night.  He’s been showing glimpses of his talent, but now it’s really starting to come together.  He got behind the Jets secondary a couple of times last night and came back on an underthrown Edwards pass to catch a touchdown.

Last night he caught 5 passes for 71 yards and a touchdown.  I like the way he’s learn to come back to the football on both deep and short passes.  He’s got some size to him 6’1″, 187 and he’s a tremendous leaper, so he can go up and get the ball in a crowd.  I’ve seen him really, aggressively go up and get the ball in traffic during practice.  Hall is more consistent right now, but Gilyard has a much bigger upside because of superior speed and size.

It will be a shame if Chris Polk doesn’t make the team because he’s played well enough to stay.  Last night he showed his ability to make tacklers miss and to punish them.  He’s a complete back, who can run inside or outside, catch the ball out of the backfield and

To Be Continued

GCOBB

Read Previous

Another Look At The Final 53-man Roster

Read Next

Joselio Hanson’s Inability to Backup At Cornerback May Have Cost Him

0 0 votes
Article Rating
19 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
rcp1936
rcp1936
August 31, 2012 9:16 am

Keep Polk
Cut Havilli
Turn Polk into another Leonard Weaver

paulman
paulman
August 31, 2012 9:18 am

I’ve liked Gilyard since his College DAys at U Of Cincinnati where all he did was make big plays week in and week out over his 3 year carreer there..
Fans have to remember he did not play Football in 2011 due to hamstring issues and with last years lockout was never really at 100% and cut by the Rams.. He has shown improvement week by week all SUmmer Camp per all reports and to me, show that he belongs in the NFL and if he doesn’t make the Eagles, he most definitely will be scooped up by a team needing help at WR (Vikings,Bills,Browns,Panthers,Titans)
I’ve been thinking about this Eagles WR group and believe they are good as a unitl but still lack a little size and toughness in the Red-Zone which is the same issue they have had since D-Jax/MAclin came aboard.
I would love to see the Eagles Trade WR J Maclin for a starting stud LB or Safety and then go out and Sign WR PLaxico Burress
A WR Corp of D-Jax,Burress,Avant,D Johnson,Gilyard and Cooper with the addition of a starting LB Or Safety from the Maclin rade would give the Eagles a much better chance to make a deep playoff run then what they presently have.. I like Maclin, who is in his Contract Year and will probably demand a $40-$50 MIllion Deal after this Season is over but WR like him are a dime a dozen and I don’t think he’s worth anywhere near that and with young WR’s like Danrius Johnson/Gilyard who are hungry,cheap and have upside and with the short term signing of Burress to help with their Red-Zone issues, I think collectively they would more than make up for Maclin’s departure..

jphalines
jphalines
August 31, 2012 9:36 am

Gilyard does look the part on the field. I would keep him over Hall. Gilyard has speed, but has shown in the preseason that you can throw it up for him deep and he can get it(he didn’t get them all this preseason). We have seen similiar passes thrown to Hall and DJax and neither will come down with it. It’s something that a QB needs to be able to do. Eli has 2 rings because of his big recievers. Copper was supposed to be this guy, but I seem to remeber a playoff game against Green Bay where he didn’t go get the ball. The top recievers of DJac, maclin and Avant is a small lineup and the Eagles need some big bodies in the red zone and third downs.

mr1charlton
mr1charlton
August 31, 2012 9:05 pm
Reply to  jphalines

SITUATIONAL FOOTBALL, truly one of bill bellichek’s strengths ( he always teaches on that ! I wish andy would do more of the same 2 yrs ago vs GB in the playoffs Riley Cooper should have known that if he couldnt catch that TD pass … TACKLE- GRAB THE DB it’s an offensive penalty, but the birds keep the ball and who knows what would have happened ( GB’s most competetive game that post season, and after that they didn’t look back) Cooper has been a waste.. brought here for a red zone presense, he’s been a non factor

EaglesSuck
EaglesSuck
August 31, 2012 9:48 am

What does this organization see in Riley Cooper? is it the nice hair and Fabio like looks? geez. Getting rid of Maclin? wow.. If Jeremy Maclin went to a team like Green Bay or New York you’d wish he was back in a Philadelphia Eagles uniform. I think with the poor play of the Quarterback we have yet to see the true Jeremy Maclin.

Frank22
Frank22
August 31, 2012 10:05 am

I agree ES.. Maclin is hands down the best receiver on this team.

larrwd
larrwd
August 31, 2012 11:33 am

Polk is not a full back he runs a 4.46 40.. and Ill give paulman credit he talked up gilyard and everybody made fun him .. but he was right this time.. gilyard can contribute immediately… Gilyard Polk Edwards and Rau need to be on this team.. Polk is the back weve been (looking for ) for years in philly.. Bryce brown is going to get hurt.. Polk hurts people.. maybe we should trade dion lewis..

Rotton Ralph
Rotton Ralph
August 31, 2012 11:53 am

Agree completely about Giliard. He is the type receiver who seems to come up with the ball in critical situations. We don’t have many of these, and as a result do not win important games in last minute. He is a gamer who consistanly outperforms his talent.

Drake
Drake
August 31, 2012 1:04 pm

I’ve seen Riley Cooper make diving acrobatic grabs in a game or two.also in preseason last year in that ravens game.he went up and came down with it.only to be yanked and injured by safety ed Reed who looked like he got embarrassed by Cooper.I remember the onside kick recovery by Cooper in that giants game.in that packers game.Solomon Wilcox might’ve said it best.when vick tried to connect with Cooper.it was a great decision by vick but poor execution.I believe at that time djax was double covered.I don’t remember which receiver went across the middle in that game(avant)? But vick didn’t want the safety a chance to make a play so he went to Cooper.the Birds really don’t use him often.Trent Edwards,rau,Polk,igwenagu,gilyard,hall,havilli and a few others.it be nice if they could all be stuff in the 53 man roster.I couldn’t remember which players they said are on the bubble.big red said that Edwards came off a surgery I believe.Edwards said that he never had surgery

rcp1936
rcp1936
August 31, 2012 1:16 pm

Polk is big enough to play FB and remember what a great weapon Weaver was till his knee got blown out
Polk can be even better

RealTalk777
RealTalk777
August 31, 2012 2:08 pm

Polk is 8 pounds lighter than Havili, not much of a difference…Polk runs harder, blocks better and is quicker, flat out more versatile…honestly, placing him at FB should be considered. What have we seen from Havili that has been so impressive?

I am disappointed with how McNutt fell off…In training camp he was making some noise, but tapered off dramatically. Gilyard was the complete opposite, he turned if up, exactly what you’re supposed to do when trying to make a team, shows character of performing under pressure…

Anyone know if Cooper can be placed on the PUP list? does he have to miss the entire training camp to be eligible? Cooper doesn’t play much so you can’t blame him for not having stellar production. Weeks 10-15 in 2011, he averaged about 50 yards on 3 catches. Definitely not all star numbers, but productive…It will be a hard decision for AR and Roseman to make…

I’d be surprised if the Eagles cut Rolle, although he was making some mistakes he also made some plays…

Edwards, I think the Eagles are going to do the best thing for him….They will not keep him, because he should be the backup and definitely can be a backup somewhere else…3rd stringer wouldn’t be doing him justice…I see the Eagles cutting Edwards and he’ll end up in a better situation for his career moving forward.

JoeFriday
JoeFriday
August 31, 2012 7:04 pm
Reply to  RealTalk777

If Cooper is playing a whole lot as a wideout, it means this season is over at that point. He is a really good special teamer though, and somebody has to run down under punts and kickoffs. I’d bet that Cooper makes this team on Bobby April’s list, not Marty’s. I thought the decision to keep Edwards was solid, he had played well and deserved to make the team. I always like guys who have no shot, but still play smart and hard and make it impossible for the team to get rid of them.

Frank22
Frank22
August 31, 2012 2:14 pm

eagles keep 4 qb’s and 4 rb’s ????????????

DCar
DCar
August 31, 2012 2:26 pm
Reply to  Frank22

Frank, 1 of the Qb’s will be 1 of the final 3 cuts. It’s 5 Rb’s, if you count Havili.

RealTalk777
RealTalk777
August 31, 2012 2:24 pm

I found the article confirming cuts of Hanson, Hall and Gilyard…but not seeing anything else…

Frank22
Frank22
August 31, 2012 2:29 pm

got ya D.. that article on Profootballtalk.com was extremely confusing

DCar
DCar
August 31, 2012 2:34 pm
Reply to  Frank22

All they are good for, is being the TMZ of sports. Florio is the shock jock of blog sports. I’d stick to CSNphilly.com. LOL!

eagles0superbowls
eagles0superbowls
August 31, 2012 2:31 pm

Brandon Graham was dominated last night by an Ex-Eagle who could make the team, Austin Howard. If they didn’t like Howard’s play last year how can Brandon Graham make the team this year. Darryl Tapp is a far superior player in comparison to Graham.

paulman
paulman
August 31, 2012 2:45 pm

Austin Howard will have a longer and more productive Career than Eagles Demetress Bell
Eagles will release 5 more players (KafkaDion Lewis,LB Matthews, and CB T Lindley and Punter McBriar and then they will add a LB and a Safety from others Teams released to get back to 53.. The final Roster probably won’t shake out to Sunday or so…