And For An Encore...

A few weeks back in this space, I pondered whether the Eagles would dip a toe in the free agency pool or dive in feet first.

The answer came yesterday in the form of a cannonball from the high dive.

On the first day of free agency, the Birds inked all-pro cornerback Asante Samuel to a six-year deal. A Super Bowl champion with the Patriots, Samuel leads the NFL with 16 interceptions over the last two seasons and should prove to be a welcome addition to a defense that only forced 11 turnovers a season ago. He's a shut-down corner that will match up with Plaxico Burress and that guy in Dallas.

In my mind, the move is reminiscent of the Jevon Kearse signing in 2004. At the time, the Eagles were coming off an NFC Championship game loss, opened free agency by signing "The Freak," followed that up by trading for a wide receiver who shall remain nameless, and the team responded by winning the NFC.

Which begs the question: What's next?

Signing Samuel creates something of a logjam at corner, with Sheldon Brown and Lito Sheppard already in the mix. Speculation is that Brown could be moved to safety, and the Eagles still have a need there. Potential target Gibril Wilson landed in Oakland yesterday for $39 million, and the rest of the market at safety is Calista Flockhart thin.

Another rumor has Sheppard being traded as part of a package to Arizona for Larry Fitzgerald (a move which I would make in a heartbeat).

Adding a defensive end (like Cincinnati's Justin Smith) is still a possibility, but the position could also be addressed early in the draft. Outside of a Fitzgerald deal, which I'm not really expecting to happen, there are some intriguing wide receivers out there. Denver released Javon Walker yesterday, and he and Donovan McNabb are represented by the same management group.

Oh, and Randy Moss remains unsigned. Given how their last big wide receiver acquisition turned out, I doubt Jeffrey Lurie would take a gamble like that again.

Either way, you get the feeling there's something else brewing.