The Eagles have walked this path so many times before that they don't need bread crumbs to find their way home.
Troy Vincent and Bobby Taylor challenged them and neither came back.
Jeremiah Trotter wanted more, went to Washington before realizing the error of his ways and returning.
That wide receiver we used to have? He, too, thought he "out-performed his contract" and was left behind.
All the while, the team has stuck by the philosophy that the team is greater than the sum of its individual parts, regardless of the player or the situation. And for the most part, they've been right.
But letting Brian Westbrook dangle is a huge gamble.
Westbrook is hands down the most important player on this team. In the entire Andy Reid/Donovan McNabb era, the Eagles have had two offensive players that would be considered elite by NFL standards - Owens and Westbrook. He's one of the best running backs in the league, and deserves to be compensated accordingly.
Westbrook continued to demonstrate his versatility in 2007, amassing 1,333 yards rushing, 771 yards receiving, and 12 total touchdowns. He's also proven to be reliable (one lost fumble) and durable (only one missed game).
For their part, the Eagles haven't done much to bolster the offense via free agency. Sure, they've overpaid for defensive help (Jevon Kearse, Asante Samuel), but the lack of offensive weapons makes Westbrook that much more valuable.
So as the players toil through two-a-days at Lehigh preparing for the season, Jeffrey Lurie should be signing a check to make his best player happy.
It's never been the Eagle way. Maybe it should be.
July 22, 2008
July 15, 2008
July 10, 2008
Ed Stefanski 1, Pat Gillick 0
Imagine for one moment that you're the General Manager of a professional sports franchise. Your team is on the cusp of being a legitimate championship contender, but there's one particular position where you're deficient. You have the resources to obtain a player that would address that need. So, what do you do?
If you're Ed Stefanski, you make a trade to clear salary cap space and sign the best free agent power forward on the market.
If you're Pat Gillick, you watch other teams in your league trade for Cy Young winners and staff aces as you stand idly by, unwilling to take a risk.
Within the span of one week, the immediate futures of the Phillies and Sixers have changed, one for the better.
Even though the Sixers drafted power forward Maurice Speights last month, they still needed an inside presence who could be the focal point of their half-court offense. They also had enough cap space to add a player. They had Atlanta Hawks restricted free agent Josh Smith in for a visit, but he wasn't the best power forward available in free agency.
Enter Elton Brand.
At the dawn of free agency, Brand coming to the Sixers seemed like a long shot. Brand was widely regarded as the best player available on the open market. He had indicated his intentions to remain on the west coast, either with the Los Angeles Clippers or Golden State Warriors. He was also the most expensive, thought to be demanding more than the Sixers could offer.
So Stefanski did what any shrewd GM would do. He dealt bench players Rodney Carney and Calvin Booth and a future first round pick to Minnesota, all the while keeping his eyes on the prize. Then he offered Brand a five year, $79.8 million contract.
Brand was officially announced as a Sixer yesterday.
The Phillies, meanwhile, have known since October that they had holes in their rotation. They did add closer Brad Lidge in an off-season trade with Houston, allowing them to shift temporary reliever Brett Myers back to a full-time starter. But that's the only arm they added.
Before the season, the division-rival Mets added Johan Santana, only the best pitcher in baseball. The Arizona Diamondbacks grabbed Dan Haren to take some of the load off of Brandon Webb.
This week, the Milwaukee Brewers traded for reigning AL Cy Young winner C.C. Sabathia, pairing him with Ben Sheets and a potent line up.
A day later, the Chicago Cubs fleeced the Oakland A's for Rich Harden and his dental-floss thin 1.74 ERA. He'll follow Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Dempster, giving Chicago the most formidable starting rotation in the NL.
Myers and his 5.86 ERA were recently optioned to triple A.
As currently constituted, the Phillies will chase a championship with Cole Hamels fronting a 44-year old Jamie Moyer, unproven youngsters Kyle Kendrick and J.A. Happ, and either Myers or Adam Eaton.
There are still pitchers available, including Seattle's Erik Bedard and Toronto's A.J. Burnett. Neither carries the cache of a Sabathia, but either would improve the Phillies' current situation.
Now it's up to Gillick to pull a Stefanski.
If you're Ed Stefanski, you make a trade to clear salary cap space and sign the best free agent power forward on the market.
If you're Pat Gillick, you watch other teams in your league trade for Cy Young winners and staff aces as you stand idly by, unwilling to take a risk.
Within the span of one week, the immediate futures of the Phillies and Sixers have changed, one for the better.
Even though the Sixers drafted power forward Maurice Speights last month, they still needed an inside presence who could be the focal point of their half-court offense. They also had enough cap space to add a player. They had Atlanta Hawks restricted free agent Josh Smith in for a visit, but he wasn't the best power forward available in free agency.
Enter Elton Brand.
At the dawn of free agency, Brand coming to the Sixers seemed like a long shot. Brand was widely regarded as the best player available on the open market. He had indicated his intentions to remain on the west coast, either with the Los Angeles Clippers or Golden State Warriors. He was also the most expensive, thought to be demanding more than the Sixers could offer.
So Stefanski did what any shrewd GM would do. He dealt bench players Rodney Carney and Calvin Booth and a future first round pick to Minnesota, all the while keeping his eyes on the prize. Then he offered Brand a five year, $79.8 million contract.
Brand was officially announced as a Sixer yesterday.
The Phillies, meanwhile, have known since October that they had holes in their rotation. They did add closer Brad Lidge in an off-season trade with Houston, allowing them to shift temporary reliever Brett Myers back to a full-time starter. But that's the only arm they added.
Before the season, the division-rival Mets added Johan Santana, only the best pitcher in baseball. The Arizona Diamondbacks grabbed Dan Haren to take some of the load off of Brandon Webb.
This week, the Milwaukee Brewers traded for reigning AL Cy Young winner C.C. Sabathia, pairing him with Ben Sheets and a potent line up.
A day later, the Chicago Cubs fleeced the Oakland A's for Rich Harden and his dental-floss thin 1.74 ERA. He'll follow Carlos Zambrano and Ryan Dempster, giving Chicago the most formidable starting rotation in the NL.
Myers and his 5.86 ERA were recently optioned to triple A.
As currently constituted, the Phillies will chase a championship with Cole Hamels fronting a 44-year old Jamie Moyer, unproven youngsters Kyle Kendrick and J.A. Happ, and either Myers or Adam Eaton.
There are still pitchers available, including Seattle's Erik Bedard and Toronto's A.J. Burnett. Neither carries the cache of a Sabathia, but either would improve the Phillies' current situation.
Now it's up to Gillick to pull a Stefanski.
July 4, 2008
State of the City Address
Today we celebrate the 232nd birthday of this great nation of ours, and as the City of Brotherly Love was where it all began, it only seems appropriate to deliver an address on the State of Philadelphia Sports.
Phillies
After winning months in April (15-13) and May (17-12), the Fightin’ Phils swooned a little in June (12-14). Fortunately, the Florida Marlins couldn’t capitalize, going 12-16 over the same span. Undefeated through three games in July, the Phillies sit atop the NL East on Independence Day.
Contributing to a sub-.500 June were the struggles of second baseman Chase Utley, pitcher Brett Myers, and a horrendous stretch of Interleague play. The good news is that the Phillies won’t play in an American League park until October, God willing. Perhaps the better news is that Utley appears to have righted the ship and regained his All-Star form.
The same can’t be said of Myers, who was optioned to triple-A this week and will be replaced in the rotation, at least for the time being, by lefty J.A. Happ, who gets the ball tonight against the Mets.
The National League All-Star team should have some serious Philly representation, with Utley, Cole Hamels, and Brad Lidge almost guaranteed to make the team. Based on the statistics, Pat Burrell should be there, too. Burrell leads NL outfielders in home runs, slugging percentage, walks, and OPS. He’ll likely have to be added by manager Clint Hurdle, since (as I’ve ranted about previously), fan voting has a guy like Chiacago’s Kosuke Fukudome ahead of Burrell despite Burrell’s superior numbers.
Flyers
Since bowing out of the Eastern Conference finals, the Flyers have retooled via trades, the draft, and free agency.
They began the off-season with Sami Kapanen retiring to play professionally in his native Finland. At the draft they traded playoff hero R.J. Umberger to Columbus to move up in the first round and selected Swiss-born defenseman Luca Sbisa. They traded out of their spot in the first round, acquiring defenseman Steve Eminger from Washington.
Unlike last year’s foray into free agency, which was talent-driven and financially possible, the Flyers dipped quietly into this year’s free agent pool, avoiding the big names like Marian Hossa and Brian Campbell and the subsequent large price tags they carry. Instead they focused on their own free agents, re-signing Eminger, Randy Jones, Riley Cote and most importantly Jeff Carter. They also added center Glen Metropolit from Boston and defenseman Ossi Vaananen, who was playing in Sweden last year after previously playing in the NHL. Vinnie Prospal returned to Tampa Bay, and captain Jason Smith may be heading for New Jersey.
There are still moves to be made, however. For starters, the status of Derian Hatcher has yet to be determined. If he returns, the Flyers may need to make a move to clear salary cap space. It had also been rumored that Tampa Bay was dangling defenseman Dan Boyle for Jones and Mike Knuble, but the Lightning sent Boyle to Los Angeles today.
All in all, the off-season for the Flyers has gone exactly as expected. They’ve revamped the defense and improved as a team, all with the young nucleus of talent remaining largely in tact.
Sixers
Unlike the Flyers, the Sixers entered their off-season with significant cap space. They tendered offers to restricted free agents Andre Iguodala and Louis Williams. Whether or not they return remains to be seen.
The Sixers still have a glaring need at the power forward position. With that in mind, they drafted Maurice Speights, a 6’10”, 250 lb. big man from the University of Florida whom GM Ed Stefanski calls “the best running big man in the draft.” Scouts have said they don’t expect immediate contributions from Speights, meaning the Sixers need someone to play alongside Sam Dalembert in the short-term.
As luck would have it, there are some big name power forwards available, including Atlanta’s Josh Smith (who has already been in for a visit) and Elton Brand from the Clippers, though he seems destined to remain on the west coast.
Here’s another option: Rasheed Wallace.
The Pistons have indicated that they would part with Wallace, and what better landing place for the Philly native? He’s familiar with Maurice Cheeks, who he played for in Portland. And, given his age and experience could be the perfect short-term bridge between Speights and the starting line-up.
Eagles
Training camp doesn’t open for a couple of weeks, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening with the Birds. At the forefront, there are questions about the health of quarterback Donovan McNabb, who was diagnosed with tendonitis in his throwing shoulder. For what it’s worth, he received the same diagnosis prior to camp in 2004 and had his best season ever. Of course, he had that wide receiver who shall remain nameless catching passes.
On that topic, it’s not likely that the Eagles will add a receiver between now and the start of camp, nor do I expect anyone of worth to come available for this season. Best guess is you’re looking at Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown outside with rookie DeSean Jackson in the slot in addition to returning kicks and punts.
There’s also been little or no movement on the Lito Sheppard front, meaning if Lito reports to Lehigh, the cornerback position will be loaded with Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, and Asante Samuel, who was the target of a few shots from former teammate Wes Welker. Welker said Samuel opting to sign with the Eagles represented him choosing money over winning a Super Bowl. Welker obviously didn’t do his homework, as Samuel already has two rings. As if we needed another reason to be annoyed by Boston and their sports teams….
Phillies
After winning months in April (15-13) and May (17-12), the Fightin’ Phils swooned a little in June (12-14). Fortunately, the Florida Marlins couldn’t capitalize, going 12-16 over the same span. Undefeated through three games in July, the Phillies sit atop the NL East on Independence Day.
Contributing to a sub-.500 June were the struggles of second baseman Chase Utley, pitcher Brett Myers, and a horrendous stretch of Interleague play. The good news is that the Phillies won’t play in an American League park until October, God willing. Perhaps the better news is that Utley appears to have righted the ship and regained his All-Star form.
The same can’t be said of Myers, who was optioned to triple-A this week and will be replaced in the rotation, at least for the time being, by lefty J.A. Happ, who gets the ball tonight against the Mets.
The National League All-Star team should have some serious Philly representation, with Utley, Cole Hamels, and Brad Lidge almost guaranteed to make the team. Based on the statistics, Pat Burrell should be there, too. Burrell leads NL outfielders in home runs, slugging percentage, walks, and OPS. He’ll likely have to be added by manager Clint Hurdle, since (as I’ve ranted about previously), fan voting has a guy like Chiacago’s Kosuke Fukudome ahead of Burrell despite Burrell’s superior numbers.
Flyers
Since bowing out of the Eastern Conference finals, the Flyers have retooled via trades, the draft, and free agency.
They began the off-season with Sami Kapanen retiring to play professionally in his native Finland. At the draft they traded playoff hero R.J. Umberger to Columbus to move up in the first round and selected Swiss-born defenseman Luca Sbisa. They traded out of their spot in the first round, acquiring defenseman Steve Eminger from Washington.
Unlike last year’s foray into free agency, which was talent-driven and financially possible, the Flyers dipped quietly into this year’s free agent pool, avoiding the big names like Marian Hossa and Brian Campbell and the subsequent large price tags they carry. Instead they focused on their own free agents, re-signing Eminger, Randy Jones, Riley Cote and most importantly Jeff Carter. They also added center Glen Metropolit from Boston and defenseman Ossi Vaananen, who was playing in Sweden last year after previously playing in the NHL. Vinnie Prospal returned to Tampa Bay, and captain Jason Smith may be heading for New Jersey.
There are still moves to be made, however. For starters, the status of Derian Hatcher has yet to be determined. If he returns, the Flyers may need to make a move to clear salary cap space. It had also been rumored that Tampa Bay was dangling defenseman Dan Boyle for Jones and Mike Knuble, but the Lightning sent Boyle to Los Angeles today.
All in all, the off-season for the Flyers has gone exactly as expected. They’ve revamped the defense and improved as a team, all with the young nucleus of talent remaining largely in tact.
Sixers
Unlike the Flyers, the Sixers entered their off-season with significant cap space. They tendered offers to restricted free agents Andre Iguodala and Louis Williams. Whether or not they return remains to be seen.
The Sixers still have a glaring need at the power forward position. With that in mind, they drafted Maurice Speights, a 6’10”, 250 lb. big man from the University of Florida whom GM Ed Stefanski calls “the best running big man in the draft.” Scouts have said they don’t expect immediate contributions from Speights, meaning the Sixers need someone to play alongside Sam Dalembert in the short-term.
As luck would have it, there are some big name power forwards available, including Atlanta’s Josh Smith (who has already been in for a visit) and Elton Brand from the Clippers, though he seems destined to remain on the west coast.
Here’s another option: Rasheed Wallace.
The Pistons have indicated that they would part with Wallace, and what better landing place for the Philly native? He’s familiar with Maurice Cheeks, who he played for in Portland. And, given his age and experience could be the perfect short-term bridge between Speights and the starting line-up.
Eagles
Training camp doesn’t open for a couple of weeks, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening with the Birds. At the forefront, there are questions about the health of quarterback Donovan McNabb, who was diagnosed with tendonitis in his throwing shoulder. For what it’s worth, he received the same diagnosis prior to camp in 2004 and had his best season ever. Of course, he had that wide receiver who shall remain nameless catching passes.
On that topic, it’s not likely that the Eagles will add a receiver between now and the start of camp, nor do I expect anyone of worth to come available for this season. Best guess is you’re looking at Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown outside with rookie DeSean Jackson in the slot in addition to returning kicks and punts.
There’s also been little or no movement on the Lito Sheppard front, meaning if Lito reports to Lehigh, the cornerback position will be loaded with Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, and Asante Samuel, who was the target of a few shots from former teammate Wes Welker. Welker said Samuel opting to sign with the Eagles represented him choosing money over winning a Super Bowl. Welker obviously didn’t do his homework, as Samuel already has two rings. As if we needed another reason to be annoyed by Boston and their sports teams….
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