Mikell will help continue Brian Dawkins legacy of aggressive and physical play to the Eagles Safety position in 2009

Dawkins leaving town has us all spinning.

But one way or another, life and Eagles football will go on.  Jim Johnson will still call his style of aggressive defense, or at least I pray he is able to.  The prospective 2009 Eagles secondary may be built more like the past than we think, and may have the potential to be an improved unit in the upcoming season.

Asante takes Lito’s place as the gambling, INT making #1 corner (which is an upgrade), and Sheldon is better than he has ever been as a #2.  They may be the best 1, 2 corner combo in the NFL.

Hanson has cemented his spot as the Eagles nickel corner this off-season, even if only due to the contract he was given.  Hanson has shown flashes of playing every bit as well as the #3 corners of the past few years like Roderick Hood, Dexter Wynn and William James.  Troy Vincent and Bobby Taylor haven’t been with the Birds since 2003, but it seems like a whole lot longer.

At Free Safety, Dawkins has always been the enforcer, emotional leader, and last line of defense for the Eagles secondary.  He has been coupled with quite a few Strong Safeties to mixed results.  Michael Lewis was a physical SS who got exposed for his lack of coverage skills after his Pro Bowl season in 2004, then walked away in Free Agency and didn’t amount to much in San Fran.  The Considine experiment was a miserable failure, and then Mikell stepped up.

Click here to read why we think Mikell is ready to step up in the void left by B Dawk

Albert Haynesworth will now have to opportunity to stomp on Andre Gurode head twice a season

Only 16 hours into Free Agency, there have already been a few big moves.  Most notably, NFC East rival Redskins have been extremely aggressive (nothing new there), signing DT Albert Haynesworth to a $100mil contract as well as re-signing CB DeAngelo Hall.  Both moves are risky, and it sure looks like the Skins are going to get burnt again.

One of the biggest moves on the day wasn’t even a Free Agent signing, but the trade of Kellen Winslow Jr. from Cleveland to Tampa Bay.  Winslow is a hot-head (aka f*#kin soldier), but a stud at TE who I wouldn’t have minded picking up.  We will see what the Bucs ended up trading for him.

Eagles Free Agent Updates:

• L.J. Smith -The National Football Post is reporting that L.J. Smith is expected to sign with the Atlanta Falcons.  The Falcon’s starting TE from last year, Justin Peele, is also a free agent.  Smith may have found one of the few teams in the NFL where he is an upgrade.
• Derrick Ward - The rumor mill (610 WIP) is stating that Ward will be visiting with the Eagles today, but now Howard “The Burger King” Eskin is stating that the Eagles have “no interest” in Ward.  When it comes to the Eagles, in many cases  with the Birds free agent visit = free agent signing, so we’ll see if he actually visits.  I think Ward would make a nice complement to West, check out our stance on Ward and all the other Free Agent Running backs in the Free Agent Running Back Profile post.
• Brian Dawkins - B Dawk is currently on his way to Denver to meet with Bronco’s officials.  If Banner and the Eagles don’t step up their bidding, we may end up losing Dawkins.  And if that happens, you won’t be seeing many Eagles related posts on Sports On Broad in ‘09.
• Braylon Edwards - Although not a free agent, Eric Mangini and the new management in Cleveland look to be rebuilding, as evidence by the Winslow trade.  Edwards has the potential to be one of the best WRs in the NFL period, and I would be geeked to trade for him.  Make it happen!
• Sean Considine - Expected to visit with the Jaguars in the next couple days.  Good luck Jacksonville.
• Anotonio Smith - There were some reports this morning that the Eagles were going to bring in Smith for a visit, but so far no visit has been scheduled and I’d be surprised if one happened.  With all of the DE’s the Eagles have, bringing in another one would be like the Phillies replacing Pat Burrell with another left handed bat….Oh wait.

There is no dollar value that can be placed on Brian Dawkins' importance to the Eagles.

Brian Dawkins is the first thing that you think of when considering the Eagles and their Safety position.  Although he turned 35 in October, last year’s strong performance leads me to believe he still has football to play and a championship to win.  The fact that upon posting Dawkins has yet to re-sign is surprising and a little unnerving, but I remain confident B. Dawk will be terrorizing opposing offenses for the Eagles in the ’09 season.

Outside of Weapon X, if it weren’t for the development of Quintin Mikell the Eagles would be in serious need of a Safety.  For years the fans have been thinking that the Eagles would draft an heir-apparent to Dawkins, but that has yet to happen.  I’m not ready to say Quintin Demps can’t play Safety in the NFL, but that TD he gave up to Larry Fitzgerald in the NFL Championship game sure doesn’t help his case.

There are quite a few starter quality Safeties available in the 2009 Free Agent market, but I’m not sure the Eagles are going to commit to a player of that level so that they can sit on the bench behind Dawkins and Mikell.  The most rational option would be to draft a young, strong and fast safety who can learn from Dawkins for a year or two before his career fades to black.

Click here to check out all the Safeties available in NFL Free Agency.

As sure-handed L.J. Smith proved in '08, having a "Franchise" tagged player doesn't always help your franchise.

Philly.com is reporting that, per a “team source”, the Philadelphia Eagles will not use the franchise tag on any of their 2009 free agents.  That means that Brian Dawkins, Sean Considine, Joselio Hanson, Correll Buckhalter, Tra Thomas, Jon Runyan, and L.J. Smith will either willingly sign with the Eagles, or leave for greener pastures.

The franchise tag was created to allow teams the opportunity to hand-cuff a player into a one-year, guaranteed contract.  In theory, the team wins by holding onto the player for another year, while the player wins by getting a one-year guaranteed contract worth the average salary of the top-5 highest played player at their respective position.  In reality, teams like the tag because it allows them to underpay star players, while players hate the tag because it removes the security of signing a long-term contract in their prime.

Last year’s usage of the franchise tag on L.J. Smith is a prime example of the reality of the franchise tag.  The Eagles lost, paying L.J. $4.5 million for stats that didn’t rank in the top-20 at his position.  L.J. lost, as his value dropped significantly after a poor 2008 campaign and he will most likely be forced to sign a “prove it”, short-term deal with another team.

So the Eagles are putting it out there that they will not use the tag at all.  Knowing the Eagles, that means they very well may end up using the tag.  Either way, here’s the SOB take on the 2009 Eagles free agents and the franchise tag:

• Brian Dawkins - Safety - $6.3mil franchise tag - Although the safety position carries the 4th lowest value of any position, the Eagles will be able to resign Dawk for less.
• Sean Considine - Safety - $6.3mil franchise tag - Laughable.
• Joselio Hanson - Cornerback - $10.0mil franchise tag - In 2007, the franchise tag for CBs was $5.9mil, amazing how much it has increased.  No nickel corner in the league is worth $10mil/year.
• Correll Buckhalter - Running Back - $6.6mil franchise tag - Buck has given the Birds his all, but the Eagles aren’t running a charity.
• Tra Thomas - Offensive Tackle - $8.5mil franchise tag - Using the tag on Thomas is a real option.  The Eagles absolutely have the cap room to afford putting the tag on Thomas, even if we are overpaying for him.  Keeping Thomas around for one more year gives the Eagles flexibility to draft for the future while maintaining Thomas as a security blanket during any growing pains.
• Jon Runyan - Offensive Tackle - $8.5mil franchise tag - I’d love to have Runyan back, and I’m hoping that Runyan signs a contract that will allow him to finish out his career in Philadelphia.
• L.J. Smith - Tight End - $4.5mil franchise tag - Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, shame on me.

So far in ‘09, thirteen players have been given the franchise tag, two of which are kickers/punters.  Outside of Thomas, Dawkins or maybe Runyan, there is no player worth the tag, and it looks like the Eagles may not be the only team not to use it.