NFL Free Agency 2011: Philadelphia Eagles' Offseason Plans Taking Shape

The NFL free-agency frenzy has begun! As of 12:15 pm ET, the only actual moves by the Philadelphia Eagles have been releases of their unrestricted free agents and the signing of many undrafted rookie free agents as well as rookie draft picks. In addition, one blue-chip free agent has already agreed to return to the Eagles.

Considering the cap space we have and the players still available, I believe the Eagles' plans are coming into focus. Clearly the front office has taken a quantity over quality mentality in free agency, as the moves for free agents are for the third- or fourth-best free agent at his position and not the best one available. Although we are not getting the No. 1 guy at his position, Jason Babin will still make a strong improvement at the defensive end position.

These slides will cover the remaining free agents that I believe the Eagles will pursue strongly.

Jason Babin

See that guy in the picture sacking a Redskins QB? Yeah, well, just change his jersey to midnight green—that is what we should have this coming year.

Jason Babin was a journeyman throughout the NFL until he met Jim Washburn, who turned him into a Pro Bowl player. The former first-round pick finally found a scheme in which he could play to his strengths, and ironically, that same coach happens to now be with one of the teams Babin played with before. That's right—the Eagles let Babin go and now covet his services again.

As of right now, no contracts can be signed, but the agreement is reportedly for $28 million over five years. This averages to roughly $5.5 million a year, which is half the price for Charles Johnson, who signed a $72 million deal over six years.

Granted, Johnson is much younger, but both are considered one-year wonders so far, so I would say I like the move made by the Eagles. They brought in a guy who is familiar with the coaching, the city and the team, and in a post-lockout season, veterans who can transition smoothly will be crucial.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie

This is the man many NFL insiders are claiming the Eagles will receive in a trade for Kevin Kolb. With the Cardinals drafting a cornerback with the fifth overall pick, the services of one DRC are now expendable. This is especially in the case of a trade where many would agree the Eagles' biggest offseason need is at right cornerback.

I know many are thinking, "I want Nnamdi Asomugha!" Well, so do I, but supposedly we are finally learning to play to the strength of our players. With Jim Washburn's front, we need a fast, athletic defensive line, which I believe for the most part we have. With this same scheme, we need linebackers who can tackle. This group is still in question with perhaps a few additions adding to the mix here. Finally, you need a secondary that can cover and play to the strengths of its current personnel.

Asante Samuel, Nate Allen and Jaiquawn Jarrett are all likely to play better in a zone-coverage scheme as opposed to the man-coverage scheme in which Nnamdi thrives. In addition, landing Nnamdi would likely cost us north of $15 million a year and not allow us to address our many other issues, including defensive end, linebacker and offensive tackle.

In DRC, the Eagles would land a talented, young but occasionally troublesome young man whose athletic potential is through the roof. His skill set is similar to Asante's in that he thrives on turnovers, although he may yield a big play on occasion. Oh, and by the way, the Eagles are likely to get his services for a paltry $1.4 million a year. Not trying to sound like a business goon, but it don't make dollars unless it makes sense.

Jared Gaither

This is Jared Gaither matching up against the man that humiliated Winston Justice and who played a huge role in the Eagles' early bounce out of the playoffs this year.

Unfortunately for the talented and young Gaither, he experienced a back injury and was replaced by a talented teammate and a first-round pick whose skills are still being tested out.

The player that now replaces Gaither on the Ravens is Marshall Yanda, who was signed to a $32 million contract over five years. That is an average of $6.5 million a year. Gaither is getting replaced by Yanda, so Gaither should be able signed for quite a bit less. If I had to guess, I would say he could be had for $4 million a year.

Although I'm scared of adding a player with back injuries (insert Shawn Andrews comment here), I would welcome giving the young and talented Gaither a chance and letting him and Justice fight it out. Jason Peters clearly has the left tackle spot locked up, and having two startable right tackles competing for the right to block guys like Clay Matthews from sacking Michael Vick would be a good thing.

Stephen Tulloch

This is a picture of Stephen Tulloch tackling a Dallas Cowboy running back. Do I really need to continue? Well, for the sake of being thorough, I will.

Tulloch is a young and upcoming middle linebacker in a 4-3 defense with the Titans. He is now a free agent and has experience playing for a linebacking corps that must tackle and have great run support behind a Jim Washburn-led defensive line.

Many educated fans are aware that the middle linebacker is the quarterback of the defense. By acquiring a talented, young, experienced player, the transition in our linebacking corps should be seamless. With him at the MIKE, Jamar Chaney/Moise Fokou at SAM and Keenan Clayton/Chaney at WILL, I would have much more confidence in our linebacking corps than in previous years.

Supposedly we are not the only team trying to acquire this young man, as the Lions and Titans are both pursuing him. The current figures that are being floated for Tulloch's value are $22 million over five years. If contacted by Eagles brass, I believe Tulloch would prefer to come to a scheme where his role is similar to past years, playing for a viable contender with a stable quarterback and head coach.

Vince Young

The quarterback carousel in the league has settled most quarterback issues throughout the league. The odd one out in the game of quarterback musical chairs seems like it will be Vince Young.

No one in the league will give Young a starting job; thus, he is destined to be a backup for at least a year. Why not cash in on the hype of Michael Vick, Marty Mornhinweg and Andy Reid?

With Vick's injury tendencies, why not have our second-string quarterback be someone who can play in special packages, run a similar type of offense in comparison to Vick's style of play and has a record of winning nearly two-thirds of his games?

If worst comes to worst, the team can cut him if he is not showing improvement or motivation. In the best-case scenario, the Philadelphia Eagles will have a tradeable commodity at the quarterback position for the third year in a row.

Most backup quarterbacks make roughly $3-4 million a year, and I would expect a backup with Young's reputation and star power to cost slightly more, so this would be the final puzzle in solving our major areas of concern.

In total, the Eagles will have addressed the right cornerback position, middle linebacker, defensive end, offensive tackle and backup quarterback with former Pro Bowl or Pro Bowl-level players in one fell swoop.

If this occurs, the Eagles would only need to improve on defense, and we would become a Super Bowl-worthy team quite quickly.