5 Free Agents Philadelphia Eagles Should Avoid This Offseason
The biggest question for the Eagles over the past few weeks was who would take on the position as Chip Kelly's right-hand man. Now that Ed Marynowitz has been named the vice president of player personnel, Kelly has the guy he needs to help him with scouting players for the draft.
But before April's draft, the Eagles have to figure out which players they want to add to their team from free agency. There's also the question of how much money the team wants to spend. In his previous two seasons, Kelly has refrained from the bigger names like Darrelle Revis and Jairus Byrd, instead signing mid-range players like Cary Williams and Malcolm Jenkins. The biggest free-agent acquisition he's made during his two seasons is linebacker Connor Barwin, who emerged in 2014 as one of the best pass-rushers in the NFL.
This offseason, the Eagles likely need to add a new starter at two or three spots in the secondary. They could also add a starter at linebacker, and it's possible Kelly looks at wide receiver or guard for an upgrade too.
On paper, this looks like a pretty legitimate free-agent class, with stars like DeMarco Murray, Dez Bryant, Julius Thomas, Mike Iupati, Justin Houston and Devin McCourty available. Although most will likely be re-signed, there will still be some good players available for the picking.
On both the offensive and defensive side of the ball, the following five slides will highlight five players the Eagles absolutely need to avoid in free agency.
Michael Vick, Quarterback
1 of 5
Life as a Philadelphia Eagles fan means watching two quarterbacks every season. Not most seasons. Every season. It's been six straight seasons a backup quarterback has made at least two starters for the Eagles, and nine of the last 10 years. It's become almost routine.
That's why the Eagles cannot go into 2015 expecting Nick Foles (or will it be Marcus Mariota?) to make all 16 starts. Foles has been injured all three years of his career, while Mariota's style as a runner will likely result in injuries at the NFL level.
In general, this is a pretty weak class for free-agent quarterbacks and on paper, Vick looks like he might be one of the best options. After all, he knows the system extremely well, having started the first four games of the Chip Kelly era before succumbing to injuries.
But Vick's time has passed, both in Philly and in the NFL. He'll be 35 in June, and with the number of hits his body has taken over the years, it's hard to see him ever being effective again, even as a backup. He looked like a shell of his former self in New York this past season, throwing just three touchdowns and taking 19 sacks in 121 pass attempts.
He also admitted he wasn't ready to play when he was forced into the game against the San Diego Chargers in Week 5, a game the Jets lost 31-0 after Vick threw for just 47 yards on 19 pass attempts.
Vick isn't the type of player who learns from his mistakes, and even though he's a great teammate, he's just not the kind of player you want to trust to win a couple of games...especially not at this point in his career.
Sign Jake Locker, re-sign Mark Sanchez, draft a rookie, but don't bring back Vick. That ship has sailed.
Mike Iupati, Guard
2 of 5
At this point, there's about a 50 percent chance the Eagles bring back veteran guard Todd Herremans for his 11th season in Philadelphia.
Herremans, who turns 33 next season, missed the final eight games of the 2014 season with a torn biceps. He also suffered through arguably the worst year of his career, rating as the 57th-best guard in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus.
If the Eagles can find a replacement for Herremans, it makes sense to move on from an aging, injury-prone player who is easily the weak link of their offensive line. But a replacement should be in the form of a player currently on their team, like Matt Tobin or Andrew Gardner, or a mid-round pick in the 2015 draft.
It doesn't make sense for the Eagles to target one of the top free-agent options, notably San Francisco's Mike Iupati. A first-round pick in the 2010 draft, Iupati's strength is as a run-blocker. He's rated as the 14th, 35th, 5th, 11th and 13th-best guard during his five seasons in the National Football League, per Pro Football Focus.
Iupati is just 27 years old, however, and one of the top guards on the market would cost around $7 to $8 million per season for at least five years. Guard is one of the most replaceable positions on the offense, and the rest of the Eagles' offensive line is so dominant that there's no point in spending so much money on a player who would, incredibly, be the worst member of the starting offensive line.
Any Inside Linebacker
3 of 5
In Mychal Kendricks, the Eagles will have a starter at inside linebacker for the next five years, at least. But it wouldn't be surprising at all if the team decided to look for an upgrade over veteran DeMeco Ryans.
After all, Ryans is nearly 31 years old, the age when many players in the league are finished for their career. He's no longer an every-down player and his level of play has declined significantly over the past two seasons. He just doesn't have the range or quickness to go sideline-to-sideline to make plays.
Ryans is also attempting to recover from a torn Achilles suffered against the Houston Texans in November, an injury that could potentially sideline him for the beginning of the 2015 season. Oh, and there's the $6.8 million he is scheduled to earn in 2015, per Eagles Cap.
Yet if the Eagles want to replace Ryans, they need to look on their own roster, with a player like Najee Goode or Emmanuel Acho, or in the draft, with an early- or mid-round option.
The free-agent options are all mediocre, at best, with names like David Harris, Rey Maualuga, Brandon Spikes and Mason Foster. Quite simply, neither is a good-enough player to fill in as an every-down player, and the Eagles were already expecting to have to replace Ryans in 2015 or 2016, even if he didn't suffer a major injury.
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Byron Maxwell, Cornerback
4 of 5
Byron Maxwell is the best free-agent cornerback in this year's offseason, and it's really not even close. That's precisely why I don't want the Eagles to sign him.
According to Philly.com's Jeff McLane, Maxwell could cost in the range of $12 million to $13 million per season. That's an insane amount. That's Nnamdi Asomugha money, and we all remember what happened when the Eagles signed the former All-Pro to a five-year deal worth $60 million (including $25 million guaranteed) before the 2011 season.
Maxwell was a really good player in 2014, surrendering just one touchdown pass and collecting 39 tackles in 43 attempts, per Pro Football Focus. He also seems to step his game up in the postseason, as he allowed no completions against the Carolina Panthers in the divisional round and intercepted a pass against the Green Bay Packers in the conference championship game.
But there are a couple of reasons to be leery of Maxwell. First, Seattle really wants to keep him and is preparing to ink him to a multi-year extension. Then, there's the idea that Maxwell may benefit tremendously from playing in a defensive backfield that includes the game's best cornerback, the game's best safety and another Pro Bowl safety.
And then, even if the Eagles did sign Maxwell, how well would he do in their secondary? Look how former Eagles safeties like Kurt Coleman, Jaiquawn Jarrett, Quintin Demps and Patrick Chung have all succeeded since leaving Philly. That's a major red flag.
I'd rather see the Eagles take a flier on a mid-range option like Chris Culliver or a veteran like Antonio Cromartie than the game's hottest free agent. It's time for the Eagles to develop their own players instead of relying on their needs in free agency, which clearly hasn't worked over the years.
Nate Allen, Safety
5 of 5
The Eagles finally found a long-term answer at safety when they signed former first-round pick Malcolm Jenkins last offseason. Jenkins responded with the best year any Eagles safety has had since Quintin Mikell in 2010. He has at least two more years remaining on his contract.
But the Eagles desperately need help next to Jenkins in their defensive backfield, and their own Nate Allen, scheduled to become a free agent, is not someone they should consider as an option.
Don't be fooled by Allen's impressive total of seven turnovers, which includes four interceptions and three fumble recoveries. He's just not a very good player, and you can tell that by watching him play instead of relying on seven big plays spread out across an entire season.
According to Pro Football Focus, Allen allowed a 106.2 passer rating and five touchdowns. He also allowed a ridiculous 17.5 yards per completion, which included a game-winning 75-yard touchdown in the final minutes against the Arizona Cardinals, a game that helped keep the Eagles out of the postseason.
Allen, a former second-round pick, has had five seasons to show what he can do at the NFL level. He's played under four defensive coordinators but if he had any real talent, it likely would have been on display by now.
It may be tempting for the Eagles to bring back a familiar face like Allen, who is just 27 years old and in the prime of his career. But the Eagles have to realize at this point that Allen is best suited as a third safety instead of a starter.
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