Why Darren Sproles was so special, Trey Burton's contract and a look at just how bad the rest of the NFC East has been.
Will there be an NFL season? Who knows. But there'll always be Roob's 10 random Eagles observations!
1. It’s unbelievable to me that we’re sitting here a few days before rookies are scheduled to report to training camps, and the NFL and NFLPA still haven’t agreed on operational protocols to protect the league’s players, coaches and staff members during a pandemic. How can you keep the virus from spreading throughout your roster and staff without a bubble and without daily testing with immediate results? Players and coaches go home after practice and interact with family members who have been working or going to school or shopping, and then they go back to practice. How can there safely be NFL football with all that going on? Especially in places like California, Florida, Houston and Phoenix, where it’s much worse than Philly? I'm not sure it can be done. I really hope I'm wrong.
2. I wonder if the Bears regret giving Trey Burton that four-year, $32 million contract a couple years ago. The Bears paid Burton $18 million over the last two years before cutting him. That’s only $600,000 less than Zach Ertz earned over the last two years.
3. The Eagles were the No. 3 red-zone team in the NFL during the 2019 regular season, scoring touchdowns on 67 percent of their drives and averaged 5.5 points per red-zone drive. In the playoff loss to Seattle, they had three red-zone drives and managed no TDs and just two field goals. It was the first time since a loss to the Cards in 2014 they had three or more red-zone drives without scoring a touchdown and the first time it happened at home since the Seahawks game in 2007.
4. I'm disappointed Eagles owner Jeff Lurie hasn't directly addressed the DeSean Jackson situation. The Eagles put out a statement that didn’t have Lurie’s name (or anybody’s name) on it, and the anonymous nature of the press release just added murkiness to a very serious situation. OK, here’s a statement on team letterhead, but who exactly is saying this stuff? Whose words are these? The statement was simply from The Eagles. It appeared to express Lurie’s feelings, but it carries so much more weight when an owner addresses a sensitive or difficult situation directly instead of hiding behind an anonymous statement. I like what the statement said. It just should have had Lurie’s name on it.
5. I can’t believe it’s been eight years since the Eagles’ last training camp at Lehigh. I understand why a lot of teams don’t have remote training camps anymore — obviously nobody will this year — but I loved every minute at Lehigh, even those crazy late-afternoon thunderstorms that rolled through the hills. There was just something so timeless about an NFL team settling into small town America for a month. Whether it was watching a giant lineman letting a tiny kid lug his shoulder pads after practice or the hilarious interactions between players and fans lining the fence after a big play or the joy of watching some anonymous undrafted rookie that will never make it to the league signing autographs until there's nobody left to sign for, there was just something special at training camp that we’ll never get back.
NFL
6. Dan Snyder hasn’t done much right since he bought the Washington NFL team in 1999. But hiring Ron Rivera was a stroke of genius. Not only is Rivera a heck of a defensive coach, his intelligence, patience and communication skills make him the perfect guy to help navigate the franchise through all the controversies it's experiencing today.
7. This is the first summer since 2004 that Darren Sproles isn’t playing football. One thing that’s important to remember about Sproles is that he wasn’t just a great returner, he was a hell of an offensive player. He’s one of only 13 players in NFL history with 3,500 yards rushing and 4,500 receiving, and his 4.9 career rushing average is best of those 13 backs. Even though he was never a full-time offensive player, from 2009 through 2016 — a span of eight years — he averaged 870 yards of offense per year. I hope Eagles fans remember vintage Sproles and not the injury-plagued veteran from the last few years. Because he was a brilliantly unique player in this league for a long, long time.
8. Michael Haddix, the fullback the Eagles drafted eighth overall in 1983 while Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Roger Craig, Bruce Matthews and Darrell Green were available, had an NFL-record six straight seasons with 40 or more carries and no rushing touchdowns. Only seven other players in history have had more than two such seasons in a row.
9. The last time an NFC East team other than the Eagles won a playoff game in consecutive years was the Cowboys in 1995 and 1996. The Redskins haven’t done it since 1991-92 and the Giants since 1985-86. The last NFC East team other than the Eagles to even reach the playoffs in consecutive years was the Giants in 2007 and 2008.
10. The Eagles this past week announced an Eagles-themed line of Broad and Pattison wines, with some of the proceeds benefitting the Eagles Autism Foundation. We came up with a few Eagles-themed wines of our own:
• The Ike Riesling honors the Eagles' Pro Bowl special teamer and WIP radio host Ike Reese.
• The Isaac SeuMalbec, named after the Eagles’ left guard.
• The Ken Rosé, in honor of the Eagles special teams stud of the mid-1990s.
• NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Alex Ruane recommends a fine Pinot Mahe.
• The Wilbert Montepulciano, for those who like Italian reds and appreciate the great running back of the Dick Vermeil Era.
• For cabernet fans who remember the backup tight end of the early 1980s, there’s the Vyto Kab.
• It’s kind of overpriced, but you might want to try the DeMarco Merlot.
• It doesn’t last long, but there’s also the ChardonNA Brown.
• From NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Adam Herrman, there’s the Reggie White Zinfandel.
• And last but not least … it's not very good but you might want to try the Dorial Grenache-Beckham
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