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I propose that we should look at it a different way: how did this team, whose flaws we certainly knew before the season began, achieve so much in the first part of the season?
Season Recap
Game 1: I'm sure just about everyone was feeling empty and disappointed by halftime. Only the most die-hard optimist wasn't worried about the terrible half of football we saw from Nick Foles and the rest of the Eagles. After expecting to watch the Eagles demolish the Jaguars, what we saw instead was a 17-0 Jaguars lead. Foles fumbled twice on two straight possessions, leading to two quick touchdowns to undrafted rookie receiver Allen Hurns. Foles later threw an awful interception that led to a field goal attempt (which was blocked, fortunately for the Eagles).
Foles and the Eagles settled down and came to play after halftime. Spurred on by a touchdown that appeared to be due solely to Darren Sproles' willpower, the Eagles came back and hung 34 straight points on the Jaguars.
This game served as a harbinger for things to come in the rest of the season. The Eagles' special teams unit was fantastic. Nick Foles made some horrific mistakes and looked like a 3rd-round draft pick, not the miraculously mistake-proof gunslinger we watched in awe during the second half of the 2013 season [that's not to say that he didn't make mistakes in 2013; it's saying that the mistakes somehow didn't result in turnovers]. LeSean McCoy did not play like an All-Pro and one of the best running backs in the NFL, due in part to a makeshift offensive line. Jeremy Maclin saw a lot of passes, and posted 97 yards and a TD (thanks to a mind-boggling breakdown in the Jaguars coverage).
And as we soon grew tired of watching, the Eagles' secondary was shredded by a receiver who nobody had ever heard of--and it's not like Allen Hurns went on to tear up the rest of the NFL, either (51 catches on 97 targets, for 677 yards and 6 TDs, including the 4 receptions for 110 yards and 2 TDs vs. the Eagles--a feat he virtually duplicated against the Bengals in Week 9, when he caught 7 passes for 112 yards and 2 TDs).
The Eagles pulled out a win, but they made us sweat it for a very sloppy 30 minutes of playing time.
Game 2: The Eagles played a much better game this time, knocking off the Colts 30-27 in a tight contest.
Game 3: The Eagles hung in with Washington, eventually winning 37-34. Two major takeaways: 1) don't take a cheap shot against Nick Foles, unless you want 340-pound left tackle Jason Peters to run you down; 2) the Eagles should have easily handled this not-so-good division opponent, whose season soon imploded. Again, the Eagles escaped with a victory against an inferior opponent, thanks particularly to opportunistic plays from the defense and special teams. I worried that an Eagles defense that wasn't exactly the league's most talented wouldn't be able to keep up that pace for a full season. Unfortunately, my worries turned out to be justified.
Game 4: A loaded, but underachieving, San Francisco 49ers team took advantage of the Eagles' weak offensive line. This time, heroics on special teams and a pick-six from newly signed free safety Malcolm Jenkins couldn't save the game.
Game 5: The Eagles were able to hang on against the Rams, a team that is slowly but surely getting better, starting with one of the most capable defensive lines in the NFL this season. The Eagles led big for most of the game, but a late surge behind virtually unknown QB Austin Davis threatened the Eagles' hold on the game. The rally ran out of time, however, and the Eagles surged to a lucky 4-1.
Game 6: The Eagles dominated the New York Giants in a 27-0 shutout. I thought that the team had finally hit its stride against a lesser opponent.
Game 7: As I expected, the Eagles lost to a stacked Cardinals team. At 24-20, I was honestly surprised that the game was that close! Arizona was looking like a serious Super Bowl contender at that point, with a suffocating defense and an efficient offense featuring a number of threats. Again, I thought that the Eagles might have been a better team than I gave them credit for. That overachieving streak is a credit to the effectiveness of the coaching staff.
Game 8: The Eagles unsurprisingly knocked off the Texans, 31-21. J.J. Watt is an absolute beast, and the Texans defense wasn't bad overall--they did knock out Nick Foles for the rest of the season, after all! But even with Mark Sanchez at the controls, the Eagles were simply a better team than the Texans.
Game 9: These two teams were headed in different directions at this point in the season. The Eagles dusted the Panthers 45-21 in a game that wasn't even as close as the score showed! Cam Newton wasn't healthy, the Panthers offense was sputtering along on one cylinder, and the Panthers' vaunted D just wasn't up to the task of containing Mark Sanchez and the Eagles' offense. Chip Kelly's system really did look quarterback-proof at this point, as Sanchez played a surprisingly good game! Moreover, the Eagles' defense accumulated an eye-popping 9 sacks! A performance like that will cover up a lot of weaknesses, and the secondary didn't have to be great against a toothless Panthers team. [The Panthers' teeth got much sharper by the end of the season, as the fired Atlanta Falcons coach, Mike Smith, would tell you in a moment of honesty].
Game 10: What a follow-up! After destroying the Panthers, the Eagles took their turn being destroyed. Aaron Rodgers and the Packers lit the Eagles up, 53-20. The Eagles didn't stand a chance, and in this game, it was obvious who was among the best teams in the NFC. [Hint: not the Eagles]. Unsurprisingly, Rodgers and the Packers' excellent receiving corps exposed the weak Philadelphia secondary.
Game 11: The Eagles rebounded to beat the disappointing Tennessee Titans, 43-24. Some Eagles beat writers worried that mediocre rookie QB Zach Mettenberger looked much better against the Eagles than his talent and previous performances warranted. But such observations were largely overlooked, because the Eagles were back in the "W" column.
Game 12: Who didn't enjoy watching the Eagles pummel the hyped Cowboys in this battle for the NFC East lead? (I'm not talking to you, Jerry Jones. Or Cowboys fans in general, for that matter!) The Eagles went to executed well in every phase of the game. Many people remarked on how good Sanchez was in this game. I disagree. He posted decent stats, but failed the eyeball test. I think he was a game manager in this one. He wasn't asked to do a lot; he made smart, safe decisions and let the playmakers do the work.
And boy, did they ever! Shady McCoy ran for 159 yards and a TD, eclipsing the ballyhooed eventual 2014 rushing champion, DeMarco Murray, and his 73 yards and a TD. Maclin caught 8 passes for 108 yards, and rookie Jordan Matthews contributed 51 yards and a TD. The Eagles maligned secondary held the talented Dez Bryant in check, allowing him 4 receptions for 73 yards and no touchdowns (he made up for that later in the season), while the Eagles defense shut down DeMarco Murray and hit Tony Romo again and again, hurrying him into 2 interceptions against 0 touchdowns.
After this game, it looked clear that the Eagles were the best team in the NFC East, and a major player in the NFC in general. My reaction was joy (of course! The Eagles just beat the hated Dallas Cowboys!), but that reaction was muted, because I remembered how handily Green Bay destroyed us earlier in the year. And, of course, I still remembered the near-losses to Jacksonville and Washington. I knew this was not a complete team, though I figured that the Eagles would win the final two games to ensure a playoff berth, as the Cowboys collapsed in December once again.
Boy, was I wrong...
Game 13: As I expected, the Eagles couldn't stand up against the Seahawks' suffocating defense. Top to bottom, Seattle has a great defense and loads of talent. I figured that the Eagles' aging offensive line and streaky backup QB couldn't overcome the talent and defensive depth of the Seahawks, though I was surprised at how easily Russell Wilson was able to move the ball against the Eagles' defense, considering Seattle's lack of talent at the wide receiver position.
RB Marshawn Lynch was held to 86 yards on 23 rushing attempts, and 27 yards (and a TD) on 5 receptions. If I had known that before the game, I would have said that the Eagles would surely win if they held Lynch to such a performance! But Doug Baldwin (!) torched the Eagles for 97 yards and a touchdown. QB Russell Wilson (who expressed a lot of interest in playing for the Eagles before being drafted by Seattle) ran for 48 yards and a TD himself, in addition to his 263 yards and 2 TDs. He spread the ball around a no-name receiving corps, and got the job done with an offense that really doesn't have much of a threat outside of Lynch, and Wilson himself.
Seattle's anemic offense looked fairly good, and hung 24 points on an Eagles defense that had no answer for Wilson's efficiency. If you ever needed evidence that the Eagles were not the playoff contenders they were hyped to be after the Thanksgiving blowout against Dallas, this game was it.
Game 14: The Cowboys responded to the Thanksgiving Day drubbing with a 38-27 victory over the Eagles. They corrected their mistakes from Game 12, gave Tony Romo all the time he could ask for in the pocket, and sprang DeMarco Murray free for 2 touchdowns.
Oh yeah, and there was that little thing about cornerback Bradley Fletcher getting torched for 3 TDs by Dez Bryant. You'd think defensive coordinator Bill Davis would have cheated free safety Malcolm Jenkins his way after the first TD, and definitely after the second TD. Nope. After the third TD, they finally assigned CB Cary Williams to cover Bryant, and the generally inconsistent Williams limited Bryant for the rest of the game. But then, why throw to Williams' side of the field when Fletcher was getting toasted like a marshmallow?
Dallas jumped out to an early 21-0 lead. Though the scrappy Eagles climbed back to a 24-21 lead, a DeMarco Murray TD run, followed by Bryant's third TD catch, buried Philadelphia.
The Eagles left this disappointing game with a 9-5 record and a fair chance to make the playoffs. All they had to do was beat Washington the next week, right in the middle of a media firestorm about the state of the team's locker room, and whether or not QB Robert Griffin III had a future with the team. The New York Giants were looking like a similar easy win in the final game of the season.
But looks, as they say, can be deceiving...
Game 15: The second game against a Washington team that imploded, with rumors swirling about the team giving up on franchise QB Robert Griffin III, was supposed to be a gimme. It was supposed to cement the Eagles' place at the top of the division.
Instead, they dropped a 27-24 decision to...who else but RGIII? With that loss went the Eagles' hopes of making the playoffs. Dallas' Monday night win against the Colts officially eliminated the Eagles from playoff contention.
Game 16: To the credit of the coaching staff, the Eagles did not give up on the season and lay down against the Giants after a heartbreaking collapse. Sensational rookie receiver O'Dell Beckham, Jr. had a great game to close out an astounding rookie season, ending with 12 catches for 185 yards and a TD against the hapless Philadelphia secondary. Beckham's efforts were not enough, however, as the Giants fell to the Eagles, 34-26, in a game that was much more exciting than you'd expect from two teams that were eliminated from playoff contention.
Again, the Eagles' talent proved too much for the resurgent Giants offense to handle. But it was a far cry from the shutout Philly posted earlier in the season.
The Verdict
Still, a 10-6 record isn't too shabby, and there were a lot of positives to take away from the season. Frankly, the Eagles were victims of their own expectations. After a 10-6 showing (against a weaker schedule) and a playoff appearance the previous year, the Eagles were expected to make the playoffs again, despite a secondary that nobody expected to be more than merely serviceable, and (crucially) an aging offensive line that faced a carousel of injuries and a suspension for starting right tackle Lane Johnson to begin the season. The Eagles were expected to be the best team in a weak NFC East by default. The Cowboys surprised a lot of people by posting a good record against some tough teams. They proved to be the better and more consistent team in 2014, and they deserved to go to the playoffs more than the Eagles did.
But remember that this was only Chip Kelly's second season with the team. The roster still isn't completely the way he wants it, and the team definitely improved over the previous season. But it still had a few fundamental flaws, which the league's best teams exposed.
If the Eagles were so flawed, then why did they start the season at 9-3? Luck had a role, but so did smart playcalling, a defense that typically came up with a big play when it had to, and a concerted offseason effort to improve the special teams. The Eagles' overachievement was no accident. It was the result of careful preparation and finding talent in free agency and in the draft. Player evaluations and a solid plan contributed to a team that outplayed my expectations, as well as the expectations of some observers who cautioned fans to lower their expectations before the 2014 season.
The Weaknesses
Improvement is needed, particularly in a couple areas. The secondary needs help, as anyone with eyes will tell you. Malcolm Jenkins, signed from the Saints before the 2014 season, played pretty well. Nate Allen was underwhelming at strong safety, and second-year player Earl Wolff didn't see the field much before losing his season to knee surgery.
Though Nate Allen isn't terrible, he is not a playmaker. He could be a steady force in a talented secondary, but he is not good enough to help a weak secondary like this one.
At cornerback, Cary Williams is inconsistent. He has some good games, and he has some bad games. Sometimes, he plays both well and poorly in the same game. Like Nate Allen, he can be a serviceable piece in a good secondary, but he is not going to improve a poor secondary. He spoke out against the coaching staff during the season, and he is due $8 million if he plays for the team in 2015. Between those 3 factors (inconsistency, publicly disagreeing with his coaches, and being owed a lot of money), Cary Williams is highly unlikely to be an Eagle in 2015.
And, of course, Bradley Fletcher was exposed as a poor cornerback in 2014. If he returns to the team in 2015, fans will riot. Cars will be flipped, Lincoln Financial Field will be set on fire, and businesses will be looted. Panic will reign in the streets.
Okay, perhaps I'm exaggerating, but not by much. Even a casual fan can see that Fletcher did not play well. If he starts for any NFL team in 2015, offensive coordinators will rejoice. There is a lot of film about how to beat Bradley Fletcher, and the Eagles cannot justify handing a new contract to a player who was beaten badly, by a variety of receivers playing in a variety of offensive schemes.
But if the Eagles don't return either of their starting cornerbacks, what will they do? Rookie Jaylen Watkins barely saw the field, and coaches insist on keeping playmaker Brandon Boykin as a nickel corner. Nolan Carroll is under contract for another year, but he didn't perform terribly well when he started in Bradley Fletcher's place against the Giants in the final game. So, with question marks at both corner spots and at strong safety, three-quarters of the Eagles' secondary is questionable. Not a good situation for a team expected to make a strong playoff run in 2015.
QB
A lot of fans and writers are speculating that Chip Kelly is looking for a change at the quarterback position. I disagree. It's pretty clear to me that Nick Foles, a young QB with lots of potential, is going to return as the starter for 2015, and probably beyond that. He struggled this year before suffering a broken collarbone that ended his season. That's typical for a young quarterback who gave defensive coordinators some game tape to study. They ferreted out Foles' weaknesses. Now the ball is in Foles' and the Eagles' court to counter-adjust, to improve upon those weaknesses and to maximize his strengths. This is an entirely typical career progression.
While it may be easy to point out recent successes like Andrew Luck, Aaron Rodgers, or Matt Ryan, none of whom struggled so badly in their second years as starting QBs, I'd argue that those cases represent exceptions, rather than the general rule. Foles should not have been expected to carry the team on the back of another 27 touchdown, 2 interception-caliber performance like his second half of 2013. That is neither realistic nor fair. And even if you didn't expect that kind of ratio--let's say 30 TDs vs. 12 INTs over the course of a full 2014 season, that's still expecting a Tom Brady-caliber season out of a young player who has not started a full season. [Brady threw 33 TDs and 9 INTs in the 2014 regular season. Granted, his receivers aren't as good as the Eagles' receivers. But Brady is also considered to be one of the best QBs ever to play the game.] And that's not realistic either.
Foles will be the starter. Forget what you've heard about Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, Brett Hundley, or anyone else. This will be Foles' offense, barring some surprise acquisition (RGIII is a popular trade speculation target). Even with the addition of a guy like RGIII, Colin Kaepernick, or anyone else, it's Foles' job to lose. And I do not expect him to lose it.
It is fair, however, to speculate about the backup position. Will Mark Sanchez return? He had some good moments and some bad moments. I'd say it's a 50/50 toss-up. If Sanchez is willing to return for a reasonable contract, say $3-4 million/year to back up Foles for a year or two, I think the Eagles will bring him back. If he wants to start somewhere, the organization will have to look for another serviceable backup.
Despite being drafted during Chip Kelly's first year, Matt Barkley does not appear to have impressed the coaches. If a rookie QB is drafted, it will be to replace Barkley, and with an eye toward eventually replacing Sanchez as primary backup. I believe that Chip Kelly's wagon is hitched to Foles, and I believe that Kelly's smart enough to realize that he probably won't do any better. Don't expect the Eagles to trade the farm in order to get one of the top two QBs in this year's draft. Expect the Eagles to spend no higher than a third-round draft choice on a young QB to groom for eventual backup duties.
OL
The starters across the offensive line are good, I'll grant you that. Todd Herremans is typically singled out as the weak link in the Eagle's O-line. I won't disagree with that, either.
But the Eagles' starters on O-line aren't spring chickens, with the exceptions of right tackle Lane Johnson and center Jason Kelce. Left tackle Jason Peters is still among the game's best. The problem is that, at 33 next season, he's over the peak of his career, as is Evan Mathis, who is a couple months older.
They both have a couple more good years of football left, but that's only if they can remain healthy. As guys get older, performance may decline slightly, but I think the bigger issue is the greater propensity to get injured, and the more recovery time the body requires as it ages. These guys are still in great shape compared to almost anyone else in the world, but in a game of inches like football, small differences matter. A 25-year-old player may be able to play well through a sore toe or a strained hamstring, whereas a 35-year-old player may not.
Consider me skeptical about the Eagles O-line depth. Shady McCoy didn't just randomly start playing better in Week 6 of the regular season. His offensive line was 4/5 intact by that point. That's an indication to me that there is a clear step down from the starters to the backups on the offensive line. And that absolutely must be fixed, especially in light of the age of 3 of the 5 starters from 2014.
The offensive line isn't bad, but it may end 2015 as the biggest weakness on the team if the Eagles don't add more talented backups in the offseason.
ILB
The team's inside linebackers are pretty good, particularly rising star Mychal Kendricks. DeMeco Ryans plays well when he's on the field, but his age (30 this season) isn't an asset either. And guess what--after being on the field for nearly every defensive snap in 2013, and remaining on the field a lot in 2014, his body couldn't take the constant beating. He suffered an injury to his Achilles' tendon and didn't return. His loss during Game 8, against the Texans, didn't help the defensive meltdowns toward the end of the year. Ryans is a key player, and a leader, for the Eagles defense. The Eagles' defense suffered a noticeable drop in performance when he was lost for the season. That's not to say that his backups played poorly, but they just weren't on the same level. Ryans is a very good player--not necessarily the best in the league, but good nonetheless. And his presence is critical to the Eagles' defense.
The team has reasonable depth at the position. Mychal Kendricks and DeMeco Ryans make a good starting tandem, and Casey Matthews is a decent backup. The team likes backups Emmanuel Acho, Najee Goode, and Travis Long, but I'm always skeptical about guys who haven't played in meaningful games against NFL competition. Matthews has come a long way, and I'm pleased by his improvement. But Matthews will never push for a starting job against guys like Kendricks and Ryans, and that's simply not good enough. I'd obviously prefer backups that are so good that coaches have trouble justifying the decision to play the veteran.
Perhaps Acho and Goode can do that in 2015, pushing Ryans for his starting job. That will make the Eagles better on defense, and it would certainly help me feel better about the Philadelphia defense. But it's wise to look for talent in free agency or in the draft anyway. After all, you can never have too many good players.
The Strengths
Lest I get mired in the weaknesses, let's look at some of the Eagles' strengths, of which there are many. One of the first to come to mind is the RB group: spearheaded by LeSean McCoy, this is one of the deepest and most talented groups of running backs in the country. Darren Sproles sees meaningful work on offense at times, and Chris Polk (when he's healthy) provides a powerful third back.
If Jeremy Maclin is re-signed, the wide receivers are another talented group. Maclin is a #1 wide receiver, and he proved it last season, with 85 catches for 1318 yards and 10 TDs on 143 targets. Nick Foles seems to rely on Maclin more than Sanchez, but Maclin produced no matter who was throwing him the ball. On the other side of the field, Riley Cooper was substandard in 2014. He is pretty much a blocking specialist; he had a good first half of the season in 2013, but he simply isn't a talented receiver--expect him to be cut after 2015.
Jordan Matthews, a rookie last year, will make an excellent replacement for Cooper. He works hard, says all the right things in interviews, and--perhaps most importantly--he gets the job done on the field. Mark Sanchez made Matthews his #2 target, with 55 targets in the second half of the season (including the Texans game, which Nick Foles started but was injured in the first quarter). This number trailed only Jeremy Maclin and his 67 targets over the same span. Matthews finished with 67 catches on 105 targets, going for 872 yards and 8 TDs out of the slot. He's got the build, the speed, the quickness, and the work ethic to provide a capable complement to Maclin. With continued improvement, Matthews' presence will stop defenses from doubling the coverage on Maclin, which is something that Cooper could never do.
Josh Huff, another rookie in 2014, didn't get a ton of work on offense. He apparently didn't have a great command of the playbook, because he barely saw the field early in the year and suffered a couple critical drops, but he flashed some speed and talent on the few times he was targeted.
Again, some writers and fans seem to peg wide receiver as a...not exactly as a weakness, but not as a strength. Like the coaching staff, however, I expect improvement from the young players, and more of the same quality performance from Maclin (if the Eagles sign him to a new contract, which they better do quickly!).
The starting offensive line is a good one--again, assuming they all stay healthy, which is not a sure thing. Depth is a potential issue, but the starters can definitely get the job done well.
Brent Celek and Zach Ertz are a productive duo at tight end. Under Chip Kelly, Celek has been used mostly as a sixth blocker. Ertz has receiving talent, and just needs more opportunities to get the ball. James Casey provides good depth as a receiver and as a blocker, and is occasionally used as a fullback as well.
On defense, everything revolves around the stellar play of Fletcher Cox. He's strong, athletic, quick, and absolutely relentless, and he makes everyone on the defensive line play better. The Eagles have solid guys next to him in Cedric Thornton and nose tackle Bennie Logan, and the depth on the defensive line is very good, thanks to Vinny Curry, Brandon Bair, and nose tackle Beau Allen.
OLB Connor Barwin had an outstanding season, with all kinds of sacks, tackles, and deflected passes, and unlike many pass rushers, he wasn't bad against the run either. Trent Cole is not the player he once was, and may be released in the offseason. Going back to a DE in a 4-3 defense is probably best for this passionate and hard-working veteran. I'll be sad when Cole is no longer an Eagle, but the fact is that Brandon Graham probably represents an upgrade as far as the football side of things. Graham is faster, younger, and more athletic than Cole at this stage in his career, and I expect the Eagles' coaching staff to recognize this and re-sign Graham instead of keeping Trent Cole.
As I noted earlier, Mychal Kendricks is a dynamic player at ILB. He will be a good player for a long time. Ryans' remaining playing days are rapidly diminishing, but he will be a good player for another year or two as well. If Emmanuel Acho and Najee Goode can improve, the ILB will be a position of strength. If not, then the Eagles need one more quality young player there. Overall, though, the linebackers are a good group of players.
And, of course, the emphasis on special teams paid off during the season. The Eagles have one of the best special teams units in the NFL, if not THE best. They have ferocious players in coverage, led by Chris Maragos and Bryan Braman. Maragos was constantly around the ball during punts, and returners felt his wrath. The Eagles also feature quick and dynamic punt and kick returners in Darren Sproles, Chris Polk, and Josh Huff. They should be set for a long time with a very capable young kicker in Cody Parkey, and a very good punter in Donnie Jones. All around, the special teams unit contributed to more than one Eagles victory, and I expect the emphasis on special teams to continue under Chip Kelly.
The Plan
The best teams in the NFL consistently build their rosters through the draft. I think that the Eagles realize this, and plan to do the same. Removing Howie Roseman from his role as general manager is an interesting decision, as he has overseen some very good drafts, particularly the 2012 draft that landed Fletcher Cox, Mychal Kendricks, Nick Foles, Brandon Boykin, and Vinny Curry. Whoever the Eagles end up hiring as the new GM, expect Chip Kelly to have a heavy hand in the player acquisitions, both in free agency and in the draft.
Don't expect flashy free agent signings. Chip Kelly is against it, and the Eagles' front office is against it, especially after the disastrous 2011 "Dream Team" offseason spending spree. If you're hoping for Darrelle Revis, Kareem Jackson, Devin McCourty and Da'Norris Searcy...well, you'll most certainly be disappointed!
That said, the Eagles have to make some sort of move at cornerback, whether that comes in free agency or in the draft. Keep your eye on injured Oregon star Ifo Ekpre-Olomu as a potential Eagles target, as well as Michigan State's Trae Waynes, Kevin Johnson of Wake Forest, Utah's Eric Rowe, LSU's Jalen Collins, Miami's Ladarius Gunter or Miami (Ohio)'s Quinten Rollins, Colorado State's Bernard Blake, Stanford's Alex Carter, Ohio State's Doran Grant, or Oregon State's Steven Nelson. Less likely are Florida State's Ronald Darby or P.J. Williams, USC's Josh Shaw, or Washington's Marcus Peters. We have some time before free agency begins, so we'll see who is available there--expect a bargain free agent signing, like Walter Thurmond, Jarrett Bush, Josh Gordy, Darius Butler, Brice McCain, Kyle Wilson, Zack Bowman, or even the aging Rashean Mathis on a 1-year deal. Don't expect one of the big names like Darrelle Revis. Brandon Flowers is about the most high-profile signing I could realistically imagine the Eagles making at CB.
Bernardrick McKinney is a popular early mock draft pick for ILB for the Eagles. He is a high-motor player who always seems to be around the ball. Considering the needs at cornerback and safety, I find it unlikely that the Eagles will spend the requisite first-rounder on drafting McKinney, but he would make a good addition to the Eagles if he is drafted.
Offensive tackle and guard is another position to watch for. Stay tuned as the NFL free agency period and the draft process draw closer, when a clearer picture should emerge of how the Eagles plan to address their needs.
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