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Philadelphia Eagles Reach Agreement With Byron Maxwell

By Bret Stuter

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Philadelphia Eagles Reach Agreement With Byron Maxwell

It’s been a long hard road so far for Philadelphia Eagles fans.  In the first stages of off -season, they had to say their farewells to running back LeSean McCoy, outside linebacker Trent Cole, and offensive guard Todd Herremans.  But on Sunday afternoon of March 8, 2015, the goodbyes parted to a potential hello.

And then, there it was. The news that the Eagles had gotten their guy.

We’ve talked at length why Maxwell makes sense for the Eagles.  Behind the front seven, any above average defensive backfield will have a field day.  Maxwell played on the best defensive backfield of 2013 and 2014.  With the acquisition of new defensive backs coach Cory Undlin, the hope was that the Philadelphia Eagles would be focusing there this off-season.

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Maxwell is the first piece to what will likely be a very active free agency period for the Philadelphia Eagles.  The team is down two starting cornerbacks, a starting safety, a starting outside linebacker, two reserve linebackers, a starting running back, a starting offensive guard, one starter and two reserve wide receivers.   In short, the team is looking at a wide range of positions to fill.  And due to the nature of this period, no formal announcement will be made until 4 PM on Tuesday March 10, 2015.  So this is likely the best we’ll do until the opening of free agency arrives.

The Eagles need help desperately at the cornerback position.   In 2014, their pass defense was clearly the missing link to an otherwise outstanding season that overcame the loss of their starting quarterback and inside linebacker at the half way point.  But as the Eagles faced Dez Bryant, DeSean Jackson, Odell Beckham Jr and the like, their playoff hopes faded rapidly.

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    • Maxwell himself was part of the Eagles undoing, as he showed up as a Seattle Seahawk and smothered the Eagles wide receivers, beginning the team’s three game losing streak.  That loss in Philly was the one loss that the Eagles couldn’t shake.  So now it’s the chance to see what he can do as an Eagle.  Some feel that he is overhyped, some feel he is overpaid.   That may be.  But for today, it seems he is the newest Eagle.  And that is just fine with me.

    The demise of the Eagles at the end of the season can be linked to the meltdown of the pass defense.   When inside linebacker DeMeco Ryans went down to injury, defensive coordinator Billy Davis tried a number of options to compensate.  When he added dime cornerback Nolan Carroll to the defense, teams ran at them.  When he went with the standard 3-4 package and tried to cheat a safety near the line, teams simply ran post routes against the Eagles cornerbacks who were exposed repeatedly in surrendering long gains.   It didn’t help the defense that the end of the season pitted them against the best receivers and quarterbacks of the NFL, nor that the injury to quarterback forced the team to rely upon backup quarterback Mark Sanchez.  In critical moments of the game, the defense was simply too gassed to stop offenses from hurting them with the deep ball.

    With the signing of Byron Maxwell, and a new safety and starting 2nd cornerback, the Eagles hope to prevent that in the future.

    Next: Philadelphia Eagles Nick Foles Belongs In The Nest

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