Philadelphia Eagles: Going In The Right Direction?

Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly has made some pretty astounding moves of late. I don’t think anyone expected the Eagles quarterback to be Sam Bradford and their running back to be DeMarco Murray just a couple of days after free agency began.

Some fans think Chip has lost it and is blowing up and rebuilding a 10-6 team that weren’t far away from the playoffs last season.

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Others think that Chip is making some great moves and has greatly improved the Eagles. However, the Eagles were doing a nice job building up talent through the draft and paying their own players rather than signing big money free agents. Are the Eagles now overspending on players, are we getting better as a team or worse?

I’m not going to describe every single signing the Eagles have made, I’m sure you know about them already.

I’m not going to bring up the money spent on these players either. I feel that fans and the media can obsess over the numbers too much. Creating cap room can be relatively easy in the NFL if you have cap problems, you can cut veterans or restructure contracts.

The Eagles are a better team than before free agency started, I have no doubts about that. The Eagles aren’t signing high priced veterans that are on the decline. Byron Maxwell has only started 17 games and has recently turned 27. He fits the Eagles scheme perfectly and can continue to develop here.

The signing of Walter Thurmond also helps to rebuild the Eagles secondary. Its a low risk signing and it doesn’t stop the Eagles from drafting a cornerback high if the best player available at pick 20 is a cornerback. Thurmond is only 27 too, he’s another player who can develop here.

Whilst Murray carried the ball a lot last year for the Cowboys, he only has 934 carries throughout his career in total and he’s also 27 years old. Some are worried about Murray declining after a heavy workload last year. I don’t share the same concern because Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles will help to share the workload.

We essentially replaced LeSean McCoy with DeMarco Murray and also got Kiko Alonso in the process. Alonso and Kendricks should become a very good inside linebacker duo and will help to greatly improve the Eagles defense.

The Eagles move to re-sign Brandon Graham is my favorite move so far this offseason. Graham is one of my favorite Eagles and he is going to have a monster season next year. One of the most underrated Eagles the last couple of years, I’m excited to see him finally start next season.

The Bradford deal is also a step in the right direction. I discussed this a few days ago here. Bradford is more talented than Foles and should fit this system perfectly, we didn’t have to give up a high amount either. Yes a second round pick isn’t cheap but if he’s Chips guy then its very good value. Even if Bradford doesn’t work out, he’s due nothing next year and we can then try again at the quarterback position.

Losing Maclin hurts a lot. Chip didn’t want that to lose him but I understand why he refused to pay him $11m per year, the contract he got was pretty ridiculous in the end. I am worried as to why we haven’t signed a safety yet and let Nate Allen leave, I can only assume that Chip has his eye on someone in the draft or will trade for someone in the near future.

Chip Kelly isn’t just signing random players. None of these players are veterans who are on the decline. All of the players signed are ascending talents who fit perfectly into the Eagles scheme. I believe Chip has a plan and he’s improving the roster. Nobody will agree with every decision Chip makes including myself but I feel confident that the Eagles are going in the right direction.

Next: Is DeMarco Murray better than LeSean McCoy?

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