1 Expert’s take on Philadelphia Eagles offseason raises familiar question

It’s annoying as a Philadelphia Eagles fan when every offseason forces us to ask the same roster questions.

Another Super Bowl is upon us. It will be over once 60 minutes of game time passes, and then, we’ll all officially be eyeing another NFL offseason. The process starts over, but if you’re a Philadelphia Eagles fan, the process feels more like a cycle.

Every offseason seemingly leads to the same questions and the same expectations for an offseason battle plan. Recently, Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus listed the most pressing offseason needs of all 32 NFL teams. Does anyone want to guess as to what position group he believes Philly needs to address?

It shouldn’t take you long to find the right answer. Here’s some of his take.

"The Eagles’ 2019 season was defined in large part by their attrition, particularly at offensive skill positions down the stretch. A lack of wide receivers, and specifically DeSean Jackson, due to injury created a season in which running back Miles Sanders led the team in receiving yards on passes 20 or more yards downfield…On the other side of the field, the Eagles’ coverage was one of their bigger weaknesses. The cornerback position provided subpar play for much of the year. Rasul Douglas, Avonte Maddox, Ronald Darby and Jalen Mills all finished the season with PFF grades below 60.0, and Darby had one of the worst coverage lines of any cornerback in the league with 17 yards allowed per reception and a 117.9 passer rating into his coverage. Adding cornerbacks and safeties who can positively impact the most important aspect of defense in today’s NFL, coverage, will be key for Philadelphia this offseason."

The finger can be pointed in several directions, particularly bad scouting and roster decisions. Some may even blame Howie Roseman, but it feels like this nightmare has gone on for almost twenty years (because it has). Still, as annoying as it is, the Eagles seem to be cursed when it comes to finding long-term answers at wide receiver and cornerback.

In spite of all of his success, we all spent much of Andy Reid‘s tenure asking why he couldn’t find top-tier wide receivers for Donovan McNabb. Fortunately, for him, he had Jim Johnson, Bobby Taylor, and Troy Vincent on the other side of the ball. Then, when Taylor and Vincent left, he enjoyed several years of success because Philly had Lito Sheppard and Sheldon Brown, two guys that grew up in the system.

Still, he had more failure than success in the wide receiver department. Yes, he drafted Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson, but he also drafted Freddie Mitchell when Reggie Wayne and Chad Johnson were both still on the board.

Reggie Brown was good for about five minutes. Remember him? Jason Avant was a stud. You already know the Terrell Owens story, but for as good as Reid was, his failure to find a legitimate long-term threat at receiver led to many of his failures and, possibly, three straight NFC Championship Game losses.

The cornerback position has been equally as frustrating for Birds fans and has been one that we’ve questioned since Philly paid a ton of money to Nnamdi Asomugha and that didn’t work. Since Doug Pederson‘s arrival, we’ve talked about finding wide receivers and cornerbacks in every Eagles offseason. 2020’s version is looming, and we’re still talking about finding wide receivers and cornerbacks. We won’t even get into some of Chip Kelly‘s roster decisions.

None of that will serve as news to any die-hard Eagles fan, but it has to finally serve as a wake-up call for Philly’s brass. Joe Douglas did nothing in his time here, absolutely nothing. The Eagles have a potential ten picks in 2020’s draft. They have to nail every single one of them. They have to get JJ Arcega-Whiteside coached up and on the field. It sounds cliche, but it’s the facts. Philly’s wasting the prime years of a lot of good football players, particularly a certain franchise quarterback as time continues to pass.