The NFL Annual Meetings are taking place in West Palm Beach this week in Florida, the only event all year where Howie Roseman, Nick Sirianni and Jeffrey Lurie will all speak within two days.
Lurie is set to speak on Tuesday evening, but with Roseman and Sirianni already meeting with the media, here are some major takeaways from what the duo had to say:
** Running it Back: The theme of this offseason seems to quickly be running it back. Both Roseman and Sirianni have spoken at length the last few days about how they are counting on (and expecting/hoping) for the young players on the roster to take big steps forward this season. Part of that hope is out of necessity — the Eagles have not yet made any major upgrades on the roster outside of the Haason Reddick signing. They have swung-and-missed on players like Marcus Williams, Calvin Ridley and Allen Robinson. So they know the team needs upgrades. Their current roster, however, looks a lot like last year’s roster. That isn’t a terrible thing. The Eagles surprised many last season by exceeding expectations and making the playoffs. The idea they could do it again, with young players on the roster once again improving, is not crazy. It is just not the exciting offseason many expected — and it is understandable why fans would be frustrated with how the offseason is going.
** The Receivers: The face of the Eagles plan of counting on player improvement are the receivers. The Eagles have tried-and-failed to make big moves at the position — and now they are left with DeVonta Smith and a bunch of unproven players. Sirianni and Roseman have both said this week that they are counting on the young receivers on the roster to improve. Roseman went as far as saying that Smith taking a step forward this season, and getting more targets, is part of the reason why they haven’t been able to sign better receivers in free agency. The issue with their insistence that they are confident in their receivers is that they have tried to make major moves at the position, meaning they know ideally they need more help at the position. Sirianni acknowledged on Tuesday morning that the passing game needs to be better and an obvious way for that to happen is adding talent at the receiver position. If major moves aren’t made in free agency or via a trade, and at this point they are not likely, look for the Eagles to try to land one of the top receivers in the 2022 NFL Draft by taking one in the first round.
** Fletcher Cox and Derek Barnett: Two of the more controversial moves the Eagles have made this offseason were bringing back both Fletcher Cox and Derek Barnett. There is clearly a big difference between how fans view the players vs. how they are viewed inside the NovaCare Complex. Sirianni and Roseman spoke glowingly of Barnett, describing at length how much Barnett is liked by coaches, front office executives and his teammates. Sirianni called Cox a dominant player. Outside of the NovaCare, however, fans are not excited by the moves, frustrated that the team would bring back one player who is viewed as declining and another who struggles with frustrating penalties. The reality is that bringing back both players was probably the right move. The Eagles have been at their best when their defensive line is dominant. Cox and Barnett might not be as good as the Eagles paint them to be, but the Eagles are not in a position right now to be letting players go on the defensive line. They need to be adding, not subtracting. The Eagles will make other moves on the line. A defensive end in the first round is likely. But despite the understandable frustration from the fans, bringing both back was a good move by the team.
** Cornerbacks: The Eagles cornerback situation is not great right now. The No. 2 cornerback spot is wide open right now with Steven Nelson still unsigned, and it seems like as of now, the Eagles plan is to have the young cornerbacks on the roster fight for the starting job opposite Darius Slay. Sirianni said he was excited to see Zech McPhearson and Tay Gowan, but by the time training camp arrives in August, it would be very surprising if those were the two players actually competing for the job. The Eagles have shown in the past that they are comfortable adding to cornerback room late in the offseason, from adding Ronald Darby in 2017 during training camp to Nelson last year right before camp. Add in the upcoming NFL Draft, and the three first-round picks, and chances are there will be a player added to the roster before Week 1 that ends up starting opposite Slay.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com