Eagles pass on top free agent wide receivers. The NFL draft looks more promising. | Early Birds

Good morning, Eagles fans!

Hopefully, this newsletter offers a diversion from the harsh realities we are living under. If not, you can send an email ripping me for wasting your time. The first week of free agency is over and the Eagles were relatively active. They signed three new players (defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, linebacker Jatavis Brown and safety/cornerback Will Parks) and traded for one (cornerback Darius Slay).

They also brought back some of their own, inking defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway, quarterback Nate Sudfeld, safety Rodney McLeod and cornerback/now-safety Jalen Mills to short-term deals.

The Eagles bid adieu to several players who had been around for years and were members of the Super Bowl championship squad just two years ago. Tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai signed with the Lions, linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill went to the Dolphins, wide receiver Nelson Agholor headed to the Raiders, and safety Malcolm Jenkins, a day after the Eagles declined his option for 2020, agreed to terms with the Saints. Running back Jordan Howard, who was in Philly for just one year, was also ticketed to the Dolphins.

There are still several Eagles free agents who remained on the market. Running back Corey Clement, defensive end Vinny Curry, cornerback Ronald Darby, defensive tackle Tim Jernigan, quarterback Josh McCown, and tackle Jason Peters are still available. The Eagles are likely to remain active until the draft, and may even bring back a few of the above names.

They’ve only addressed the defensive side of the ball thus far in free agency, which has had some wondering what their plans were at the wide receiver. The draft will certainly factor into the equation, but I’ll go into more detail about the Eagles’ plans at the position and why they stayed away from some of the top options on the market down below.

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— Jeff McLane (earlybirds@inquirer.com)

So far, nothing. If I was told before free agency that the Eagles would stand pat and avoid signing some of the more popular names, I wouldn’t have been surprised. The market just wasn’t that appealing after Amari Cooper, who re-signed with the Cowboys for a whopping $100 million over five years.

The next best outside receiver options — Robby Anderson and Breshad Perriman — were appealing because they have field-stretching abilities. But could the Eagles, who are clearly behaving as if they don’t have deep pockets with quarterback Carson Wentz’s contract, afford either? Days passed before free agent receivers were signed. I thought Anderson would get north of $14 million a year, but he inked a deal with the Panthers for just two years, $20 million. Perriman was next and received only a one-year, $8 million contract with the New York Jets.

Couldn’t the Eagles have afforded either one? Maybe. But they still have DeSean Jackson under contract for next season at $6.2 million. They can’t be expecting the 33-year-old receiver to be able to play all 16 games next season, although anything is possible. But even if Jackson were to play 10 games, that might be enough to adjust his spot on the roster and give the offense the burner they need on the outside. Jackson didn’t look like he lost much in the season opener before a core muscle injury effectively ended his season last year. I get it. He can’t be counted on. But the Eagles are essentially pot committed with his contract.

Speaking of pot committed, the Eagles have yet to release receiver Alshon Jeffery. I was little surprised, especially after the collective bargaining agreement was ratified last week and the Eagles could have pushed some of the dead $26 million they would have eaten into future years under the post-June 1 designation. If there’s a holdup, my guess is that general manager Howie Roseman is trying to trade Jeffery and really can’t until he recovers from foot surgery. Or maybe Roseman is just intent on keeping Jeffery, regression and locker room disturbance be damned.

Jeffery’s contract was likely the primary reason the Eagles weren’t in on the DeAndre Hopkins trade. The Cardinals gave up very little to get one of the preeminent receivers in the NFL, partly because Hopkins wants a new contract in the range of $18 million to $20 million a year. That’s a large amount, but wouldn’t Roseman have solved the Eagles’ receiver woes with one push of the button? I know there’s some concern that Hopkins took a step back last season, but he’s only 27 years old(!). The Eagles appeared to have more interest in Stefon Diggs, who was dealt to the Bills. But they would have had to give up a first-round pick (and more), and I like the Eagles’ chances of finding a better talent in this coming draft.

Which brings us to the draft, and the most likely source of receiver talent for the Eagles. This year’s class is stacked and has already been compared to the 2014 draft that had Mike Evans, Odell Beckham, Jr., Sammy Watkins, and Brandin Cooks selected in the first round alone. Davante Adams, Allen Robinson, and Jarvis Landry were some of the other accomplished receivers taken later in that draft.

But there were also plenty of misses— I see you, Josh Huff — and plenty of receivers who may have flashed for a few years or so before petering out. The point is that even though there are supposedly a lot of talented receivers in this coming draft, that doesn’t necessarily mean the Eagles are going to get one. If they had hit on J.J. Arcega-Whiteside a year ago — and, no, I’m not closing the book on him yet ― then they wouldn’t have needed to press the position this year.

Which is why I still think the Eagles may sign a low-cost free agent receiver before the draft— maybe Demarcus Robinson. You can never be too cautious.

Where does Cre’Von stand in the CB race? — Dan Ramani @Dan_Ramani

This was the first question posed to me after tossed a rope on Twitter and I like it because it’s not like the many others about the Eagles’ receiver situation (see above). Eagles fans love Cre’Von LeBlanc because he came up big in the late-season surge in 2018 and because he has a cool nickname (“Strap”). In truth, he really hasn’t played much for the team over the last two seasons — a total of 12 games — and when he returned from a foot injury last season, got roasted a fair amount.

LeBlanc is also pretty limited in terms of position flexibility. He’s a slot corner. Sure, he can play some outside, but I wouldn’t want him out there for too long. Strap isn’t even the Eagles’ No. 1 slot option. That honor is held by Avonte Maddox. New guy Will Parks also has experience in the slot. But LeBlanc’s a solid reserve and can help on special teams. He’s under contract for another season near the veteran minimum. I can see him returning, but only as the fourth or fifth corner.