Reid on free agency: Eagles have 'aggressive' plan

Andy Reid said that when the lockout is lifted the Eagles are prepared to make a splash in free agency.

"Howie [Roseman] and I got the plan together," Reid said, referring to his general manager. "It's a good, aggressive plan. When they say go, we're ready to go. It's just a matter of that time coming forward."

Could that mean the Eagles will pursue All Pro cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha? Or could that mean the Eagles will deal backup quarterback Kevin Kolb for a starting right cornerback and use free agency to address holes on the defensive line?

Those answers won't likely come until early June, at the earliest. On Monday, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals granted NFL owners a stay until an appeal on the legality of the lockout is heard June 3. The appellate court, based on the language in the stay ruling, is likely to rule in favor of the owners and their appeal.

That scenario could drag the lockout through the summer. Normally the Eagles would be holding minicamps this time of year. Reid said the team was ready to act once the work stoppage ends.

"The coaches know that vacation this year will be a little bit different," Reid said Tuesday. "You don't want to be taking camel rides in the Sahara Desert. You don't want to be doing those this year. Save those for another year and stay close within striking distance and you can come in here for a given time to knock out a three-day minicamp. All we have to do is put a date on it. We already got it written up, drawn up, [and] the books are ready."

Reid said he and his coaches were currently working on their training camp plan -- that is, if there is time for a training camp.

"If it happens Day 1, that's great," Reid said. "We got a plan for that. If it happens a couple of weeks into camp we got that taken care of. If it happens right before the first game we got that taken care of. Anything else we don't need camp."

Reid said the Eagles have been in constant communication with Lehigh University about tcamp. He said the team did not have a cut off date for canceling camp in Bethlehem.

Eagles quarterback Michael Vick and a number of Eagles plan on holding informal workouts this week or next. Reid said he was happy to hear Vick was organizing the practices and that the get-togethers could have some value.

"Is it practice at the same tempo you're going to do here? No," Reid said. "But it at least keeps them fresh, it keeps their timing up, so when they have the opportunity to get back to practice they're a step ahead of what they might normally be."

Reid was able to meet with Vick and a number of players when the lockout was briefly lifted on the second day of the draft. He said he wasn't able to give Vick formal instructions for practices, but the Eagles were able to pass along playbooks to the players that did show and Fed Ex some to the others.

Reid, who was at the practice bubble at the NovaCare Complex to talk to Philadelphia High School all stars in preparation for Saturday's game at the Linc, said that he missed his players.

"This is what we do. We coach," Reid said. "Would we like to have the players here to coach? Absolutely."