Eagles Stay or Go results 2014

After a solid start, the Eagles season ended earlier than expected, leaving fans with an extended offseason to ponder the future of the franchise and its players.

Last week, The Inquirer's Jeff McLane offered his opinions on which players should remain on the roster, and which should be gone, and we gave you, the reader, the same opportunity.

The votes are in - at least 9,800 voted - and many want to see a similar, albeit tweaked, squad suiting up for the Eagles next season.

Front office/coaching

Starting at the top, voters do not want to see the Eagles under new ownership, as 81% voted that Jeffery Lurie return next season. Former general manager Howie Roseman was not met with the same support, as 63% of voters wanted to see him gone. Chip Kelly's job seems safe in the eyes of the franchise and the fan base, as a whopping 94% wanted to see him back for his third season with the Eagles. Kelly's coordinators, Bill Davis (53% stay) and Pat Shurmur (80% stay), also received votes of confidence from readers.

Quarterbacks

Not surprisingly, voters have seen more than enough of backup-turned-starter Mark Sanchez, as 73% are ready to see him move on. The same goes for backup Matt Barkley (60% go). On the other hand, a large majority of the voters feel the team would have performed better down the stretch under Nick Foles, and 90% of voters want to see him back in command next season.

Running backs

The voters were very happy with the Eagles' stable at running back, as all three of the team's backs were voted to return:

LeSean McCoy: 85% stay

Darren Sproles: 98% stay

Chris Polk: 95% stay

It is interesting that Sproles received a noticeably higher percentage of support than starter, and last year's leading rusher, McCoy.

Wide receivers

It is no surprise that the vast majority (97%) of voters wanted to see Jeremy Maclin back with the Birds after his breakout 2014 season. Voters did not feel the same way about Riley Cooper however, as more than 80% of participants are ready to see him move on. Similarily, Brad Smith (80% go) and Jeff Maehl (85% go) did not do enough to win over the fan base.

Voters vehemently want to see rookie receiver Jordan Matthews (98% stay) return next season, as many feel he has the makings of something special. Fellow rookie receiver Josh Huff (73% stay) is also desired back.

Tight ends

Voters were very pleased with the production from the tight end position this past season, as both of the team's biggest threats at that position received overwhelmingly positive votes.

Overall, 88% of people want to see Brent Celek return, while 99%(!) of voters want to see Zach Ertz return – the highest percentage of any player of the team.

Trey Burton: 70% stay

James Casey: The voters were torn on Casey, who received a split 50/50 vote.

Offensive line

The offensive line's performance was pretty promising throughout the season, and while there were a couple of castaways, a majority of the O-linemen would be brought back by the voters.

Evan Mathis: 94% stay

Jason Kelce: 98% stay

Todd Herremans: 64% stay

Jason Peters: 97% stay

Allan Barbre: 67% stay

Lane Johnson: 96% stay

Matt Tobin: 62% stay

Dennis Kelly: 63% go

Julian Vandervelde: 75% go

David Molk: 62% stay

Andrew Gardner: 62% stay

Now on to the other side of the ball.

Defensive line

Voters appear pleased with the effort given by the Eagles defensive line over the past season, as all but one member of the line were voted to return. (Hint: The one voted to 'go' is not Fletcher Cox.)

Cedric Thorton: 92% stay

Bennie Logan: 97% stay

Fletcher Cox: 95% stay

Vinny Curry: 96% stay

Beau Allen: 90% stay

Brandon Bair: 62% stay

Taylor Hart: 58% go

Linebackers

The Eagles have a deep corps of linebackers, and while some put on performances that earned them near-universal support from voters (looking at you, Connor Barwin, 99% stay), others were not viewed as favorably. Here's the 'backer breakdown:

DeMeco Ryans: 85% stay

Bryan Braman: 65% stay

Trent Cole: 64% stay

Mychal Kendricks: 98% stay

Emmanuel Acho: 53% go

Najee Goode: 66% stay

Casey Matthews: 75% go

Marcus Smith: 62% go

Travis Long: 58% stay

Brandon Graham: 79% stay

Cornerbacks

After his performance down the stretch, it is safe to say that the Philadelphia faithful do not want to see Bradley Fletcher back in Eagles green next season. An overwhelming 96% voted for Fletcher to be gone. Cary Williams did not fare much better in the vote, as 86% want to see him gone, also. Brandon Boykin is the most popular Eagles corner, as 88% of respondents want to see him back in the secondary next season. Voters would also like to see Nolan Carroll (71% stay) and Jaylen Watkins (74% stay) return.

Safeties

Voting on the Eagles safeties was split, with three getting picked to stay, and three getting picked to go.

Stay: Malcolm Jenkins (90%), Chris Maragos (94%), Chris Prosinski (65%)

Go: Earl Wolff (60%), Nate Allen (88%), Jerome Couplin (64%)

Special Teams

Special teams were not an issue in the eyes of the voters, as all three special-teams players were voted overwhelmingly to stay.

Cody Parkey (96% stay), Donnie Jones (94% stay), Jon Dorenbos (96% stay)

Practice squad

Quron Pratt: 63% stay

Kenjon Barner: 67% stay

Matthew Tucker: 90% stay

G.J. Kinne: 65% stay

Josh Andrews: 52% stay

Kevin Graf: 51% go

Will Murphy: 66% go

Wade Keliikipi: 61% go

Ed Reynolds II: 77% stay

Brandon Hepburn: 70% stay

Mascot

Last but not least, 54% of voters would welcome mascot Swoop back with open arms.

Follow Michael Kaskey-Blomain on Twitter @therealmikekb