Hanson has a hand in winning

ON SATURDAY, sitting at a blackjack table at Caesars in Atlantic City, Joselio Hanson's cellphone rang. It was the Eagles.

They had cut him.

Hanson, a valuable backup cornerback, didn't sweat it. He went back to the table, recouped his losses and left the casino.

"I broke even," Hanson said. "It all worked out."

Indeed it did.

Hanson, 30, received only tepid interest from five other teams, the Giants and Rams among them. Neither was willing to sign Hanson this week; signing him this week would mean his contract is guaranteed through the season.

So, the Eagles yesterday re-signed Hanson to a 2-year deal and cut 2010 fourth-round cornerback Trevard Lindley to make room.

Terms were not released, but, Hanson said, it is a significant pay cut from the $7.4 million the Eagles would have owed him over the next three seasons. He didn't quite break even.

Hanson's salary was the reason he got released in the first place. He said the Eagles did not try to renegotiate before they cut him.

And, with marquee corners Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Asante Samuel sharing coverage duties, the Eagles could not justify paying Hanson so much money as a fourth corner.

"I was going to make a lot of money," Hanson said. "Things happen. Yesterday, the Jaguars cut their starting quarterback."

That might be where the similarities between Hanson and David Garrard end. Certainly, the door back to Jacksonville is not open for Garrard. The Eagles never closed the door on Hanson, though he figured he would at least have a few more options.

But, with final cuts having come Saturday, most teams had no wiggle room on their salary cap or on their rosters for a specialty player who is generously listed at 5-9, 185 pounds.

"It's a tough time to get released. I just thought I'd go somewhere else," Hanson said. "Other teams weren't really pulling any triggers. A couple of days passed. I felt this would be the best spot for me right now."

Hanson, blessed with quickness, will play the slot in dime packages: "I feel like I'm one of the best in the league at the slot. It's like Asante playing outside."

He has filled that role in Philadelphia since 2006, recording four interceptions and 2 1/2 sacks. But when Rodgers-Cromartie and Asomugha came aboard, he knew his time would be short. Still, with Rodgers-Cromartie struggling to acclimate himself to slot responsibilities, Hanson has significant value.

"I always thought I was the best nickel corner here," he said. "I'll just wait my turn."

He knows this system, this group of teammates, this coaching staff. He had just signed a new lease on his condo, too.

Hanson also figured that, playing among this group of playmaking corners, opposing quarterbacks might be enticed to challenge him, thereby giving him more chances to make big plays - which might lead to big money.

Maybe, one day, he will break even after all.