August 26, 2024
Eagles camp and the preseason are over, leaving us in between the anxious quiet of final cuts and then that last wait to a much-anticipated Week 1.
The team is mostly set ahead of Tuesday's 4 p.m. roster submission deadline, but a few lingering decisions do still loom.
Here's a bit of what they're saying about the most notable, though not as obviously solved, one...
James Bradberry is still here, but he and the Eagles both seem very aware that they don't exactly fit one another anymore.
To his credit, he's been a good sport about it and even took a position change from cornerback to safety, even if that was more about finding something for him to do rather than finding him an actual role in the defense until the team can figure out a solution to move on.
The Eagles can trade him or release him, but both routes are much easier said than done due to his cost toward the salary cap, wrote Cayden Steele, which might end up leaving the option to keep him as the most viable one:
The Eagles could trade Bradberry to save a little bit of money, but finding a trade partner will be challenging. The 31-year-old doesn’t have much upside left. Therefore, the compensation given to the Eagles for Bradberry would be minimal.
If they can’t trade him, the Eagles will probably keep Bradberry on the 53-man roster. He won’t make a big contribution, though, because he doesn’t play on special teams. He will only play on defense as a result of injuries. [NJ.com]
Say the Eagles do end up finding a move for Bradberry, however, which team would make the most sense as a trade partner?
In a review of pre-roster deadline trade candidates over at ESPN, Bill Barnwell thinks the Steelers would be a good fit to play ball.
The 31-year-old Bradberry wouldn't command much more than a conditional draft pick in a trade given those circumstances, but we're talking about a cornerback who was playing at an All-Pro level two years ago. I have to imagine the 49ers would give serious thought to signing him if he hits free agency, but would the Eagles trade him to a conference rival? Philadelphia might prefer to send him to an AFC team such as the Steelers, who have questions in the secondary. [ESPN]
Shifting to overall season previews, Cody Benjamin over at CBS Sports ranked every position group, coaching staffs included, in the NFC East entering the 2024 season.
When it came to quarterback (Jalen Hurts), receivers (DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown), running back (Saquon Barkley), tight end (Dallas Goedert), and offensive line (Lane Johnson, Jordan Mailata, and Landon Dickerson), he gave the Eagles a No. 1 rank in the division across the board, which you can easily see the arguments for.
But perhaps the most interesting is his choice to rank the Eagles' coaching staff (Nick Sirianni, Kellen Moore, and Vic Fangio) as the division's best going in as well.
Is [Mike McCarthy] or Sirianni under more pressure to win big this year? The fact it's even a question speaks to the immense expectations set by ownership for both franchises. Both guys have impressive career resumes, but they're also out to prove they can maximize all-star rosters alongside new, seasoned coordinators (Fangio in Philly, Zimmer in Dallas). [Dan Quinn] and [Brian Daboll] have bumpier track records as head coaches, and their trajectories could depend largely on how their quarterbacks develop. [CBS Sports]
OK, to that last point first: Quinn has a shot with Jayden Daniels. Daboll, he's screwed (see the offseason Hard Knocks as evidence).
Now to Sirianni: The general thinking through this entire offseason has been that Fangio and Moore are about to do a lot of heavy lifting in the playcalling and scheming while Sirianni takes to a "CEO" style role.
It's an odd though not totally unsalvagable spot to be in, but the general consensus since 2023 crashed and burned has felt like Sirianni is on thin ice and has to take the Eagles far this year.
And if that can be viewed as the strongest – or rather stablest – coaching situation in the NFC East right now, then man, is the division weak in that regard.
A bit of a quick news hit to wrap up, former Eagles running back Boston Scott got cut by the Rams – first reported by Jordan Schultz and then later confirmed by Los Angeles.
Source: The #Rams are releasing RB Boston Scott. pic.twitter.com/KbMNhmCO6E
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) August 25, 2024
His role regressed heavily last season though and the writing was on the wall that it was time to move on.
Seeing his name out there is, understandably, going to catch Eagles fans' attention, but the reality probably is that Scott's run with the Eagles is a chapter in team history that fully closed.
Remember it for what it was.
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