McCoy’s five year extension is worth $45 million, including $20,765,000 guaranteed.  Entering the last year of his four year rookie contract, McCoy was slated to earn $615,00. The new deal positions McCoy as the third highest paid running back in the NFL behind Minnesota Vikings Adrian Peterson and Tennessee Titans Chris Johnson.

During the 2011 campaign, McCoy compiled 1309 rushing yards on 4.8 yards per carry, along with 17 rushing touchdowns.  McCoy also caught 48 balls for 315 yards with three touchdowns.   Last season, LeSean McCoy eclipsed the Philadelphia Eagles single season touchdown record with a total of 20.  In fact, McCoy is the only player in NFL history with 3,000 rushing yards, 150 catches and a 4.8 rushing average in his first three seasons.

In the modern NFL, running backs typically have a short shelf life.  LeSean McCoy is young enough (24 years old entering the 2012 season) to produce at a high level for the duration of the four year extension.   More importantly, LeSean will continue to make the Eagles a more balanced offense.

The decision to ink LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson,  Todd Herremans, Evan Mathis and Trent Cole has provided me with a new found optimism in the Eagles front office to “do the right thing”.  That statement, alone, shocks me.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.

Fletcher Cox was seen by most scouts as a top 15 pick.  At Mississippi State, Cox was touted as a tough, quick tackle who provided a formidable force in the middle.   In college, Cox displayed an explosive burst  and often required a double team.  Insiders feel that Fletcher is an athletic defender who projects solidly to either 4-3 tackle spots.

Consensually, Fletcher Cox was scouted as a terrific athlete for his sheer size.   Scouts love Cox’s great arm length, that should assuredly give him a nice advantage on the interior.  Cox’s rare explosiveness on the snap propels him with the  power to finish a play with authority.

The Eagles not only drafted a need, they drafted a stud.   From day one, Fletcher Cox will provide the front four the force they desperately needed.   With the addition of  Middle Linebacker DeMeco Ryans, Cox will inject a certain stability in the middle that the Eagles have been lacking since Corey Simon and Jeremiah Trotter.

I love the mind-set of the Eagles:  Sure up the middle of the defense and let your smaller, quicker linebackers and safeties make plays. Rush the quarterback, cover the sidelines and plug the middle of the field.  That, sounds like a recipe for success.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

Fletcher Cox was seen by most scouts as a top 15 pick.  At Mississippi State, Cox was touted as a tough, quick tackle who provided a formidable force in the middle.   In college, Cox displayed an explosive burst  and often required a double team.  Insiders feel that Fletcher is an athletic defender who projects solidly to either 4-3 tackle spots.

Consensually, Fletcher Cox was scouted as a terrific athlete for his sheer size.   Scouts love Cox’s great arm length, that should assuredly give him a nice advantage on the interior.  Cox’s rare explosiveness on the snap propels him with the  power to finish a play with authority.

The Eagles did the best they could do.  The organization moved up and took a need player.  When Alabama’s strong safety, Mark Barron, was grabbed, I felt the Eagles would select Fletcher Cox.  Did the Eagles have to trade up?  That is for another debate.

I am content with the fact that the Eagles had a defensive mind-set approach.  Now, it is up to Eagles defensive coordinator, Juan Castillo, to ‘coach ‘em up’.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

In the 2010 draft, the Eagles elected to pass on Texas safety Earl Thomas to go after a pass rushing impact player, Michigan defensive end Brandon Graham with the 13th overall pick.  The Eagles did this because they knew Nate Allen would be available with the high second round draft pick they acquired from the Washington Redskins for the Donovan McNabb trade.

Selected 37th overall out of South Florida, Nate Allen has shown he may not be the right man for the job at safety.  Andy Reid thought the Eagles had an impact starter, considering Allen graded well with most scouts.  Nate Allen came out of college having good size and athleticism.  The Eagles never knew that Nate Allen would fall so short of his expectations.

The puzzling trait about Nate Allen is his lack of football acumen.  On top of that, Allen plays soft.   He has not been the force at free safety the Eagles were looking for.  When a team has a player like Nate Allen, the organization must admit that they made a mistake and move on.

The beat kept on in 2011 when, to the surprise of most experts,  the Eagles selected Temple safety Jaiquawn Jarrett with the 54th overall pick in the second round.  Jarrett played in twelve games last year accumulating 15 tackles.  Jaiquawn is undersized and not ready for the NFL talent level.  Jaiquawn should have been drafted around the fifth or sixth round and his transition to the NFL will require enormous improvement.

I believe that Barron would make an immediate impact.  At 6’1, 213 pounds, Mark Barron played a physical brand of football in college, leading the nation’s number one overall defense at Alabama.   Barron was named first team All-American in 2011.  The scouts say Barron’s coverage skills are just adequate.  That is fine to me, especially with the Eagles solid cornerbacks.  Barron could be the intimidator, ala Brian Dawkins, that the Eagles desperately need.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

Early in the 2011 campaign, the wide nine technique worked, however, the Eagles run defense was exposed with the large gaps the split defensive ends created.  The linebackers responsibility of filling the gaps became too much for the Eagles young, inexperienced, under-sized linebacking corp.

What is curious to me is that it took awhile, middle-to-end of the season, for the adjustment to be made.  Who was responsible for the lack of tweeking the defensive scheme:  Jim Washburn or defensive coordinator, Juan Castillo?  I believe the answer is pretty clear:  Jim Washburn.

I, and many others, speculate that Jim Washburn wielded more influence over the defense than Juan Castillo at the start of the season.  Castillo was transitioning from his offensive line coaching job to his new title with no hands on experience.  What was frustrating was that it did not take a genius to figure out that the wide nine was crippling the run defense.  Was Washburn stubborn?  Was there an ego play involved?  Who knows?

The end result was shifting the defensive ends in a little, thus eliminating the enormous gaps the weak linebacking group could not effectively plug.  This simple adjustment made an immediate impact.  The Eagles were more stout against their opponents running attack.

Overall, Washburn proved his philosophy was impactful.  Furthermore, he validated that he is a heck of a defensive line coach.  The Eagles led the NFL in total sacks (49) for the 2011 season.  Defensive ends Jason Babin (18 sacks) and  (11 sacks) combined for a total of 29 sacks alone.  Both Babin and Cole are players who’s skill set thrives in Washburn’s wide nine technique.

Now, the Eagles need to acquire or draft other defensive ends with similar skill sets.  The rotation of defensive ends not named Babin or Cole combined for a total of eight sacks.  Even though Babin and Cole put up excellent sack numbers, they wore down near the end of the season.

In his first year, Washburn was a definite success.  Expect even more quarterback pressure in 2012.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

In similar fashion to the 2011 preseason, the Eagles tendered the franchise tag to a player, only to turn around and negotiate a long term deal.  Last year it was quarterback Michael Vick.  This year, it was DeSean Jackson that cashed in on the benefits of an organization that was looking to spend to keep their own talent.  With the oft-injured Michael Vick, the Eagles paid out around $40 million in guaranteed money .  Unlike Michael Vick’s contact, DeSean Jackson’s new deal is a sensible ‘win’ for the organization.

DeSean Jackson’s new deal, compared with other wide receiver free agent signings, assured that the Eagles were wise about their money.  The key to a NFL contract is the guaranteed money.  Two wide receivers that signed hefty free agent deals this off-season were Vincent Jackson and Pierre Garcon.

Vincent Jackson signed a five year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that will pay him reportedly $26 million in guarantees for two years, with an increase to $36 million in year three.  Vincent Jackson is good, but he is also 29 years old.

Pierre Garcon agreed to a five year deal with the Washington Redskins that will unload $20.5 million in guaranteed money.   Garcon has never had a 1000 yard season and has never caught more than six receiving touchdowns.

Both Garcon and Jackson do not possess DeSean’s big play capabilities.  At just 25 years old, DeSean Jackson is also younger than both.

The Eagles were very savvy in the structuring of DeSean’s new deal.  Much of the money is incentive layden…..Jackson will earn $250,000 each year from 2012 through 2015 for every Pro Bowl he makes, another $250,000 for every 10-receiving TD season he has, $250,000 for each 1,300-yard season and another $250,000 for every Super Bowl the Eagles win during the next four years.

The Eagles made DeSean comfortable for life, while dangling the carrot in front of him to keep him intensely focused.  Well played.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

That is the beauty of the NFC East…the unexpected.  Even though the Philadelphia Eagles dominated the division for most of the prior decade, appearing in five NFC Championship games, the Eagles, unexpectedly, failed to win a Super Bowl.

The Dallas Cowboys seem to be a media darling every year and are a popular Super Bowl pick.  Unexpectedly, the Cowboys have not even sniffed a Super Bowl.

In Super Bowl XLII, the New York Giants, unexpectedly, upset the juggernaut, unblemished 18-0 New England Patriots.  Four seasons later, the  sixth seed Giants ran the table, unexpectedly, vanquishing the number one and two seeds from the NFC (Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers) to overcome a grudge match against the New England Patriots.

Last year, the Washington Redskins entered the season with high hopes under new head coach Mike Shanahan.  Unexpectedly, the Redskins were hardly competitive, finishing the season at 5-11.

In 2012 season, the NFC East will likely be no different:  expect the unexpected.  Will the Eagles mesh as a team in their second season with new talent and coaches?  Can the New York Giants sustain their high level of football?  Are the Dallas Cowboys a non-factor amongst potential playoff teams?  What kind of impact can the Washington Redskins make with the probable drafting of Baylor’s Robert Griffin III?

The NFC East is the marquee division in the NFL.  That is because, the drama will always involve the unexpected.  2012 will be no different.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

Nationally, the Philadelphia Eagles fans get a bad rap.  Some of the national pundits would have people believe that we are Negat-Delphia.  Some of that is true.  It seems we are conditioned for inevitable failure.  Year after year, the Eagles are in the mix, but fall short.  I love a healthy discussion with anyone who does not understand Philadelphia fans.

As football fans, we yearn for greatness.  We yearn for championships.  Here’s the catch:  our passion derives from competitive effort.  Simple as that.  If Philadelphians boo, there’s a damn good reason.  As a blue-collar town, fans, spending their hard earned money, go in droves to watch our beloved Philadelphia Eagles.  If a player does not compete at full effort, then our expectations our not met.  That is not a bad cycle of emotions, after all, sports are competitive by design.

I believe Eagles fans are fair.  In general, everyone goes to a sporting event to “have a good time”, but the effort in the result is what matters.  Continually, when a major city (people seem to forget that about Philadelphia ) is deprived of the end goal of a championship, the longing becomes more fervent.  The Eagles have not won a Super Bowl.  The last great accomplishment of the organization was the NFL Championship in 1960.

The average Philadelphia sports fans are some of the most educated in the country, especially concerning the Eagles.  Many other fans are happy with being competitive.  A lot of those same fans have a Super Bowl win to hang their hat on.  We know all to well, the Eagles are in the NFC East which boasts 12 Super Bowl wins (Cowboys:  5; Giants:  4; Redskins:  3).

The Eagles fans will always cheer and consistently sell out the Linc.  To the possible new additions to the roster, have thick skin………and prepare to give maximum effort or be BOOED!!!!  It is our way of showing that we care.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

The NFL ranks defenses based on yardage allowed.  I am not a proponent of this statistical measure of ranking defenses.  I look at points allowed as the most telling stat of a solid defense.  Let us take a look at how the Eagles defense fared at both in the 2011 regular season.

The Eagles defense allowed a combined 324.9 yards per game, ranking them eighth in the entire NFL.  I found that shocking considering the team finished 8-8, missing the playoffs.  To put that in perspective, the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants finished 27th, allowing 376.4 yards per game.

To miss the playoffs, the Eagles must have been amongst the worst defenses in points allowed per game.  Not exactly.  The Eagles defense finished tenth overall, allowing 20.5 points per game.  Again, to put that in perspective, the Lombardi Trophy winning New York Giants finished 25th overall, allowing 25 points per game.

Being a rookie defensive coordinator, Juan Castillo will improve his second season.  The defense certainly proved that the last four games.

The bottom line is that the Eagles defense was not the reason for a failed season………As an offense, the Eagles led the NFL in turnovers.  The Eagles have an explosive offense, that should reduce costly give-aways next season.  In turn, the defense should be more consistent, just by default.  Juan Castillo should be more effective, just by added experience.

contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net

DeSean Jackson is a unique talent.  Experts will tell you Jackson impacts the game in ways a casual fan does not see.  Many analyst say DeSean makes other players open because he stretches the field.  That may be, however, DeSean must actually play hard every down for this to happen.  Last season, Jackson took many plays off.

DeSean Jackson’s numbers for the 2011 season were good, not great.  Jackson has caught 58 passes for 961 yards with four touchdowns.  Jackson’s punt returning was virtually a non-factor for the Eagles.

The problem with Jackson is his attitude.  That has always been his Achilles heal.  In college, DeSean was a big play maker at the University of California.  Jackson certainly had first round talent but fell  to the late second round (49th pick) in the 2008 draft for .  His cockiness and brashness were question marks for NFL coaches.  Since entering the NFL, Jackson has shown an inclination for immaturity  DeSean has not truly embraced what it means to be a professional.

With Jackson’s off-season contract extension, 2012 will be the year to prove his commitment to being the best.  I am not sure if DeSean can live up to being ‘The Man’, delivering each game, like most NFL number one wide receivers do.

Contact:  frank-benditt@comcast.net