As the Philadelphia Eagles chug their way into free agency and the upcoming draft, it’s fair to assume they won’t be sitting idly by when free agency kicks off. They’ve got some cap space to play with and some positions that really should be handled before they’re on the draft clock.
The need for another pass rusher isn’t at the top of their list, but as Jim Schwartz moves this defense into a 4-3 system the Eagles could stand to load up on pass rushers. Enter Mario Williams, a former No. 1 pick who is available and would be a seemingly perfect shock of a signing that could launch the Eagles’ defensive front from solid to downright nasty.
I won’t lie, it’s a tempting thought, but the Eagles need to avoid any and all ideas of signing Williams, upside or not.
It’s going to be really, really hard to do that. Williams was a former $16 million per year player who was once looked at as this generation’s premier defensive talent. At this stage of his career, there is no justifiable reason Williams deserves a deal like that again. Not that he wouldn’t cost a sizable salary, but it would be much more manageable compared to $16 million.
But the money isn’t the reason why the Eagles need to run from this idea. It’s not even the fact that they’ve got Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry locked up to fairly expensive deals, or that they still need to lock up Fletcher Cox, or that Williams wouldn’t turn this pass rush into an unstoppable tide of midnight green.
It’s because Williams is a quitter. Just take a look at the clips in this article (right here) and explain to me why anyone should take that chance. The difference you’ll see between Williams dogging it and Williams going for it are so night and day, it’s wild. No one can deny what Williams can do when he’s on — he’s a beast who can wreak havoc on a steady basis. The Eagles don’t need him that badly.
If that’s what happens when Williams doesn’t like his scheme, coaches, results or whatever it was that made him lay up like that, then the Eagles don’t need to take that risk. There are many more teams out there that are more desperate for a pass rush than the Eagles. Let them take the risk. Having Williams next to Cox and Curry almost sounds too good to be true, but it’s not worth it.
Seriously, watch those clips. Yikes.
