More Camp News

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UPDATES

The best source for regular info is Bloghead on PE.com. Here is the link:

http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/Bloghead/


PLAYERS

LeSean McCoy sounds like he is off to a good start. He is catching the ball well and reportedly looks a step ahead of the other young players in Camp. He is also saying all the right things. He got advice from Ricky Watters (For who? For What?)and it actually sounds like decent advice. Ricky stressed the importance of assignments. I mentioned that in a recent article on McCoy. Nothing frustrates Big Red more than when players don't know where to line up or what to do. He'll tell 'em to get out of the play and will get the next guy in there. Ryan Moats battled this situation for 3 years.

LeSean should have a leg up since he came from something similar to the WCO in college. He still won't know everything, but the offense won't seem completely foreign to him. Guys coming from the spread won't always have much experience with something as simple as lining up in the I-formation.

So far, so good for McCoy.

Another rookie is off to an excellent start. TE Cornelius Ingram has caught the ball very well and looked athletic in his 2 days of TC. This isn't surprising. We knew he had this kind of ability. The question with him will be blocking and we won't get an answer to that for several more days. Still, you like to hear the young guys are playing up to their ability. That's a big part of getting off to a good start. Coaches will be patient with a guy who is learning or struggling to adjust. Coaches get frustrated when guys are having problems in areas where they are supposed to be good.

We're hearing good things about some other guys:

* Macho Harris is playing S and CB. He had a good pick yesterday and is looking good so far.

* WR Brandon Gibson is enjoying the extra reps that he gets with Jeremy Maclin still unsigned. Gibson is a polished receiver who has the potential to be similar to Jason Avant. Brandon (and not Fred) lacks speed, but he has good hands and runs precise routes. He would be an ideal Practice Squad candidate.

* WR Danny Amendola was a member of Jerry Jones evil cult last summer, but he has since seen the light and come to be one of our beloved Eagles. Amendola is playing well so far. I expected he would. He spent last year on the Cowboys PS. Danny knows what he's doing. He is quick, shifty, and has good hands. He could challenge for a roster spot or might be PS material again.

* Jack Ikegwuonu apparently is off to a solid start. He's running well and cutting smoothly. That's great news. Jack is coming off a terrible ACL tear from January 2008. This is his first TC. The coaches would love to see him stay healthy and play well. We'd have some serious CB depth at that point with him, Sheldon, Sammie, MmmBop, and The Natural (Ellis Hobbs = Roy Hobbs?).


RE: Maclin / unsigned picks

Lynch is more in tune with specific numbers probably, but there does seem to be a greater number of unsigned guys this year as opposed to other years. Maclin is still okay right now. You'd rather he didn't miss any time, but as Donovan pointed out, they just spent several days together in Arizona. Maclin will be okay if he gets in with the vets. Should he remain unsigned at that point, it could start to affect him.


RE: Andy more loose this year?

I'll ask around and see what some of those who are around him have to say. I don't want Andy changing too much. As he always points out, you can't try to be someone you're not or the players will see through that and lose all respect for you. I think that is what happened to Marty in Detroit. He pulled that stunt with his motorcycle and the players never looked at him the same. Andy is what you see. He's calculated and always tries to say the "right thing" rather than openly speaking his mind. This drives me nuts at times, but it is better to have a coach say too little than too much. Ask Jim Mora (either one) about that.
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