2013 Training Camp/Preseason Thread

[ice grillin you]

you can actually make an argument that the other three teams in the division back up qb is better than whoever the eagles starter will be

[phillycrew]

Although the QB situation is a disaster, I think this offense is going to put up some points.  I think the defense will be the real weakness in this team and we will rank in the bottom five at the end of the year.  It will be an exciting year and I will probably be watching more closely than I have in years.

[Sgt PSN]

I don't know if it'll be exciting as much as I don't see myself becoming indifferent and apathetic towards this team by week 6, like I have in recent years.  Eh, I guess that's exciting.  YAY! 

I'm approaching this year the same way I did 98 and 99.....I know they're going to be bad, maybe even terrible.  But there's a few draft picks to be excited about watching, a new defensive scheme to watch, and of course a new head coach to overanalyze.  I guess I'm approaching this year the same way a scout would go after a prospect.  Not really concerned with wins and losses, I just want to see some potential at this point.  When the regular season comes to an end, do I feel any better about the direction this team is heading in than I did at the same point 1 year prior?   

[ice grillin you]

wins and losses are crucial to me

clowney - teddy b or some other franchise type guy that could emerge is what you want

im not suggesting they tank....if they can make the playoffs im all for it.....but 7-9 or 6-10 would be worst fears realized

[ice grillin you]

Inevitably, Chip Kelly will stumble a time or two as he continues his transition from college to the pro game. Some lessons can only be learned through experience.

Longtime NFL reporter Sal Paolantonio believes that the former Oregon coach is on the verge of making his first notable mistake.

"Chip Kelly has to start getting this team solidified," said Paolantonio during an appearance on 97.5 The Fanatic. "You can't say in July, in the National Football League to professional football players who have been out there for months, that the depth chart is written in sand. It's just the wrong approach. It's a college approach. That's not the professional approach. It doesn't work.

"The quarterback situation is the most unsettled in the league. It can't happen like that. You don't have 90 guys you can plug in and out. You don't have guys that are interchangeable like that. There's a big dropoff between starters and substitutes in the NFL. You don't have the same dropoff in college. It's 'Welcome to the pros.' I think he's making a big mistake by stringing everybody along."

Kelly has stated on numerous occasions that all starting jobs are up for grabs and that there essentially is no depth chart yet. He restated his position on Tuesday.

That approach can be unsettling to some players.  Michael Vick was hopeful that a starting QB would be named prior to camp, but didn't get his wish. DeSean Jackson – who found himself working with the second and third stringers for a time this spring — took it a step further, saying that "the team" wants to know who the starter is going to be. He later expanded on those comments.

"As far as myself, I don't really know what the team is OK with and not OK with," Jackson said. "At the end of the day, I don't know where it stands, who's going to be the starting quarterback. I wish I could know, but at the end of the day, that's the coach's decision, so I guess you have to play that how it goes."

Kelly held open competitions at Oregon, believing that it brought the best out in his players. Given his resume, that method was obviously successful for him in college. But does it work in the pros, where you're dealing with bigger egos, better competition and bigger talent gaps between starters and backups?

"There is a depth chart for a reason in football. You develop chemistry," said Paolantonio. "You've got a brother next to you you're going to fight with in the trenches. You've got to depend on that guy...If you don't name your starters and get them situated in the NFL especially, when you've got the grueling 16-game schedule — not 12 games, not practice three weeks, go play a college schedule — it's practice six weeks in the grueling hot sun at a high tempo and then play 16 games. Much different animal.

"You've got to start plugging in your starters. You've got to start letting them communicate with one another and develop chemistry. There's a reason why it's been done this way for 93 years. That's why it's done that way."

[Sgt PSN]

wins and losses are crucial to me

clowney - teddy b or some other franchise type guy that could emerge is what you want

im not suggesting they tank....if they can make the playoffs im all for it.....but 7-9 or 6-10 would be worst fears realized

Eh, if Chipper had them at 8-8, I'd consider that a step in the right direction.  They'd probably benefit more in the long term going 4-12 again, but if he gets them 3 or 4 more wins than last year, then I'd feel a lot more confident about him going forward than I do now.  At this point I'm more concerned with what they have right now than I am with what they could have next year. 

[Geowhizzer]

0-17. Yes, they'll lose the bye week.

[ice grillin you]

wins and losses are crucial to me

clowney - teddy b or some other franchise type guy that could emerge is what you want

im not suggesting they tank....if they can make the playoffs im all for it.....but 7-9 or 6-10 would be worst fears realized

Eh, if Chipper had them at 8-8, I'd consider that a step in the right direction.  They'd probably benefit more in the long term going 4-12 again, but if he gets them 3 or 4 more wins than last year, then I'd feel a lot more confident about him going forward than I do now.  At this point I'm more concerned with what they have right now than I am with what they could have next year.

i dont that there are such things as "steps" in the nfl anymore....before free agency and the salary cap thats how it was...you build and slowly progress towards a title....now with so much parity it doesnt matter if you got four more  wins than the year before....because the year after having four more wins you could just as easily have five less....this is especially true on a team that more than likely doesnt have their qb of the future on its roster...if michael vick is the qb this year and they win 7 or 8 games i wouldnt consider that a good thing....but if nick foles became some sort of revelation and they won four games id consider it a huge success

[Sgt PSN]

If Vick is the opening day starter, I go right back to total indifference. 

[Zanshin]

If Vick is the opening day starter, I go right back to total indifference. 

Pretty much agree. I mean, what would be the point? The way Vick plays makes it even harder to even gauge how the rest of the team is actually progressing and performing. It's true everywhere, but particularly up front. And it's not like he has much of a future-- he's an injury-prone, short 33 year old QB whose game is predicated on the step that he's either lost or is about to lose.

[Sgt PSN]

Yup.  There's absolutely no reason at all for him to start a single game unless Barkley and Foles are both injured or are just awful beyond belief.  I don't even want him on the field with the 1st team offense in preseason. 

[phattymatty]

is anyone going to any of the linc practices??

http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/news/training-camp/open-practices.html

Concessions
• Concessions will be available inside the stadium. No alcoholic beverages will be sold

Nope

what the farg. i was planning on going up on sunday but now not so sure.

[Rome]

I think they'll win the games they don't lose or tie.

[Rome]

If Vick is the opening day starter, I go right back to total indifference.

Maybe you and Dio could get together for some errands on game days?

[phillycrew]

wins and losses are crucial to me

clowney - teddy b or some other franchise type guy that could emerge is what you want

im not suggesting they tank....if they can make the playoffs im all for it.....but 7-9 or 6-10 would be worst fears realized

If he gets them to 6 or 7 wins, he may be able to get them to buy in.  If it is a dumpster fire 2-3 win season, he may lose the team.