BuddyLee
Football addict
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1...llars-too-much
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Philadelphia Eagles: Always Millions Of Dollars Too Much
Terrell Owens. Asante Samuel. Jevon Kearse.
That is it folks. There you have it. Those are the lone notable acquisitions that ever amounted to anything in the Joe Banner/Jeffrie Lurie era.
Spend money?
No way. We are here to make money and that is all. Winning? Eh, that will come as an added bonus.
That is what goes through the minds of Banner and Lurie every offseason. Trust me, I was there. Honestly.
Looking back on the past decade or so, the word "success" pops into most Eagles fans' minds.
Not mine.
Success is winning. It has yet to happen in the history of the Eagles, and this decade is no different.
Conference Championship loss after Conference Championship loss meant nothing to the front office. One Super Bowl birth, which was a loss, meant nothing to the front office. All it meant was that the team had promising signs and not many changes had to be made.
In 2004, I have no clue who was leading the Eagles organization, but bringing in Terrell Owens and Jevon Kearse was the one time I remember feeling like the Eagles wanted to win. I felt like we could win. We almost did.
But almost is not good enough. Only for Banner and Lurrie, it is.
So after all of these devastating losses, do you not think the Eagles should have been hungry to win? They had winning right on the tip of their tongues, but they lost it.
So when the clock struck midnight on February 27, 2009, things were expected to change. With a reported $40 million in cap space, holes at wide receiver, the offensive line, and the tight end position were expected to be filled. Other holes at running back and wide receiver again were expected to be addressed at the draft.
Well, we now know for certain that: the best wide receiver on the market is not coming to Philadelphia, the best offensive lineman the Eagles could get was Tracy Andrews, and Kellen Winslow was traded to the Buccaneers for draft picks—something the Eagles live off of.
While every other team in the NFC East has made some kind of acquisition, the best the Eagles could do was Tracy Andrews.
At least they could have gone down with a fight.
To be only a tiny bit interested in T.J. Houshmandzadeh is a joke.
Look at your receiving core. What is the thought process in your mind when you say you do not even want the guy?
Honestly? Who out there is better? I do not care if you have to overpay the guy. Give the man his money. He has serious talent that paired with Donovan McNabb will get you places.
There is not a better option out there. Are you just going to go on next season with the same receivers as last season? Good luck with the receivers and their dropped passes.
On top of that, you are not even interested in most of the top lineman in the free agency pool. Then you let Kellen Winslow, a Pro-Bowl tight end, get traded to the Buccaneers for players who have not even entered the league and shown their stuff.
Then the largest hammer of them all struck.
The Eagles' best safety in the history of the franchise, future Hall of Famer, longest tenured Philadelphia athlete, and face of the Philadelphia Eagles signs with another team.
Brian Dawkins left the nest.
The Eagles did not even want to bring him back.
Was Quintin Mikell the better safety than Weapon-X last season? Probably so.
Was Brian Dawkins the epitome of being an Eagles? Was Brian Dawkins the leader of the Eagles? Was Brian Dawkins the best defensive player in team history?
Definitely so.
Yes, Brian Dawkins is 35 years-old, and yes, Brian Dawkins has lost a step.
But whatever happened to loyalty?
Many people bring up that the Eagles have a good history of knowing when to give up players. They bring up the likes up Troy Vincent, Jeremiah Trotter, and Bobby Taylor.
But letting go of Bobby Taylor, Troy Vincent, and Jeremiah Trotter was different. Trotter had played for the Washington Redskins in-between stints with the Eagles, Troy Vincent had played with the Dolphins before the Eagles, and Bobby Taylor was not the face of the franchise.
Brian Dawkins was the face of the franchise. Brian Dawkins has never worn a different jersey in the NFL. Brian Dawkins deserved to be treated with more respect.
Brian Dawkins did make the Pro-Bowl last year. Reputation may have had a bit to do with that, but the man still made every tackle that came his way.
I keep trying to come up with a way to understand this, and make excuses for Banner and Lurie, but I cannot do it anymore.
Some people brought up finding another team to root for. I would never do that. Never. But I might just go into hiding until this era ends. I cannot take it anymore.
No matter if you think T.J. Houshmandzadeh is a terrific wide receiver or not, he is the best you can get. Sign the man!
You have $40 million to spend. Show me that you have the will to win.
I expected to receive an alert telling me the Eagles signed Houshmandzadeh, than an alert about an offensive line signing. I never expected nothing to come across, except the news of the departure of one of the most beloved Eagles in their history.
But then I remembered who this team I had so many high hopes pinned on was.
It was a team who, in my lifetime, is never willing to spend any money. A team who willingly lets players who devoted their careers to the team just walk away. A team to whom winning is not important.
It is atrocious. Utterly atrocious.
In my lifetime, the Philadelphia Flyers have been the playoffs time and time again. They always hunt for the right players and know what to do and when to do it. The franchise is thought to be one of the best in hockey,
The Philadelphia Phillies actually won the World Series. They achieved the ultimate dream.
What did the Eagles do? Nothing, except let opportunity slip away time and time again.
By now, the team should have two or three Super Bowls under their belt.
Yet they were always one more signing away. One more player away. Millions of dollars away.
But to them, that was always millions of dollars too much.