Philadelphia Eagles Lose Wide Receiver Kevin Curtis to Sports Hernia. Now What?
Wednesday August 20, 2008
The Eagles announced today that Kevin Curtis, their number one receiver, will be out indefinitely following soon to be scheduled surgery for a sports hernia. As things stands now, the hobbled (hamstring) Reggie Brown will be the Eagles number one receiver and one of the trio of Hank Baskett, Greg Lewis or DeSean Jackson will be the other starter.
With the season opener just a little over two weeks away, the prospect of starting without a strong number one receiver looms large for Eagles fans. Not so, however, with Andy Reid who according to the Philly.com is not interested in bringing in another receiver at this time. In fact Reid states, "It won't be a threat to what we do. Other guys will have to step up for the time he's out."
If Andy honestly believes that perhaps it is time to look for a new coach. It won't matter how well Donovan McNabb or Brian Westbrook perform in 2008. The Eagles cannot win with two of the aforementioned players as starters. DeSean Jackson may well be the best of the four, but he's a rookie and we all know how little Reid likes to play rookies. Baskett is the tallest of the bunch and has the best hands, but for whatever reason, Reid has always used him as a fourth or fifth receiver. Reggie Brown has been one disappointment after another since his rookie season. Greg Lewis... Like many others, I don't understand why he's still around.
It's hard to imagine why the Eagles would not be interested in making an offer for the Cardinals' Anquan Boldin who has demanded a trade. Perhaps the spector of agent Drew Rosenhaus looms large there. With disgruntled cornerback Sheldon Brown sitting there as trade bait, what harm would it do to make an offer? Clearly Brown plus a second round draft pick could bring in some receiver better than what we have.
If Reid is expected Curtis back in full form anytime this season, he should look at the recovery time of his own players, Donovan McNabb and L.J. Smith from this exact injury. Curtis would best serve the Eagles on injured reserve for 2008 with his place taken by a solid number one or good number two receiver.
What do you think? Is Andy Reid blowing smoke? Is he or Tom Heckert on the phone this afternoon looking for a wide receiver? Speak out in our comments section.
With the season opener just a little over two weeks away, the prospect of starting without a strong number one receiver looms large for Eagles fans. Not so, however, with Andy Reid who according to the Philly.com is not interested in bringing in another receiver at this time. In fact Reid states, "It won't be a threat to what we do. Other guys will have to step up for the time he's out."
If Andy honestly believes that perhaps it is time to look for a new coach. It won't matter how well Donovan McNabb or Brian Westbrook perform in 2008. The Eagles cannot win with two of the aforementioned players as starters. DeSean Jackson may well be the best of the four, but he's a rookie and we all know how little Reid likes to play rookies. Baskett is the tallest of the bunch and has the best hands, but for whatever reason, Reid has always used him as a fourth or fifth receiver. Reggie Brown has been one disappointment after another since his rookie season. Greg Lewis... Like many others, I don't understand why he's still around.
It's hard to imagine why the Eagles would not be interested in making an offer for the Cardinals' Anquan Boldin who has demanded a trade. Perhaps the spector of agent Drew Rosenhaus looms large there. With disgruntled cornerback Sheldon Brown sitting there as trade bait, what harm would it do to make an offer? Clearly Brown plus a second round draft pick could bring in some receiver better than what we have.
If Reid is expected Curtis back in full form anytime this season, he should look at the recovery time of his own players, Donovan McNabb and L.J. Smith from this exact injury. Curtis would best serve the Eagles on injured reserve for 2008 with his place taken by a solid number one or good number two receiver.
What do you think? Is Andy Reid blowing smoke? Is he or Tom Heckert on the phone this afternoon looking for a wide receiver? Speak out in our comments section.
Comments
After watching Andy and the rest of this organization for years, I am a firm believer that they are content with just being competitive year in and out and not really trying to pursuit winning the Super Bowl. No disrespect to Hank Baskett, G Lew etc … because I know they work hard and they want to do well outside the top 3 receivers on the team these other guys may not be in the NFL if it wasnt for Andy, and they definitely wouldn’t all be on the same team. In this new era of football where teams have two and three top notch WRs why would Andy and Tom think they dont need 1 . It doesnt have to be A Boldin but someone who scares the defense like Stallworth did. Because D Jackson will show flashes but he’s too young to depend on. Andy should know the clock is ticking on his tenure and everyone else has gotten better!!
I think Joe Horn’s looking for work. Good receiver, especially in a pinch like this.
1st off….who knew that Sheldon Brown was so unhappy???? I thought it was our OTHER CB Lito. Hmmmmm. Interesting twist you put on this.
2nd. Have you really looked at Boldins numbers vs. our very own “dissapointing” Reggie Brown? Maybe this will come as a shock to you….
Boldin
2003 – DVOA 3.6% (ranked 30th), 61% catch rate on 165 reception attempts, 16 games
2004 – DVOA -21.8% (ranked 77th), 54% catch rate on 105 reception attempts, 10 games
2005 – DVOA 3.4% (ranked 34th), 60% catch rate on 171 reception attempts, 14 games
2006 – DVOA 3.9% (ranked 39th), 55% catch rate on 152 reception attempts, 16 games
2007 – DVOA 16.7% (ranked 17th), 70% catch rate on 100 reception attempts, 12 games
10.2 reception attempts per game
Brown
2005 – DVOA -5.4% (ranked 54th), 54% catch rate on 79 reception attempts, 16 games
2006 – DVOA 15.4% (ranked 18th), 51% catch rate on 91 reception attempts, 16 games
2007 – DVOA -7.3% (ranked 66th), 55% catch rate on 111 reception attempts, 16 games
5.9 reception attempts per game
I don’t see a really big difference here other than in opportunities. If Reggie got 4 more balls thrown his way per game, he’d have 525 more yards per season, 36 more receptions, and 4 more touchdowns.`
If you want more prominence from the wideouts, wouldn’t it make more sense to just throw more balls to them?
Lesson 1. Know your Eagles Drama. (Lito)
Lesson 2. Do your research.
I’m feeling that this is going to be just another year of ” excuses” For what the fans pay to support this team we deserve better. OF COURSE we need a new receiver. It’s a no-brainer !!