Sunday, March 28, 2004
Enter … The Freak!
The big story of the 2004 off-season has been mostly focused on two things: the acquisition of Terrell Owens from the 49ers, and the usual hemorrhage of veteran free agents like Bobby Taylor, Troy Vincent, Carlos Emmons and Duce Staley. Lost in the shuffle of T.O.’s arrival has been the Eagles surprising acquisition of Titans Defensive End Jevon Kearse (a.k.a., “The Freak”).
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I call the Kearse acquisition surprising in the context that the Eagles have refused to lock considerable sums of money into long-term contracts with veteran players. Thus, Kearse’s eight year deal is very unusual for the Eagles, especially considering that Kearse is coming off a season in which he missed two games of the Titans last seven games, and recorded no sacks in the five games he did play in. Are Kearse’s injuries healed? It is an enormous question, and I suppose that the Eagles think they know the answer (yes), because they gave him an eight-year contract.
So what are the Eagles getting? Hopefully a dominant pass-rusher, and maybe the best defensive player in the NFL. In five years with the Titans, Kearse recorded 48 sacks and forced 17 fumbles in sixty-six games. Kearse also set the NFL rookie record in 1999 with 14.5 sacks. He is a dominating player due to his unique combination of size and athleticism:
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The Eagles certainly need help on the defensive line: it was a real weak point in 2003, even before the injury big decimated the Eagles. The loss of Hugh Douglas to the Jacksonville Jaguars was significant in that the Eagles no longer had a dominant pass-rusher. (Luckily for the Eagles, the decision to let Douglas go was the right call, as he had a horrible year for the Jags.) It seems like the Eagles strategy to replace Taylor and Vincent is a Kearse-centered one: in the past Taylor and Vincent have blanketed opposing wide receivers, enabling the Eagles defensive line to gain the extra 1-2 seconds needed to get to the opposing quarterback.
The Eagles now seem to be hoping that Kearse’s speed and strength will enable him to crash the pocket and force the opposing QB to deliver his throw 1-2 seconds early. Less-skilled corners like Sheldon Brown and Lito Shepard won’t have to blanket receivers to be effective. It is a good and cost-effective way to replace Taylor and Vincent. Kearse seems tailor-made for such a strategy. Kearse’s 255 lbs are far less than most defensive linemen. Kearse disrupts opposing blocking schemes by quickly assailing the line and moving towards the quarterback with speed:
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However, there are two downsides to Kearse:
As noted, supra, Kearse is small for a D-lineman. Are the Eagles getting too small on the defensive side of the ball? The loss of Emmons for Jones, and the departure of run-stuffers like Levon Kirkland suggest that the Eagles are consciously trying to get smaller and quicker. It feels like the Eagles would match up well with Mike Vick and the Falcons or the St. Louis Rams, but you have to worry about the Cowboys and Redskins employing a tough, between-the-tackles running game in 2004: the Eagles run the risk of simply being out-muscled, much as they did in the NFC Championship game.
Second, what if Kearse is injured? He has an eight-year deal with the Eagles. Not only would losing him hurt the Eagles on the field, but it would rip a gigantic hole in their salary-cap future. Heretofore, the Eagles have done a magnificent job managing the salary cap (unlike … say, the Redskins?) but this deal might come back to bite them in the rear.
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I call the Kearse acquisition surprising in the context that the Eagles have refused to lock considerable sums of money into long-term contracts with veteran players. Thus, Kearse’s eight year deal is very unusual for the Eagles, especially considering that Kearse is coming off a season in which he missed two games of the Titans last seven games, and recorded no sacks in the five games he did play in. Are Kearse’s injuries healed? It is an enormous question, and I suppose that the Eagles think they know the answer (yes), because they gave him an eight-year contract.
So what are the Eagles getting? Hopefully a dominant pass-rusher, and maybe the best defensive player in the NFL. In five years with the Titans, Kearse recorded 48 sacks and forced 17 fumbles in sixty-six games. Kearse also set the NFL rookie record in 1999 with 14.5 sacks. He is a dominating player due to his unique combination of size and athleticism:
The Eagles certainly need help on the defensive line: it was a real weak point in 2003, even before the injury big decimated the Eagles. The loss of Hugh Douglas to the Jacksonville Jaguars was significant in that the Eagles no longer had a dominant pass-rusher. (Luckily for the Eagles, the decision to let Douglas go was the right call, as he had a horrible year for the Jags.) It seems like the Eagles strategy to replace Taylor and Vincent is a Kearse-centered one: in the past Taylor and Vincent have blanketed opposing wide receivers, enabling the Eagles defensive line to gain the extra 1-2 seconds needed to get to the opposing quarterback.
The Eagles now seem to be hoping that Kearse’s speed and strength will enable him to crash the pocket and force the opposing QB to deliver his throw 1-2 seconds early. Less-skilled corners like Sheldon Brown and Lito Shepard won’t have to blanket receivers to be effective. It is a good and cost-effective way to replace Taylor and Vincent. Kearse seems tailor-made for such a strategy. Kearse’s 255 lbs are far less than most defensive linemen. Kearse disrupts opposing blocking schemes by quickly assailing the line and moving towards the quarterback with speed:
However, there are two downsides to Kearse:
As noted, supra, Kearse is small for a D-lineman. Are the Eagles getting too small on the defensive side of the ball? The loss of Emmons for Jones, and the departure of run-stuffers like Levon Kirkland suggest that the Eagles are consciously trying to get smaller and quicker. It feels like the Eagles would match up well with Mike Vick and the Falcons or the St. Louis Rams, but you have to worry about the Cowboys and Redskins employing a tough, between-the-tackles running game in 2004: the Eagles run the risk of simply being out-muscled, much as they did in the NFC Championship game.
Second, what if Kearse is injured? He has an eight-year deal with the Eagles. Not only would losing him hurt the Eagles on the field, but it would rip a gigantic hole in their salary-cap future. Heretofore, the Eagles have done a magnificent job managing the salary cap (unlike … say, the Redskins?) but this deal might come back to bite them in the rear.
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