In Roob's Observations: A Look At Eagles' Wr Additions And What It All Means

In Roob's Observations: A look at Eagles' WR additions and what it all means originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

All of a sudden, the Eagles have a full wide receiver room, but they still have as many questions as they had before free agency began.

In this week’s Roob’s 10 Random Eagles Offseason Observations we take a look at Eagles WR depth as well as Howie Roseman’s recent success drafting in the third round and Brian Westbrook’s remarkable two-year stretch in 2006 and 2007.

And we may just share some thoughts on a certain Patriots coach and a member of the media.

MORE WIDE RECEIVER DEPTH: Since the season ended, Howie Roseman has added three veteran wide receivers who have largely underachieved in their careers. Hollywood Brown, Elijah Moore and now Dontayvion Wicks. Does it mean A.J. Brown is definitely gone? Nah. Does it mean the Eagles have some depth if he does get traded? Yeah. Does it mean Howie doesn’t need to draft a WR now? No way. These are all complimentary pieces, but there isn’t a clear-cut WR2 in the group. All three receivers have had their moments as pros, and Brown even had a 1,000-yard season with the Ravens in 2021. But these are all guys who are going to come to camp fighting for roster spots and fighting for playing time. Wicks is especially interesting because of his ties with Sean Mannion, his offensive coordinator last year in Green Bay. Nobody knows better than Mannion what Wicks is capable of. When you look at the 2025 Packers, they had six players with at least 40 targets – 5^th-most in the league – with WRs Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson and Matthew Golden, running back Josh Jacobs and tight end Tucker Kraft, and it’s not easy to catch a ton of footballs when you’re one of six guys in the mix. The Eagles must believe that as his number of targets goes up, the production will go up along with it … although that’s not always the case. Brown had 49-for-587 yards last year, Moore averaged 50-for-541 from 2021 through 2024 and Wicks has averaged 36-for-443 the last three years. So they’re all functional receivers who’ve had their moments. I’d put these moves in the class of: Load up on guys who have a chance to help and let training camp sort it all out. I still think if A.J. is gone in 2026, WR2 will be someone the Eagles draft. 

JALEN HURTS STAT OF THE DAY: Jalen Hurts has as many career postseason wins as Kirk Cousins, Carson Palmer, Baker Mayfield, Dak Prescott, Philip Rivers, Sonny Jurgensen, Warren Moon, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Justin Herbert, Tua Tagovailoa, Archie Manning, Y.A. Tittle, Andy Dalton, Carson Wentz, John Kitna, Trent Green, Sam Bradford, Derek Carr, Don Majkowski and Gus Frerotte … combined.

NAILING THE THIRD ROUND: One area Howie Roseman has really improved is nailing 3^rd-round picks. He did draft Nick Foles in 2012 but among his other 3^rd-round picks early on were edge Daniel Te’o-Nesheim, who started one game as an Eagle; cornerback Curtis Marsh, who didn’t start any; defensive tackle Bennie Logan, a three-year starter of little distinction; and WR Josh Huff, who had two kickoff returns for touchdowns but only 482 receiving yards in 34 games as an Eagle. You should be getting solid starters in the third round, and those guys just weren’t. But more recently, he’s landed Milton Williams, Tyler Steen, Nakobe Dean and Jalyx Hunt in the third round. Sydney Brown was a miss as was Davion Taylor in 2020, but overall Howie’s had great success in the third round since 2021. You think about some of the guys the Eagles have found in the third round over the years, from Tommy McDonald to Jeremiah Trotter to Duce Staley to Brian Westbrook to Fred Barnett and it can be a super productive round, often filled with guys who’ve slipped from the second round just because that’s how the draft works. Talented guys drop and you have to know how to find them. The third round is the last round where you really expect to find productive starters. These last five years Roseman has been very good in every round but he’s really picked up the success rate in the third round. Love the third round.

HOW ABOUT BRIAN WESTBROOK IN 2006 AND 2007? In 2006, Brian Westbrook ran for 1,217 yards and a 5.1 average and caught 77 passes for 699 yards with 11 total TDs (and somehow didn’t make the Pro Bowl). And in 2007, he ran for 1,333 yards and a 4.8 average and caught 90 passes for 771 yards with 12 total TDs. What a remarkable two-year stretch. The only other player in NFL history with multiple seasons with 1,200 rushing yards, a 4.8 average and 75 receptions was Marshall Faulk, who did it three straight years from 1999 through 2001. Only eight other players have had one such season, including Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley with the Giants in 2018 and LaDainian Tomlinson. The only other players with 2,500 rushing yards, a 4.9 average and 150 receptions in any two-year span are Faulk and L.T. Westbrook is one of only five backs in NFL history with 6,000 rushing yards, a 4.5 career rushing average and 400 receptions. Three of the five were drafted by the Eagles in the second or third round – Charlie Garner, LeSean McCoy and Westbrook. The others are Tiki Barber and McCaffrey. Westbrook is also one of only four backs ever with 10,000 scrimmage yards, 30 rushing TDs and 30 receiving TDs, along with Faulk, McCaffrey and James Brooks. At his peak, Westbrook was one of the best running backs in NFL history.

UNDERSTANDING HOW BAD THAT 49ERS LOSS WAS: In NFL postseason history, home teams that led by six or more points going into the fourth quarter and were favored by at least six points were 141-1 before the Eagles blew a 16-10 lead to the 49ers in January. As six-point favorites. At the Linc. And those 49ers were so banged up to begin with and then lost George Kittle. I can’t over-state what a brutal loss that was. At home with a six-point 4^th-quarter lead over a shambles of a 49ers team missing one of their best players? You just can’t lose that game. The greatest postseason collapse in Eagles history.

THIS OUGHTA BE IMPOSSIBLE: During the five-game stretch last year from Week 10 and Week 14 – a span that included wins over the Packers and Lions and losses to the Cowboys, Bears and Chargers – the Eagles had 13, 16, 19, 14 and 19 first downs. That was their longest streak of games in 19 years without recording 20 first downs in a game. In 2005, with Mike McMahon at quarterback, they had six straight games with fewer than 20 first downs. Their 81 first downs were their fewest in any five-game span since Weeks 13-17 of 2005, when they had just 70. In all, the Eagles had 12 games last year with fewer than 20 first downs, their most since they had 14 in 2001. Yuck.

WHAT ABOUT THOSE STEM CELL TREATMENTS? I was kind of surprised how casually Jeff Lurie dismissed any concerns about the stem cell treatments that Cam Jurgens and Landon Dickerson underwent in Columbia. “I know nothing about it,” he said at his owners’ meetings availability. “I read that. But some of us do go for stem cell treatments. Not me, but some of us do go for stem cell treatments in Canada and Europe and stuff. There’s been a whole history of athletes and patients going for PRP (platelet-rich plasma). So I think we’re not party to that, but everyone’s entitled to figure out solutions to their own ailments, as we are.” The science behind the treatments seems sound, but when 40 percent of your starting offensive line is in South America for a treatment they can’t get in the U.S. it’s got to be a little concerning, no?

AND THE DAUNTING PROSPECT OF REBUILDING THE O-LINE: What’s really scary about all this is that it sure doesn’t look like Dickerson is going to play a whole lot longer, Jurgens was clearly not the player last year he was in 2024 and his future is unclear, and Lane Johnson turns 36 in May and is going into his 14^th season. Howie Roseman is a miracle worker, but there’s a very real possibility he’s going to have to replace three starting Pro Bowl offensive linemen in the next couple years. Jordan Mailata is locked in at left tackle, and Tyler Steen is fine at right guard for the time being. But as well as Roseman has drafted the last five years replacing Dickerson, Jurgens and Johnson would be an enormous challenge. And it’s not like the Eagles have the heir apparent to any of these guys on the roster. They’ve got some interesting tackle prospects with Myles Hinton, Cameron Williams and John Ojukwu, with Fred Johnson also back in the fold. And there’s Willie Lampkin, Drew Kendall and Hollin Pierce inside. But those guys are all question marks. And what’s scary is that Jeff Stoutland, who has been such a huge part of all the recent offensive line evaluations, is no longer around to provide his expertise. At least all these guys are back in 2026, so the situation isn’t as urgent as it would be if Dickerson or Johnson had already retired. But it’s still pretty darn urgent. The Eagles have eight picks in this year’s draft. Don’t be shocked if Roseman uses three of them on offensive linemen.

DRAFTED HERE BUT NEVER PLAYED HERE: Sometimes I just wonder stuff and I can’t wait to get onto Stathead to look it up. The other day I was wondering what players drafted by the Eagles played the most games in the NFL without ever playing for the Eagles. Here’s the top 5: 1) Bob Kuechenberg, the Eagles’ 4^th-round pick in 1969, played in 196 games, all for the Dolphins, 2) Raheem Brock, the Eagles’ 7^th-round pick in 2002, played 152 games for the Colts and Seahawks, 3) Lou Creekmur, the Eagles’ 26^th-round pick in 1948, played 116 games for the Lions and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1996, 4) Fuzzy Thurston, the Eagles’ 5^th-round pick in 1956, played in 116 games for the Colts and Packers, and 5) Ken Schroy, the Eagles’ 10^th-round pick in 1975, played in 113 games for the Jets. Now you know.

IS HE GOING TO WRITE ANYTHING ABOUT DIANNA RUSSINI AND MIKE VRABEL? I’m really uncomfortable writing about the Diana Russini-Mike Vrabel situation. The holding hands part is a bad look, and it has nothing to do with whether or not they’re married – that’s not my business – but it has everything to do with her reporting on A.J. Brown and the Patriots when she clearly has somewhat more than a conventional professional relationship with Vrabel and it all just raises serious questions about her reporting on a potential A.J. trade or anything else involving Vrabel or the Patriots. That’s really all that’s relevant right now if you’re an Eagles fan. How are readers supposed to know whether she’s tweeting legitimately sourced NFL news or just passing along what her very close friend wants people to think? And is she manipulating the news to suit Vrabel’s wishes? These are fair questions, and those photos of the two of them cavorting in Arizona make it impossible to know. I would think the NFL will be looking into the entire situation to determine if there was any tampering with Brown on the Patriots’ part. And don’t let anyone tell you this is normal behavior for a source and a reporter. It’s not. We’re taught on Day 1 of journalism school that the appearance of a conflict of interest in itself makes something a conflict of interest. And this certainly qualifies. What a weird situation.