The Calm Before the Storm..?

The start of the legal tampering period is always an eventful weekend. 

There was quite a bit of noise in the AFC East over the past few days. The Bills acquiring Shady, one of my favorite players; the Dolphins overpaying Suh, I mean the Dolphins getting a deal done with Suh; the Jets trading for Brandon Marshall, which, I love B. Marshall but I absolutely cannot support him when he's wearing that Jets uniform, nope; and of course, my personal favorite, D-Mac returning to Foxboro. 

The Eagles were the team that had the most interesting weekend, though. First, let's just take a minute to remember that they cut DeSean Jackson last offseason (big mistake), their quarterbacks are Mark Sanchez (who is returning this season) and Nick Foles, and Chip Kelly is trying to turn the Philadelphia Eagles into the Oregon Eagles (or the Philadelphia Ducks?). I wasn't sure how I felt about Chip Kelly coming into the NFL...and after two 10-6 seasons, I'm even more unsure now. 

I mean...

• What does it say about a team/coach when your best pass catcher, Jeremy Maclin, decides to reunite with his former head coach (Andy Reid in KC) instead of return to his current team, when offered the same amount of money..? To me, it means 1) the Eagles didn't make a strong enough push to bring him back, for whatever reasons and 2) maybe Chip Kelly isn't quite the NFL caliber coach many thought he was. 
• So you were given one of the most talented offenses in the league, with an incredible amount of potential...ya let DeSean Jackson go...okay, that can be forgiven and overcome...then, you trade Shady, one of the best RBs in the league...for a linebacker...and to top it off, you just lost your best receiver...I'm sorry, but nothing the Eagles have done so far has made any sense. Basically they're going to have Darren Sproles, maybe Frank Gore, Brent Celek (one of my favorites), and Mark Sanchez...but hey, Chip Kelly is an offensive genius. 
• Even if the Eagles do trade up in the draft and manage to get Mariota, which is what Chip Kelly wants, he will not be the answer to Philly's now seemingly lackluster offense. I'm not sold on Mariota as an NFL starting quarterback, anyway. 

Tomorrow is the start of free agency and I could not be more excited. First and foremost, I hope we bring Revis and Vereen back. Then, address the offensive line and defensive line needs, whether it's via free agency or the draft.  Whatever happens, I just hope Belichick & co. do their jobs. Which they normally do! 

Will update tomorrow, as more moves are made!

As always, go Pats!