Trade voided: Welcome back, Ronnie Brown!

Apparently the Eagles won't be able to get rid of Ronnie Brown after all.  Due to Jerome Harrison not passing his physical with the Eagles, the trade of Harrison and a 7th round pick for Brown has been voided.  That's too bad because Harrison felt like a much better fit for the Eagles offense.

Welcome back, Ronnie Brown!  I have a feeling we will continue to see much more of Dion Lewis from here on out.  Don't count on Brown getting another goal line carry any time soon.

RB swap: Eagles deal Ronnie Brown, re-acquire Jerome Harrison

Ronnie Brown won't ever have a chance to redeem himself to Eagles fans for his atrocious pitch at the goal-line against the Niners.  At the NFL trade deadline today, the Eagles dealt Brown to the Lions for Jerome Harrison and a 2013 7th round pick.

Brown exits the team as a player without a role in the Eagles system.  Whether it was due to the emergence of Dion Lewis or because of his goal-line gaffe, Brown was a forgotten man in the Eagles offense the last few weeks.  He will likely take on a big role with the Lions as insurance for the injured Jahvid Best.

As for Harrison, he should fit right back into the Eagles scheme that he thrived in as a backup to LeSean McCoy last year.  Expect Harrison to share duties with Lewis but he should continue to be a nice change of pace back and a recieving threat out of the backfield.  I had hoped the Eagles would bring Harrison back in the offseason so this trade allows them to correct their mistake in letting him go.

The 7th round pick in the deal is simply a bonus.  I'm not sure why the Lions had to throw in the pick since the two backs are pretty even in terms of skills.

Eagles free agents: Who stays and who goes?

Now that the lockout is over, the Eagles have some work to do in free agency, starting with what they will do with their own free agents. With the removal of the transition tag on David Akers, the Birds now have 15 players set to be unrestricted free agents:

K David Akers
LB Stewart Bradley
G Nick Cole
LB Omar Gaither
S Antoine Harris
RB Jerome Harrison
CB Ellis Hobbs
G Max Jean-Gillis
LB Akeem Jordan
DE Bobby McCray
S Quintin Mikell
CB Dmitri Patterson
P Sav Rocca
LB Ernie Sims
G Reggie Wells

As for which of these players the Eagles will bring back, I wouldn't be surprised if they signed Rocca and let the rest leave town. The other player with the best chance to sign back is Bradley given how well he knows the system and how effective he has been when healthy. Jerome Harrison would be someone I hope the Eagles sign for another season but I can see him looking elsewhere so he can have a bigger workload. The only other player on the list that has any value to the Birds is likely Dmitri Patterson, who could be a nice depth piece in the secondary.

Given the linemen the Eagles drafted, the three offensive linemen, Cole, Jean-Gillis, and Wells are as good as gone. Akers will also be kicked to the curb with the drafting of Alex Henery. None of the linebackers besides Bradley will have a role with the Eagles, so Gaither, Jordan and Sims better look elsewhere for jobs.

Eagles vs. Falcons: Week 6 inactives: Vick 3rd QB

The Eagles and Falcons announced their inactive players for Week 6:

Eagles: DT Brodrick Bunkley, LB Keenan Clayton, WR Riley Cooper, TE Clay Harbor, RB Jerome Harrison, CB Trevard Lindley, LT Jason Peters, QB Michael Vick

Falcons: CB Dominique Franks, RB Gartrell Johnson, G Mike Johnson, DT Trey Lewis, T Garrett Reynolds, DE Lawrence Sidbury, LB Sean Weatherspoon, QB John Parker Wilson

There are a few surprises on the Eagles inactive list, including Lindley getting benched and Cooper not suiting up despite practicing this week. With Cooper out, Chad Hall gets to be the 4th wide receiver once again. As expected, Michael Vick won't be playing this week as he will be the emergency third quarterback. If Kevin Kolb has any hope of taking over the starting gig, he's going to have to be brilliant today. Both Bunkley and Peters are likely out for the next few weeks. Daniel Te'o-Nesheim will get his first playing time with the Eagles and will likely see some time at defensive tackle with Bunkley out. The Eagles must feel that the recently acquired Harrison will need more time to learn the offense so they will use Eldra Buckley at backup running back this week.

Another big Philly Sports Sunday. Go Birds and Phillies!

Eagles acquire Jerome Harrison for Mike Bell

Not satisified with their running back depth, the Eagles have made a strong move to upgrade the position, dealing RB Mike Bell to the Browns for RB Jerome Harrison. While the deal basically boils down to a swap of backup running backs, the Birds clearly got the better back in the deal.

Harrison, a 5 year veteran, is a former 5th round pick out of Washington State. He had his best year last year, where he racked up 862 yards on 4.4 yards per carry as the Browns primary back. He has struggled a bit this season, picking up only 91 yards on 2.9 yards per carry, and has lost playing time to Peyton Hillis. Given an opportunity, Harrison figures to be a good fit for the Eagles backfield as he has good hands and has some big play ability.

As for Bell, he has been nothing but a disappointment for the Eagles this season, averaging only 1.9 yards per carry on just a few touches a game. Bell was signed in the offseason with the intention that he would be a short yardage back, only he never proved capable of getting the tough yards.

Given how poor he has looked running the ball this year, I'm surprised the Eagles got anything in return for Bell, let alone a running back with some actual upside like Harrison. While I wouldn't expect Harrison to get anything more than a few touches a game, he will certainly do more with those touches than Bell could have ever done. A great deal for the Eagles and a definite admission that they made a mistake when they signed Bell to be the backup.