The Eagles are really clearing out some space in the locker room now, announcing yesterday that they had cut both defensive end Darren Howard and wide receiver Kevin Curtis.
After being signed to a six year, $30.5 million deal, Howard was supposed to be the pass rusher that Jevon Kearse wasn't in Philadelphia. Instead, he picked up just five sacks in 16 games in 2006, then saw his role reduced and recorded only one in 2007. The next year, Howard got back into a groove, bringing down the quarterback ten times before falling back down to earth this past season with 6.5 sacks. Though he never reached the level that Eagles fans wanted him to, I find this move a little bit odd. Yes, he was set to make almost $5 million this upcoming season, and he's already 33 years old, but without him on the roster, the Eagles are now dangerously thin at defensive end, and it's not like they were stacked there to begin with. Before, it was just the Trent Cole show. Now, it's the Trent Cole and hold on to your hats show. This move pretty much means that the Eagles have to be looking at a defensive lineman in the first round of the upcoming NFL Draft.
If the player the Eagles draft in April doesn't put up at least similar numbers to Howard, I'm not going to be happy. Howard was a popular guy in the locker room, and while he wasn't great, he was at least a legit pass rushing threat. Now, there's an even bigger hole on the defensive line that needs to be filled, and I hope that the Eagles know what they're doing in terms of filling it.
As for Kevin Curtis, the writing was on the wall for a while with this move. After having a great first season with the Eagles in 2007, Curtis was felled by injuries each of the last two years, and only played in 11 games. For a 31 year old receiver with a bloated contract, that's not good enough. Plus, the Eagles had DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin and Jason Avant each step into their own while Curtis was injured, making this move even easier for the Eagles. I always like Curtis, but there really isn't a place for him on this team anymore. Jackson and Maclin are clearly the number one and two wideouts, and Avant has the slot role down to a science. The Eagles may like Curtis as a person, but they were not going to pay him $4 million to be the number four wideout.
As it is when anyone gets cut that's been around for a few years, it's a shame to see them leave, but at least this means that the Eagles are confident with what they have at wideout. At defensive end, however, that remains to be seen. I just hope they made the right move by cutting Howard.
CSNPhilly.com: Eagles release Howard and Curtis
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