Iggles Blog - Philadelphia Eagles Blog

Jack Ikegwuonu's Legal "Issue"

Here's the background:

DeKALB, Ill. -- Wisconsin cornerback Jack Ikegwuonu and his twin brother, who plays for Northern Illinois, are accused of breaking into an off-campus apartment and trying to steal an Xbox game console, authorities said Thursday.

Ikegwuonu and Northern Illinois safety William Ikegwuonu face residential burglary and criminal trespass charges, authorities said. The 20-year-olds were arrested Saturday, according to DeKalb police Lt. Jim Kayes.

The felony charge of residential burglary carries a maximum penalty of four years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

"But the odds of that happening, unless they've got some bad criminal history, is probably zero," Kayes told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "What will probably happen is it will get dealt down."

The criminal trespass charge is a misdemeanor, Kayes said.

Jack Ikegwuonu was released Monday from the DeKalb County Jail on $150,000 bond. William Ikegwuonu posted a $50,000 bond Tuesday, said DeKalb County Sheriff's Lt. Joyce Klein.

The two men were represented by the DeKalb public defender's office for the bond hearing but have since obtained private attorneys, according to public defender Kenneth Johnson.

"I'm confident in their innocence," Johnson said Thursday. "When all the facts come to light, I'm sure they will be found not guilty."

Wisconsin is scheduled to appear in the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 1 in Orlando, Fla. Jack Ikegwuonu was a first-team All-Big Ten Conference pick this season. He started all 12 games and led the Badgers with 11 passes defended.

"We are currently gathering and reviewing the facts of the incident to determine our course of action, which may or may not include suspension under the terms of our student-athlete discipline policy," said a Thursday statement from the Wisconsin athletics department.

According to the Journal Sentinel, under Wisconsin's revised student-athlete discipline policy -- which states that a student-athlete will be suspended for being arrested or charged with a variety of crimes, including "felony theft or felony criminal damage to property" -- he will likely be suspended.

Northern Illinois spokeswoman Donna Turner said Thursday that Huskies head coach Joe Novak had indefinitely suspended William Ikegwuonu, who has not played in any games this season.

The Huskies are to play TCU in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego on Dec. 19.

William Ikegwuonu is due back in court for Dec. 8 hearing, while Jack Ikegwuonu's next hearing is set for Jan. 17.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Andy Reid's Press Conference

Bryan Smith:

Defensive end.  Great speed.  Rushing the passer.  Great fit for what we're trying to do defensively.  "Fastballs."

Mike McGlynn:

OT at Pittsburgh but also could play G or C.  Andy interested because he could play all three.  "Same mode" as Jon Runyan.  "Nasty streak" and will fit in well here.

Quintin Demps:

Played S and CB.  More INTs than anyone in this draft.  Has a knack for making INTs and a play on the football (BALL SKILLS).  Last UTEP guy who played for the Eagles was pretty good.  (Seth Joyner)

Jack Ikegwuonu:

Would have been a #1 pick if he hadn't torn up his knee.  Won't play this year.  Did have a legal incident that I checked out and we think that will pass and we'll see how that works out.

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Questions/Answers:

Reid is "counting Booker" as one of yesterday's "three picks" who all are "smart guys" and "classroom smart" and "they love to play the game."

May or may not use all draft picks.  Doesn't know yet.

Is Smith too small: "I don't worry about that."  Linemen have a tendency to gain weight, especially guys from smaller schools who are a little bit lighter.  I care about how they play, heckuva motor and great instincts.

Eagles Go With Damaged Goods in the Fourth

Eagles draft a cornerback in the fourth, even though the kid is recovering from major knee surgery and won't be able to play this year, according to PE.com's draft expert on the call right now.

"At the top of his game, he's a first-round talent.  But he didn't always play at that level... Shown flashes but never been consistent."

Jack Ikegwuonu, CB, Wisconsin.  Seems like a total project at this point, but they have a billion picks so projects are ok.  Especially if they can stash him on PUP for the year and come back next year after he's had a year-long head start on the "book learning" part of the defense.

Also not a choir boy:

Overview

The long road to the National Football League continues to get longer for Ikegwuonu. More than a year after Jack and his twin brother, William, were arrested on residential burglary and criminal trespass charges, the two are still battling through the legal system to attain a resolution to their cases. The Badger cornerback had a subpar 2007 campaign on the football field that was the result of inconsistent play, legal distractions and injuries.

He later surprised the Wisconsin football staff by making the decision to leave school and apply for the NFL Draft. Once touted as the best cornerback in the college ranks, he saw his potential first-round projection continue to slide throughout his final year in Madison.

Now, further clouding his professional future is a serious right knee injury he suffered working out while preparing for the NFL Combine. Ikegwuonu tore the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his right knee during workouts in late January. Doctors indicate he will be forced to miss the entire 2008 season.

According to reports, Ikegwuonu also suffered damage to his kneecap. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported Ikegwuonu was pulling a sled in a drill designed to improve his speed when the injury occurred. He exploded out of a start and planted his leg when the knee gave way.

Ikegwuonu needed a strong performance at the NFL Combine, as well as in individual workouts, to ensure he would be selected in the first three rounds of the draft. "I blame the agent for telling him to come out, when we told him to stay in," one NFL scout said.

UPDATE:  Merrill just said his scouting report says he could eventually project to strong safety. 

Lot of issues for a fourth-round pick...

Why They Need Depth on the Defensive Line

Going back to the archives again, take a look at a couple of video rewinds I did last year where I counted the snaps each of the defensive linemen was playing. 

Here's the Redskins and here's the Lions.

What I wrote after the Redskins game:

As some point this spring, Andy Reid is going to sit down with Jeff Lurie and Joe Banner to talk about what his team needs to get over the hump next season.  There's a good chance Reid will mention the defensive line, which has shown marked improvement this year but could still use a couple of extra pieces.  Reid might even say something about "throwing fastballs at the offense." 

At which point Joe and Jeff should tell Andy that if little Jimmy isn't going to use the toys he already has, they're not buying him any new ones.

You remember how last year went, don't you?  Johnson spent all of training camp talking about how he wanted to rotate a ton of guys along the front four to keep them all fresh.  It worked great for a couple of games -- until Kearse got hurt and Johnson responded by playing all the backups less (except for Trent Cole, since someone had to start). 

Johnson made a New Year's resolution that this season would be different.  Once again the Eagles brought in a few veteran bodies to round out a young starting group and give Johnson and his staff the chance to mix and match depending upon the situations they faced. 

Sure stuck with that one...

In response to a reader request, I did a snap count for the Redskins game.  Since I did the same thing for the Lions game earlier, let's compare the two:

First of all, the defense was on the field for about the same number of snaps in the two games.  Secondly, might want to think about hedging that Trent Cole stock.

I just don't get this.  Patterson is playing out of his mind this year, so as long as he holds up, I guess we want him out there (oops), but Trent Cole played every single defensive snap in this game.  The guy's only 270 pounds, we couldn't get him a blow even for a series?

And it wasn't like Cole had much of an impact on this game.  He had three solos and three assists, but no sacks and not much in the way of pressure on Campbell.  As the same reader pointed out, if we're going to use Kearse as a $7 million situational pass rusher, maybe he could -- you know -- play some on the right side.  If it worked against Mike Vick, it would probably work against John Beck. 

The other point about Cole is -- contra Hugh Douglas -- it's not the double-blocks stopping him from getting to the quarterback (at least not this week).  He did get double-blocked occasionally, and Washington did a couple tricky things to keep him off-balance, but for the most part Chris Samuels handled him without incident.  This continues a disturbing trend for Trent.  He's a monster against the mediocre, but good tackles like Samuels and Flozell Adams don't seem to have much trouble against him. 

McGlynn/Demps On With Eagles Reporters

McGlynn said he can play any position on the line, but he's probably best inside "at guard or center." 

Said he's talked with Juan Castillo (Eagles o-line coach) a number of times.  Comfortable with what the Eagles do. 

Came across as humble, mature, good kid. 

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I think that "or center" bit is kind of interesting.  Jamaal Jackson now has his competition.  I'm not expecting Nick Cole to be on the roster next year this time.  He just didn't do enough with the chances he got this year.

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Demps said he's "very familiar" with the Eagles.  He "picked off Kevin Kolb a couple times."  (Big laughs on that one)

He really liked Mike Lewis.  He thinks he's faster than Michael Lewis.

He's a playmaker.  Not a "pro bowl player a Super Bowl player."

He "can't even explain" how much he's looking forward to learning from Dawkins.  Mentioned his Christianity.

Thinks he can contribute as a punt or kick returner.

They asked him if Kolb was worth a second-round pick last year.  He said "he's real good, man, I'm looking forward to talking to him."

His forst words to Kolb will be:  "Whassup man, you don't know who I am, but I picked you off in overtime to win the game."

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This kid is suuuuuuper confident.

More on Demps

Looks like he could also see some time at cornerback in the short run:

PRO POTENTIAL: Demps spent most of his college career at free safety and finished with 16 career interceptions, but he spent the second half of his senior season as a cornerback because of injuries to the starters and the struggles of their backups. Teams were able to avoid him more at cornerback and his stats suffered but he helped solidify the position. He's ranked fourth among free safeties by NFL Draft Scout but it remains to be seen how his time at cornerback affects his draft stock. He's quick enough to be considered a corner at the next level but he might lack the second-gear speed to make up for mistakes. His strengths at free safety are his vision, nose for the ball and coverage abilities. His biggest concern is his inconsistency as an open-field tackler, which can be scary if he's your last chance to make a stop.

Also skills at punt returner:

2007: All-Conference USA first-team choice as a defensive back and second-team pick as a punt returner…

This is why the Eagles wanted all these picks.  Again, who knows if he's any good, but on paper this is a great-looking choice.

Ball Skills

That's your word(s) of the day, folks.  The Eagles are done drafting guys who can cover but not make plays on the ball. 

Eagles Get Their Safety

Quintin Demps, S, UTEP (great name for a safety).  And Mike Mayock loves him.  "Great ball skills, range, and great in the special teams."

He's a little small, but another guy who runs a sub-4.4 40.  17 INTs according to Mayock.

Scouts.com has him as the #3 safety in the draft.

This is why you can't grade a draft after two picks, guys.

UPDATE:  More analysis:

Overview

One of the elite pass thieves in college football, Demps' 17 interceptions were the most among active players in the NCAA in 2007 and rank second in Conference USA and school history. He is one of only seven players in college history to gain more than 400 yards (404) in returns on interceptions in a career, setting the league all-time record (331 yards in Conference USA competition).

The free safety has been a huge problem for not only opposing offensive coordinators, but also opposing special team coaches. In addition to his 17 interceptions, he ranks second in school annals with 24 pass deflections. He also ranks eighth in UTEP history with an average of 22.1 yards per kickoff return. Finding the end zone has become a fact of life for Demps, who scored on interceptions, kickoffs and fumble recoveries during his time with the Miners.

...

Analysis

Positives: Has very good timed speed, showing the change of direction to get to the ball in time playing in space...Has natural hands and ball skills, timing his leaps and elevating well to consistently get to the ball at its high point...

That's right, BALL SKILLS and he also returns kicks.  Hello special teams.

More on McGlynn

In-depth analysis here.

This scout sees him as more of a tackle prospect than a guard:

Overview

Offensive linemen usually spend their careers in relative anonymity, but NFL scouts' eyes were fixed on Pittsburgh's twin tackles during the 2007 season.

One of the most versatile blockers in the collegiate ranks, the talented right tackle has the nimble feet and slide to play left tackle, the short-area quickness and angle-blocking skill to lead on traps and sweeps as an offensive guard and the deep-snapping skills and hand quickness to possibly shift to center at the pro level.

McGlynn, a vocal leader of the Pitt front wall, shows great passion and desire on his 2006 film. His own coaches did not realize that he played a good portion of the season with a right hand injury and a torn labrum in his left shoulder that required surgery after the season. The shoulder surgery would force him to sit out 2007 spring drills. Still, he refused to come off the field, extending his string of starts to 31 straight games while appearing in 35 contests to date for Pittsburgh.

Bryan Smith At the Combine

Again, I don't know if the kid can play football.  And he's SMALL for a defensive end.

But look at his combine numbers in the vertical jump, broad jump, 20-yard shuttle and three-cone.

The guy's an athlete. 

More analysis:

Overview

Small school defensive end prospect who will have to be moved to outside linebacker in the NFL, but has flashed the athleticism and certainly the big-play ability to warrant this projection. The most dominant edge rusher in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly D-IAA) over the past two seasons, Smith is a two-time All-American and Southland Conference Defensive Player of the Year. As one would expect of a player his size, Smith possesses great burst off the snap and the straight-line speed to chase down ballcarriers. He has intriguing change of direction and flashes explosiveness in his hands, prompting some to view him as a potential diamond in the rough.

Positives

Intriguing athlete who has dominated his level of competition. ... Good burst off the snap and shows the balance to sink his shoulders and drive around the offensive tackle. ... High-effort player who pursues with passion. ... Reads the action quickly and flashes the change of direction to flatten out and beat backs to the edge. ... Flashes strong use of hands to disengage from blocks.

Negatives

Classic 'tweener who lacks the size to remain at defensive end, but has no experience and only flashes the athleticism necessary to transition to outside linebacker. ... Lacks the strength to hold up to effective blocking - even at this level. ... Not viewed as an intriguing enough prospect to earn high-level all-star game consideration.