Eagles Pick Up G Murphy; Two Undrafted Rookies
By Lance Epstein
Today the Eagles officially announced that they had come to terms with three more rookie free agents and that they acquired guard Shawn Murphy off of waivers from Tampa Bay.
The first rookie was reported last night on Eaglesmix.com in University of Arizona cornerback Devin Ross. The 5-foot-10 corner had his best season came during his junior campaign where he was named second-team All-Pac 10 and recorded a career-high three interceptions (one for a touchdown).
Ross had a bit of a down senior season (still very impressive) as he registered 74 tackles, one interception and 11 pass deflections. Even with his numbers being down from his junior season, he was named All-Pac 10 Conference honorable mention.
Still, Ross gives the Eagles something that none of the other cornerbacks on the roster possess besides Ellis Hobbs, which is he has experience as a kickoff and punt returner. His freshman and sophomore years at Arizona, he was the main kick-off guy as he backed up Chargers current starting corner Antoine Cason. If there is a any undrafted free agent to make the Eagles roster the player to bet on is Ross.
The other two players that came to terms with the Eagles were West Texas A&M running back Keithon Flemming and Miami defensive end Eric Moncur. Before Flemming dislocated his elbow this past season, he was averaging 134 all-purpose yards per game and still managed to have a team-high 16 touchdowns.
During his career, he accumulated 12 100-yard rushing games and 4,008 all-purpose yards. Flemming (5-10, 207) capped off his college career by placing sixth all-time in the West Texas A&M rushing books, fifth in receptions and second in the career scoring.
He is a typical Andy Reid style back that can run the rock between the tackles, get to the edge and has the ability to receive the ball out of the backfield. In addition, he has the ability to return punts and kickoffs for the Eagles. The Eagles have been searching for a qualified candidate to take over for DeSean Jackson and Ellis Hobbs.
As for Moncur, he is a undersized defensive end at 6-foot-1 and 237-pounds. Still he managed to record 110 tackles and 11 sacks in his career. Moncur has an uphill battle to make the team considering the Eagles just drafted three defensive ends and bring back Trent Cole, Juqua Parker, Victor Abiamiri along with new acquisition Darryl Tapp.
Lastly, the Eagles claimed guard Shawn Murphy off waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Originally, Murphy, 27, was a 2008 fourth-round draft choice of the Miami Dolphins out of the Utah State. He was made expendable put on waivers immediately following the 2010 NFL Draft.
Murphy (6-4, 325) has only played in one game his entire career in the NFL, but has the nasty mean streak Reid looks for in his lineman. While he probably is just another training camp body, he comes from a athletic background as he is the son of former Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies All-Star outfielder Dale Murphy.
Due to his athleticism, the Eagles might think about moving him over to center since Jamaal Jackson is not expected to be fully recovered by the start of the season.
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