Sunday, March 23, 2014

Are DeSean Jackson's Days in Philly Over?

It appears that DeSean Jackson will be playing somewhere else when the 2014 NFL regular season gets underway this upcoming September. In what has become an extremely terse situation between the big play wide receiver and the Eagles' front office, the latest report out of South Philly suggests that the two parties will part ways through a trade or an outright release.

Never known as a team player, Jackson started down the wrong road with his employers at the end of last season when he suggested that his current contract should be renegotiated after putting up the best numbers in his six-year career. Just a few years back he started to paint the picture that he was just another one of those prima donna wide receivers that never really cared that there is no I in team. He staged a brief holdout before the start of the 2011 season and then turned in a very mediocre effort with just four touchdown catches in 15 games. He eventually got paid, but he also branded himself as just another mercenary in the NFL.

There is no doubt that Jackson is one of the most electrifying players in the game with his blazing speed and big play capabilities, but just like TO before him, the added drama he brings to the table is just not worth effort of keeping him happy with a boat load of cash. Head coach Chip Kelly continues to build on the team concept he instilled in his first season in the NFL and keeping Jackson around after this latest disruption would only cause his program to take a step backwards with a franchise that is finally moving in the right direction. His up tempo, high-octane offense is predicated on having playmakers (plural). Jackson was a big part of that group, but definitely not the biggest.

It is a shame that the Birds will most likely get nothing in return for Jackson through a trade since it looks more and more that he will simply be cut, but I love the fact that Kelly is taking the bull by the horn by eliminating a problem that will just rear its ugly head somewhere down the road.

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