Reed ready to return as kick returner

After weeks of underwhelming kickoff returns, the Eagles may finally be ready to let J.R. Reed out of the doghouse.

The fourth-year safety and kickoff return specialist was signed to his second Philadelphia stint just before the season began, only to be released a week later, after his fourth-quarter muffed punt cost the Eagles their season opener against Green Bay.

The team brought him back shortly thereafter, but he has not yet returned another kickoff, the role for which the Eagles originally drafted him back in 2004.

As running back Correll Buckhalter has continued to return kicks in workmanlike, unspectacular fashion, Reed has been a respectful but mystified member of the Eagles locker room, waiting for another chance to do what he does best.

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J.R. Reed to return again?

Rumor has it, that the Eagles are going to sign S/KR J.R. Reed, and it will be announced today around 10. After having both Brian Dawkins, and Sean Considine leave the game with injuries, the Eagles probably feel it is not a good thing to only carry three safeties on the roster. I just pray to god they never put him back out as a punt returner again.

UPDATE:

It has been a roller coaster past couple of weeks for safety J.R. Reed.

The Eagles re-signed Reed on Wednesday only eight days after they released him. The Eagles had claimed him off waivers after Reed spent eight days as a member of the New York Giants at the end of training camp.

The Eagles claimed him to utilize his experience as a kickoff returner against the Green Bay Packers, where he averaged 22 yards per return on three attempts. However, it was a muffed punt late in the fourth quarter that was recovered by the Packers and led to the game-winning field goal. Reed handled punt return duties for the first time in his NFL career in the second half after a muff by Greg Lewis, also in his first game as a punt returner, was recovered by the Packers in the end zone for a touchdown.

The Eagles signed veteran Reno Mahe to return punts last week and released Reed. In Monday night's loss to Washington, free safety Brian Dawkins suffered a stinger injury and cornerback Lito Sheppard sat out with an MCL sprain. While the status for both players for Sunday's game against Detroit is unknown, neither practiced on Wednesday, the Eagles re-signed Reed to provide some insurance. Originally a fourth-round pick of the Eagles in 2004, Reed knows coordinator Jim Johnson's scheme.

To make room on the roster, the Eagles released tackle Pat McCoy. A rookie free agent signee of the Eagles last year, McCoy impressed the coaches during training camp and made the final 53-man roster. A Division II All-America selection at West Texas A&M, McCoy was inactive for all 16 regular season games last year and both contests this season.

The Eagles also tweaked their practice squad by releasing tight end Lee Vickers and adding tackle Jonathan Palmer. A rookie free agent signee this year, Palmer spent the entire training camp with the Eagles and was released during the final roster cuts on Sept. 1. Vickers was an intriguing prospect, who learned the tight end position after playing at defensive end at North Alabama and in Steelers training camp last year.

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Mahe To The Rescue

Two days after special teams miscues cost the Eagles the season opener in Green Bay, the team shored up its return game by re-signing Reno Mahe on Tuesday evening.

Mahe, a reserve running back for the Eagles from 2003 to 2006, led the NFL with an average punt return of 12.8 yards in 2005. During his career, he has returned 64 punts for the Eagles, averaging 9.4 yards per return.

Head coach Andy Reid said Monday that catching the ball was the most important thing for his returners going forward, and Mahe is a sure-handed option. He has fumbled on a punt return only once in his career.

To make room for Mahe on the roster, the Eagles released safety J.R. Reed. In his first-ever game as a punt returner and on his third opportunity of the game, Reed muffed a punt that was recovered by the Packers at the Eagles' 31-yard line with 59 seconds remaining in the game. The Packers won the game on a Mason Crosby 42-yard field goal with just six seconds left. In the first quarter, Greg Lewis fumbled a punt that was recovered in the end zone for a touchdown.

Mahe, who was living in Utah prior to his signing, jumped on a flight to Philadelphia early Tuesday morning and worked out for team personnel. He will not wear No. 34, as he did in his first stint as an Eagle. Fullback Jason Davis asked Mahe to keep his number.

Mahe made the team as an undrafted free agent in 2003 after an outstanding career as a wide receiver at BYU. The team quickly switched him to running back, and he found a niche in the return game, averaging 9.2 yards on six punt return opportunities. He became the teams full time-kickoff returner in 2006, averaging 22.23 yards on 30 returns.

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I don't think anybody would have ever actually been wishing that Reno Mahe was on their football team, but after the opening day disaster on special teams, many Eagles fans were doing just that. Luckily for Mahe, he will get a pass if he does not break any big returns. The only thing he has to really concern himself with, is make sure to catch the football. If Greg Lewis, and J.R. Reed were able to do that, they would have beaten Greenbay. So remember Reno, make sure to CATCH THE FOOTBALL.

The really sad thing about this, is that the Eagles have been unable to find a good solution to the return game in years. ever since Brian Mitchell left, the Eagles have tried, and failed with several players to get a good return game going. Dexter Wynn, James Thrash, Ryan Moats, Reno Mahe, Rod Hood, Jeremy Bloom, Bruce Perry, Lamar Gordon, Greg Lewis, and J.R. Reed have all been in that return game mix at one time since Mitchell left. None of these guys has been able to stick as the return specialist, for one reason or another, and this needs to be addressed next off season.

Mahe is an ok band aid for now, but after this season it is time to get a real returner. Somebody who not only secures the football well, but can do something with the ball after he fields it.


As mad as I am at J.R. Reed's boneheaded decision to run after that ball, I feel bad for him getting cut again. He has now been cut five times in the past year, including twice from the Eagles. He was a decent kick returner in 2004, and had that strange leg injury hopping a fence in the following off season. It is amazing that he has even stepped back on the field, and I hope he gets another chance on another team. You can be sure, it wont be as a punt returner.

Reno 911

After yesterday's nightmare on special teams, the Eagles are bringing in former Eagles Reno Mahe for a tryout today according to NBC10 Sports Anchor Vai Sikahema.

Mahe may never break a big one, but at least is reliable enough to field the ball without any issues. Vai also says the Eagles will bring in several other candidates for the job.

Expect a roster move to be done within the next few days. Greg Lewis, and J.R. Reed are prime suspects to be released.

UPDATE: Jeremy Bloom is also coming in for a workout.

Special Teams Cost Birds

After a long wait, opening day turned out to be a disaster for the Birds.

The game started, and ended with two key special teams gaffs, and in between there was an ugly defensive battle.

Early in the first quarter, Greg Lewis muffed a punt that bounced around into the end zone recovered by Greenbay for a touchdown. Lewis clearly can not field punts, as he made two more near disasters on punts later in the game. He was replaced by J.R. Reed, who muffed a punt himself in the games final minute. A play that setup the game winning field goal.

Lewis, who last year got Ex-Packers CB Ahmad Carroll cut by beating him for two touchdowns, should probably be cut for this terrible performance. That might sound harsh, but maybe making an example out of him could wake this group up.

Donovan McNabb was just ok today. He moved fairly well, and did make some plays that resembled classic Super Five. He also threw a terrible interception, and had a few others that were luckily dropped.

I don't know if the Packers defense is really that good, or if the Eagles offense is just not all that great. There were only two big plays to speak of. A 37 yard strike to Kevin Curtis, and a 31 yard catch and run by Jason Avant. Outside of those 2 plays, there was very little offense to speak of.

The pass protection was very poor, and the running game was not much better. Credit the Fudge Packers for doing a good job on Brian Westbrook. The play calling was not very creative, and it seemed to really hurt them.

The biggest thing I noticed, was that the Packers were not respecting the Eagles play action at all. Almost every time they tried to hit a big play off play action, it actually gave the defense an extra second to get to McNabb.

L.J. Smith did play, but was very limited. Brent Celek saw a lot of playing time, but he did not catch one ball. Probably because he was kept in to pass protect a lot, which he did a bad job of. Andrews also played, but I did not notice any great blocks by Shawn. He usually has at least two or three of them a game.

The only silver lining in this dissapoiting loss, is the play of the defense. The scoreboard might say 17, but really they only gave up 3 points. The only Packers touchdown came off the Lewis muffed punt, one field goal was dude to a McNabb interception, and the final fg was due to J.R. Reed's muffed punt.

The defense did a really good job for the most part, but the Packers offense is not exactly a big test. Hopefully they can keep it up all season. The run defense was especially good, as they held rookie RB Brandon Jackson to only 40 yards on 15 carries. They also got after Favre, sacking him 5 times. Sheldon Brown had a great game, and got a nice interception. Sean Considine made a really nice play breaking up a deep pass.

One thing is for sure about this team. They certainly do not look like a Super Bowl contender. I know it is only week one, but I know every Eagles fan had this game circled as a W when they went over the schedule. This game was a very frustrating start, to what could be a frustrating season.

Eagles Claim Reed, Togafau Off Waivers

Safety J.R. Reed's career takes him back to the place where it all began.

The former fourth-round draft pick in 2004 was claimed off waivers along with middle linebacker Pago Togafau on Sunday. To maintain the 53-man roster limit, the Eagles released linebacker Akeem Jordan and safety Marcus Paschal.

The 5-foot-11, 202-pound Reed showed a lot of promise his rookie season as the Eagles' primary kickoff returner, the role to which he will assume. He averaged over 23 yards per return that season, which included a long of 66 against the Carolina Panthers. In the offseason following his first year, he tried to jump a fence near his hometown of Tampa and cut the peroneal nerve which affected the movement in his leg and foot.

Reed faced an uphill climb back, but he returned to the Eagles for training camp in 2006. He did not make the final roster and landed with the St. Louis Rams, where he played six games. He finished last year with the Falcons and was in this year's training camp with the New York Giants. In the preseason, Reed recorded three tackles, an interception and a pass deflection on defense before he was cut Saturday.

As Reed takes over on kickoff returns, wide receiver Greg Lewis will remain the primary punt returner.

A rookie free agent out of Idaho State, Togafau spent training camp and the preseason with the Arizona Cardinals. The 5-foot-10, 250-pound Togafau had 16 tackles in the preseason. He led the Bengals in tackles in each of his last three seasons and finished his college career with a total of 361.

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