They are having a field day throwing around the names, circulating the rumors. One all-time-great report matriculated -- I love that word -- out of Philadelphia suggesting the Eagles will trade up to draft running back Knowshon Moreno, that they will trade a second-round draft pick this year and another one next year for wide receiver Anquan Boldin and that the team will put the finishing touches on an amazing draft weekend by dealing a third-round draft pick to Kansas City for tight end Tony Gonzalez.
Oh, brother.
It's easy to toss around the names. Reporters are being paid to generate interest in the pre-draft period, so who is going to let facts get in the way of a good rumor mill?
In a day or two, nobody will remember the rumors, anyway. Nobody is keeping score on which rumors actually came true.
Honestly, all of the rumors help us get through the long days before Saturday afternoon. I sure wonder how any of these reporters get hold of this juicy stuff, because, well, I have tried breaking through the Midnight Green Wall and have found it very, very difficult. At this point, the few men who actually know what is going on are sequestered in meetings. They aren't exactly walking the halls and chatting with guys like me at this time of the year.
Are the Eagles involved in conversations? Many, many of them. Are they talking trade with teams? I would be shocked if they weren't. There is, we know, a lot going on right now.
But I have serious, serious doubts that one-tenth of what we're reading is actually true. I think the Eagles are truly sitting there at 21 believing they are going to have a good group of players from which to choose. I think they are talking with a lot of teams about veterans, both ones they would like to acquire and ones they might consider trading.
I believe that the draft-day scenarios will largely become real options between now and the middle of the day on Friday, and that the Eagles will line up each deal in order of what they think is the most favorable.
For the most part, the Eagles have their groupings of players whom they think will be available throughout each round finalized. They are working the phones, and calls to reporters aren't part of the protocol. Sure, it's smart to use the media right now. A well-placed smokescreen can provide great benefits. But the Eagles are way, way close to the vest at times like this. Andy Reid is restrained, and the four or five other men who actually know what is going on are staying mum.
Tony Gonzalez? Anquan Boldin? Knowshon Moreno? Those are the hot names. Chad Ocho Cinco, too. But they are names and they are headlines and they are a way to close the game between now and Saturday afternoon. Who knows if the stories come true? Who knows how much of what is being said now is true. It almost doesn't matter. We're all listening to whatever is being said, even if it means nothing by the time the draft rolls around.
