The Freak* can't wait for the regular season to begin.
The Freak* says he will be at 100 percent when the Eagles open Sunday in Green Bay.
Then the Freak* explains that darn asterisk.
"It's going to be a new 100 percent," Jevon Kearse said yesterday. "It's not the 100 I used to be. It's a new 100 percent."
Oh.
Those who think the Eagles need Kearse to be the dominating player he once was will no doubt find this news truly disturbing. Those who think Kearse hasn't been that player since signing his eight-year, $65 million megadeal in 2004 probably won't bat an eye.
It isn't hard to figure out why Kearse had numbers on his mind. He turned 31 yesterday. Being on the Eagles' 53-man roster today automatically guarantees him all of the $5.2 million he is owed in salary - whether Kearse has 15 sacks or three sacks, whether he's a Pro Bowler or a role player.
That milestone was not a given. Just two weeks ago, the Eagles released veteran middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter. Trotter is nearly five months younger than Kearse, and would have cost about half as much. But coach Andy Reid decided Trotter's "new 100 percent" just wasn't good enough.
All summer, Reid has been talking Kearse up. Early in camp, the coach said Kearse had "more sacks" in three days of practice than he'd ever had as an Eagle. Last week, with the clock winding down on the endless preseason, Reid said that Kearse had a "great" training camp. There was no sign the Freak* was in trouble.
He didn't make much of an impact in the preseason games, sitting out the Eagles' only victory with swelling in his surgically repaired knee. In fairness, though, Kearse is a veteran. He didn't have to risk reinjuring his knee to make meaningless big plays in the preseason, not when Reid and defensive coordinator Jim Johnson had dozens of practices to go by.
Still, the numbers had to be weighing on Kearse's mind: 31, $5.2 million, whatever the "new 100" is, the nearly 12 months since he played, the mystery number that appears when he steps on a scale.
That was one number Kearse wouldn't get into on his birthday. Asked if he was at the weight he wanted to be, Kearse said he was fine and walked off to the trainer's room. So you wonder where he is on the continuum between 230, which he weighed in June, and 255, where he wanted to be on opening day. Kearse reportedly weighed 249 when he arrived at Lehigh in late July.
"I'll be as quick, if not quicker than I was," Kearse said.
That's a good sign, of course. Quickness was the cornerstone of Kearse's game when he exploded on the NFL scene as a rookie with the Tennessee Titans in 1999. Kearse had 141/2 sacks that year, which still represents his career high. As an Eagle, his season high is just 71/2 sacks. He was off to a strong start last year - 31/2 sacks in two games - before blowing out his knee in that unforgettable overtime loss against the Giants.
But Kearse was known as the "Freak" (without the asterisk, thank you) because of the combination of speed and size. The quickness without the weight could make him a real liability in the running game. Maybe that's what Kearse means when he talks about that "new 100 percent."
"We're only being judged on sacks," Kearse said, referring to the wider world of fans and the media. "But I look on the [coaches'] production list and see that I'm getting pressures and batted balls and I know that I'm contributing a lot to my team."
Kearse could have a great game in Green Bay without ever recording a sack. Packers quarterback Brett Favre has reached that point in his career in which he's more likely to throw an interception than take a sack. Indeed, the trend around the league is for maximum protection of quarterbacks and quick releases of the ball. A defensive lineman who can disrupt a play, even if it doesn't result in a sack, is still doing a good job.
Kearse said he feels "ecstatic" the regular season is finally upon the Eagles and believes the team has a "great" front four, with enough depth to keep offenses off balance.
However you do the math, the closer the new 100 is to the old 100, the closer the Freak* is to the Freak, the better that front four will be.
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Props to Megatron ^^^
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Artist formerly known as wmcgahee69 big foot causes all train derailings.
As long as Kearse gets through the season not on the IR, things will be alright! Of course he's not the same player, but with the depth we have at the position, keeping him fresh shouldn't be a problem and hopefully that will amount to a season without injuries, at least I can hope.
I actually think Kearse will lose a lot of playing time this year to Thomas. Kearse isnt a real pass rusher, he has quickness and thats it. Guys like Cole and Thomas have pass rushing moves and can hold up better then Kearse against the run. I am worried about him playing at this weight and I think he will be used more as a run and chase guy like he was when he first came here.
Kearse: Not the player he used to be.
Kearse: Not the player he used to be.
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