Adding those two guys helped address two needs on one of the worst statistical defenses in Eagles history. the 31 passing TDs surrendered last year is well documented. No need to even go there.

Nnamdi Asonugha and the Eagles shocked the NFL by agreeing to a deal on Friday.

Along with bringing in Vince Young to take Kolb’s spot, you were safe to assume the Eagles had done their thing.

Wrong.

Nnamdi Asonugha — the most coveted free agent in the league — stunned everyone not paying attention to the Nation’s debt crisis by signing with the Eagles, a team seemingly set at cornerback with DRC and Asante Samuel. Then, on Saturday, they struck again landing stud DT Cullen Jenkins, the man of seven sacks a year ago.

Let’s recap. The team traded a QB, lost Quintin Mikell and likely Stewart Bradley. They added a Pro Bowl QB, a Pro Bowl DE, two Pro Bowl corners and a Pro Bowl-caliber DT.

Suddenly, the team with a prolific offense and piss-poor defense has the pieces in place to do something special. And, they have to be done now, right? Not if you listen to Joe Banner. Asked if the Eagles had flexibility to do much else, Banner replied, “Hell yeah!”

A linebacker, backup running back and offensive line depth would help. The dream of adding a stud LB to the defense took a hit this morning when the Lions — suddenly a respectable team — nabbed Stephen Tulloch from Tennessee.

Pro Bowl-caliber DT Cullen Jenkins came out of nowhere to join the Eagles suddenly formidable defensive line. But, could he be the back-up to Shady McCoy, too?

Could they go with the youth at a position they don’t put much emphasis on? Sure.

As far as RB goes, Ronnie Brown is an interesting thought. He’s had injuries and is not a lead back these days. But, his experience in the Wildcat would give Reid another wrinkle in the offense. We all know Reid and his gimmick plays. Keep an eye on that one, especially as Brown sits at home. Sure, the Rams are rumored to be interested in him, and the Eagles name hasn’t even been brought up in rumors. But, if we’ve learned anything the last two days it’s that the Eagles aren’t letting their plans leak.

Casserly’s take on Kolb? He’s better than Cam Newton and worth a top 5 pick in the NFL Draft.

Top 5? Really?

We like Kolb and think the fact that he has a body of work in the NFL, no matter how small, gives him value. He’s young and has not taken many hits.

Kevin Kolb is worth a top 5 draft pick accoording to a former NFL GM.

Still, a top 5 pick? You’re going to be hard pressed to get close to that unless you throw in your first and a lower pick and flip draft positions like the Seahawks did when they got Matt Hasselbeck.

Of course, the fact that teams worry about Kolb’s salary demands will keep his value down a bit. And, the fact that the Eagles themselves are putting stories on the web site to prop up his value can be deemed propaganda.

Apparently, Tampa Bay Bucs coach Raheem Morris tried his hand at “managing” a major league team this week when Joe Maddon invited the football guru to join the Rays for a day. Morris even made a pitching change in the fourth inning when he pulled pitcher James Shields.

According to Larry Brown Sports, Morris played it cool during the change.

He walked to the mound, and he’s like, ‘So, what do we do now?’” Shields relayed. “I was like, ‘You’re supposed to get the ball from me.’ And he’s like, ‘Oh, okay, then hand me the ball.’ Then he’s like, ‘So, what are we doing after the game? Is this what we’re supposed to talk about out there?’ It was pretty funny.”

That got us to thinking, what if Charlie Manuel invited Andy Reid down to coach the Phillies for a day. What would that be like?

Things would likely start with Lenny’s closing at 8 a.m. for the first time ever after Reid and Uncle Charlie stopped by for breakfast. Manuel would likely talk to Reid about dropping LA Weight Loss for Nutrisystem. Reid would then order a quadruple stack of pancakes as he considered Chuck’s advice.

The setting would then switch to Bright House Field where Reid would put on a baseball uni that fit him like the tights he promised to wear had Terrell Owens scored 15 TDs in 2004. Of course, his uni number would be 14 to remind him of his 1-4 NFC Championship game record. Hey, just a little cross S. Philly rivalry shot fired by the Phillies brass.

What if Andy Reid took control of the Phillies for a day like Raheem Morris did in Tampa for the Rays this week?

During the game, Reid would ask Manuel about when he calls time outs and how he manages the clock.

“Andy, you know there’s no clock or timeouts in baseball. We have to walk to the mound to get a stop in play,” says Charlie.

“You mean I have to walk all the way to the mound? No wonder you lost all that weight. It kills me to move from the 40 to the 50 along the sidelines.”

“Yeah, you actually have to move a bit out here. We can’t hide on the sidelines like you.”

Charlie then tells Reid he’d like to yank Doc Halladay after the fourth inning but he knows Doc’ll be pissed off. He just doesn’t know how to yank his stud starter and save his arm for the playoffs.

“I benched Donovan McNabb,” says Reid. “Let me go out there. But, call the bullpen and have Danys Baez run up to the Tiki Bar and grab me a burger, fries and milkshake.”

“Why Baez?”

“What the hell else is he going to do besides run his ERA higher than my pass-to-run ratio?”

Later, JRoll gets thrown out at the plate on a bang-bang play. Reid grabs Chase Utley’s hat and throws it on the field. Manuel and the Phillies dugout rolls in laughter.

“Uhhh, Andy, uhh, there’s no challenges in baseball.”

The end result is a 7-6 Phillies loss to the Cardinals on a last second drop by center fielder John Mayberry. Reid then met with the media.

“Let’s start with the injuries. Chase Utley is day-to-day with knee contusion. Domonic Brown has a broken wrist and he’ll get an MRI tomorrow.

“OK, I need to put Charlie’s guys in position to make plays. This loss is on me. I should never have pulled Donovan, errr, Doc Halladay. But, I really wanted that burger from Baez, so I had to call the bullpen.

“The fans were great today and really geeked up. I was only reminded of the Super Bowl choke job thirty times today. Finally, don’t worry about me and the Eagles. The NFL is set to agree to a new CBA the night before opening day. We’ll hold the press conference announcing the signing of Nnamdi Asomugha on April 1 at 1:05. Then, we’ll announce the trade of Kevin Kolb at 7:05 on April 2. Finally, look for DeSean Jackson and Michael Vick to hold a joint presser announcing contract extensions on April 3 at 1:35. This in no way is an attempt to overshadow the opening weekend for the Phour Aces. Joe Banner assures me of such.”

Who would you rather trade for?

Quarterback A is a six-time Pro Bowler who led his team to five conference championship games and one Super Bowl while throwing for 32,000 yards, 213 TDs and just 96 picks.

Quarterback B has thrown for 2,082 yards, 11 TDs and 14 picks, and attempted just 319 passes in four NFL seasons. He has whopping seven starts under his belt. Granted, he threw for more than 300 yards in three of those starts. Still, his body of work is less?

Who do you want? Who brings more in a trade?

Conventional wisdom says it’s quarterback A. Only, this is the NFL where youth means more than production.

Quarterback Kevin Kolb is likely to bring more value in a trade than Donovan McNabb did a year ago.

For the Eagles, quarterback B, Kevin Kolb, is likely to bring more in a trade than McNabb did just a year ago when he was still considered a Pro Bowl talent around the league.

The Eagles jumped at the 37th pick in last year’s draft and what turned out to be the 103rd pick in this year’s draft. That equates to 618 value points according to the NFL Draft Pick Value Chart used by league GMs. The 37th pick is worth 530 points, while the 103rd pick is worth 88 points.

Rumors have teams willing to part with a first for Kolb. The last pick in the first round is worth 590 points. However, teams drafting toward the bottom of the first round generally aren’t shopping for starting quarterbacks. The lone exception is Seattle which has yet to extend their aging signal caller Matt Hasselbeck. The Seahags own the 25th pick, which is worth 720 points. Right there, Kolb has brought more in value than McNabb did.

Even if the Seahawks don’t chase Kolb and instead settle for trying the Matt Leinart reclamation project (and, after Mike Williams resurrection under Pete Carrol last year we wouldn’t rule any USC stiffs out), the fact is there is a precedent for a Kolb deal.

Donovan McNabb ended up bringing 618 value points to Philly according to the NFL Draft Value Chart used by league GMs.

ESPN.com’s Mike Sando did a great job comparing Kolb right now to Hasselbeck when Green Bay dealt him to Seattle. Hasselbeck’s value was 580 points. Kolb is likely worth a tad more than that since he does have NFL experience. Hasselbeck was stuck behind Brett Favre and never had a start.

So, the Eagles are looking at trade value right around the last pick in the first round. Again, a team needing a QB will be drafting higher. That’s not to say that the Eagles would get a top 15 or 20 pick straight up for Kolb. The 20th pick is worth 850 points. The Eagles will likely need to deal Kolb and a late second or early third to get a pick that high. Or, they’ll need to swap first round picks and get a later pick back in exchange.

Still, the bottom line is Kolb will bring back more value than McNabb did when he was still a Pro Bowl talent. To me, that’s amazing. But, it also lets you know that NFL GMs place a higher value on youth than proven production.

The NFL owners and teams are conducting business as usual during a period that looks to be anything but normal. Teams can place the franchise tags on potential free agents for the next 14 days. Players such as Michale Vick and Payton Manning look to be prime candidates for being tagged.

While the one-year payout can often be nice since players receive the average of the top five guys at their respective position, the fact remains that this year, the tag could be meaningless. Or, it could be clutch.

Expect the eagles to slap Michael Vick with the franchise tag soon. But, what does it mean right now?

It all depends on how the CBA negotiations pan out. As of today, the owners had canceled the next two meetings. That doesn’t bode well for figuring out a solution to the impasse between owners and the NFLPA

Suppose the new CBA isn’t hammered out until June or July. Can you imagine the feeding frenzy on 400-plus possible free agents? Having your guy already locked up via the franchise tag and worrying about securing a long term deal later helps maintain continuity and helps teams with cost certainty for one year, to an extent.

However, suppose the new CBA doesn’t include the franchise tag — and the players would pay dearly for that one. Then, the franchise tag means nothing and the eagles are at square one — Kevin Kolb.

The bottom line is that the franchise tag looks good and sounds good, but you can’t bank on it 100 percent at this point.

On Easter Sunday last spring, the Eagles brass made the 2010 season one dedicated to finding out whether or no Kevin Kolb was a franchise quarterback in the NFL.

Today, we’re no closer to knowing the truth about the fourth year guy from Houston. Sure, he had two seemingly great games against the Niners and Falcons. Sure, he’s been NFC Offensive Player of the Week twice in his six NFL starts.

Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb has told the Eagles to start him or deal him. Trading him might be best for all.

But, there’s also Green Bay and Tennessee. There’s also the putrid preseason during which he was the No. 1 guy. There is the fact that he didn’t make starting Vick over him after he suffered a concussion a really tough decision.

Today Kolb told Reid he wanted to start or be traded. Who can blame him? He’s 26 and isn’t getting younger. And, he feels he is a starter and wants to find out for himself if he really can fill that role in the NFL.

Kolb played the good soldier in backing up Vick. He lost his job due to injury. If he doesn’t get hurt, who knows when or ifwe would have watched the resurrection of Vick this year?

It’s now do or die time for the Eagles. The team must finally go with Kolb or trade him. Keeping him next year serves no purpose. Quite frankly, if you keep him as a backup, he leaves in free agency after next year and you get nothing in return. Trade him now and you get a nice draft pick. His trade value will not increase next year.

Of course, trading him assumes that the Eagles decide they want to go with Vick. At this point, they have no choice. They’ve made their bed and have to lie in it. Vick has his flaws, but he grew up this year under Reid. He was an MVP candidate. The Eagles came into this year searching for their future franchise QB. They found him. Only it was Vick, not Kolb.

Making Kolb suffer as a backup, even without a solid bakup in the fold in the event Vick gets hurt due to his carefree, sometimes careless, style of play isn’t thr right thing to do from a business or personal standpoint.

Kolb wants a trade? I say cut bait and let him go. The Niners are looking for a West Coast QB.

What in the name of Kenny Britt is going on here? Britt, the Titans second year wideout from Rutgers, poured dirt in the wounds of Philly sports fans Sunday by posting 225 yards and three TDs on seven catches en route to leading the Titans to a 37-19 victory,

The player, who started the day on the bench due to being involved in a nightclub brawl at 1:45 a.m., posted the most yards ever against an Eagles defense. Once he entered the game, he made Ellis Hobbs and the Eagles secondary look as fearsome as a miniature poodle.

Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt went from punching people outside a nightclub to knocking out the Eagles secondary on Sunday.

The Eagles had jumped out to a 16-7 lead before Britt entered the game and turned it into his own personal video game.

The run defense did its job by holding Chris Johnson to 66 yards on 24 carries, but the secondary was atrocious. Ironically, Kerry Collins, subbing for injured Vince Young, may have been the difference. Young is not known for his passing ability and may not have completed the balls to Britt. But, you play who is on the field, and the Eagles couldn’t do that.

Collins finished 17-of-31 for 276 yards, three scores to Britt and two picks. His counterpart, Kevin Kolb, finished 26-of-48 for 231 yards, one score and two picks, including one of the team’s final play.

For a team with visions of entering a bye week on a high note, they’ll have two weeks to live with this loss and get ready to face a guy named Manning and his Colts teammates.

Following a breakout 300-yard, three touchdown passing day against the Falcons, Kevin Kolb is slated to start Sunday against the Titans. Coach Andy Reid said today that “there’s a pretty good chance” that Kolb will be grabbing Mike McGlynn’s ass next week.

Reid says he doesn’t think Michael Vick will be ready to go in a week.

Kevin Kolb's hands should be very comfortable with Mike McGlynn's butt by the end of the season. The Eagles QB must be the starter from here on out.

None of that really matters. Kolb will start and should start the rest of the year. None of this has anything to do with Vick, who played like he was trying to elude the authorities in place of an injured Kolb.

Kolb has to start for two reasons.

First, the eagles decided to part ways with a proven franchise quarterback to see what they had in Kolb. They wanted him apply what he had learned from his three years on the bench to actual game action. If you play Vick over McNabb, do you accomplish that?

Second, Kolb only “lost” his job due to injury. As well as Vick played, that’s just not right. And, we don’t say that because we feel bad for Kolb or anything like that. Instead, we say that due to players health.

If you were on the Eagles and saw a guy lose his job because he got a concussion, would you ever report any symptoms to the eagles trainers for fear of ending up with a spot at the end of the bench? You can not risk having players cover up injuries unless you want more Andre Waters or Kevin Turner stories in a decade or two.

Send Kolb out there next week. Then, send him out again after the bye no matter how well or poorly he plays. He’s going to have ups and downs. But, isn’t that what we all expected when 5 was sent on an Amtrak train to DC?

You can just hear sports talk radio, columnists and fans getting back into their Kevin Kolb frenzy already. Two consecutive wins and a 326-yard, three TD performance against the Falcons will do that. Nobody should be on the Kevin Kolb is The Savior Bandwagon yet, however.

Sure, Kolb came out on Sunday and made a statement that he needs to be back in the starting mix. If he could lose his gig due to injury, why can’t he take it back. Andy Reid will likely say Michael Vick is still the starter when he is healthy. What else is he going to say? He has to leave a backdoor in case Kolb sucks next week or gets hurt again. Why mess with Vick’s psyche when you don’t need to.

The bottom line is that Kolb needs to be the starter for this team. That’s no strike at Vick, nor should it be a feather in Kolb’s cap.

Kevin Kolb is going to play great at times and poorly at times this year. The Eagles need to ride the roller coaster and let him start.

Kolb needs to start because he’s still learning and this was the plan when the Eagles dealt McNabb to Washington on Easter Sunday. The Birdbrain trust thought Kolb could be a franchise quarterback who could win the elusive Super Bowl. Who knows? That may just come true. But, don’t dare judge that by today.

The fourth-year pro out of Houston is going to have piss-poor games like he did against Green Bay. He’s going to have stud games like he did against Atlanta. And, he’s going to have mediocre games like he did in San Francisco.

The bottom line is that the only way to fix his mistakes and inconsistencies is to play, and play every week. The Eagles dealt McNabb to see what they had in Kolb. For that reason alone, he is the man who must start the rest of the season. Reid did the right thing by getting Kolb out of the fire, especially in the hype leading up the the Redskins game.

We’re now past that.

If you go back to Vick, at the end of the year you are in the same exact spot you were on Easter 2010. You still wouldn’t know whether Kolb is a franchise-type NFL quarterback. The only way to find out is to play him and go through the ups and downs of a developing signal caller.

Don’t get too excited about Kolb and expect 300 yards a week. But, he needs to be the Eagles starter from this point on.

With the Eagles facing one of the better run defenses, Kevin Kolb had to step up his game if the Eagles ahd any chance to knock off the Atlanta Falcons. Getting DeSean Jackson involved was key to getting the Eagles offense going.

Kolb and Jackson did just that through the first quarter in giving the Eagles a lead they never surrendered. Jackson took an end around 31 yards to paydirt on the Eagles first offensive series. He later caught a 34-yard score from Kolb to put the Eagles up 14-0.

Desean Jackson started the game in impressive fashion before being knocked out by Dunta Robinson.

Jackson, however, was lost for the game in the second quarter on a vicious hit by Falcons corner Dunta Robinson. Just as quickly as optimism around the Eagles offense developed, nervousness set in.

Then, Jeremy Maclin decided to show up in a big way en route to giving the Eagles a decisive 31-17 win, leaving both teams at 4-2 after six games.

Maclin hauled in seven balls for 159 yards and two scores. His first score came in the second quarter when Kolb found him for an eight-yard TD. The two later connected on an 83-yard bomb in the third quarter to give the Eagles a 28-10 lead.

In between the Falcons put up 10 points on a Matt Ryan-Tony Gonzalez score, and a field goal.

Gonzalez also scored in the fourth quarter, while Eagles kicker David Akers connected on a 30-yard field goal to close out the scoring. Akers had missed three attempts before that try.

Kolb, under a ton of scrutiny after playing poorly all preseason and in the first half of the season opener, displayed why the Eagles wanted him to be under center this year. He went 23-of-29 for 326 yards and three TDs. He threw one pick late in the first half, although that really wasn’t his fault.

Kevin Kolb threw for more than 300 yards for the third time in five NFL starts in Sunday's 31-17 win over Atlanta.

LeSean McCoy put up 64 yards against a solid Falcons run defense.

On defense, the Eagles held the league’s second rushing team to just 65 yards, less than half of it’s season average. They also put pressure on Ryan all day, thanks to an improved scheme from second year coordinator Sean McDermott.

The 4-2 Eagles play at Tennessee next week.