DeSean Jackson isn't coming back anytime soon and the trade deadline has passed, leaving the Eagles precious few options to upgrade the wide receiver position this season -- but not zero.
Listen, I'm not going to lie to you and say there's a lot of talent out there. Antonio Brown is about the only true difference-maker and the Eagles aren't going to sign that guy for obvious reasons.
But the Eagles don't necessarily need a difference-maker. They need somebody to plug in with Alshon Jeffery and Nelson Agholor who can catch an occasional pass, something neither Mack Hollins nor J.J. Arcega-Whiteside has done since September.
It may mean coaxing a player out of retirement, but you can't tell me one of these players isn't at least worth it.
Jordan Matthews
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This is such a no-brainer, it's less a suggestion than a prediction. Matthews knows the offense, he knows the city, he's buddies with Carson Wentz, and say what you want about his limitations as a receiver, he recorded 20 catches for 300 yards and two touchdowns in a limited role with the Eagles just last season. In all honesty, the club probably should've brought him back weeks ago.
Greg Ward
The solution to the Eagles' problem could already be in the building. Greg Ward has been trying to crack this roster as an undrafted free agent since 2017, and there he is on the practice squad again after his strongest offseason to date. The 24-year-old finished the preseason with 6 receptions for 87 yards with a 38-yard touchdown and a 15-yard rush, leading some observers to believe he might make the squad. Ward isn't a pure speed deep threat, per se, but we watched the offense run a lot of gadget plays which made use of his quickness during summer workouts, so at the very least, there would be opportunities for innovative offense.
Torrey Smith
Smith seems to be settling into his post-NFL life - he's a father and is involved with high school sports - so I'm not sure the Eagles could get him in pads again. That being said, they should probably try. No, he wasn't uber productive in his season with the Eagles two years ago (36 rec, 430 yds, 2 TD), and 2018 was statistically the worst of his career. Smith is 30 and may not even have the wheels he once did. Still, just the threat of that guy blazing down the field opened up the field for Jeffery and others. It's worth a phone call at least, assuming the Eagles haven't tried already.
Mike Wallace
In the same vein, the Eagles might want to kick the tires on Wallace, who actually replaced Smith last season. Remember? Probably not, because Wallace suffered a fractured fibula in Week 2 before he ever caught a pass for the team and hasn't suited up since, not in midnight green or for any team. While he's 33 now, only one season earlier he racked up 52 catches, 748 yards and four touchdowns for the Ravens, not to mention posted a 1,000-yard season the year before that. Maybe this is a reach, but like everybody else on this list so far, he knows the offense, so why not give him a workout if he's interested?
Charles Johnson
You may recall Johnson was one of a handful of receivers the Eagles had during the offseason, and while the 30-year-old journeyman wasn't necessarily the most impressive, he is by far the most experienced. Johnson has 60 career receptions for 834 yards and two touchdowns between 2014-16 with the Vikings, and he led the short-lived AAF league with 687 yards and five scores in 2019.
Marken Michel, Carlton Agudosi
More training camp darlings. Michel's claim to fame, besides a steady CFL career, is a 75-yard bomb in the Eagles' preseason opener this year - though he's not really a vertical threat. Agudosi, a Rutgers product, has intriguing size at 6-foot-6 and made a few plays for the Eagles this summer, but there's probably a reason he's headed to the XFL right now. Just a thought.
Ok, now let's get weird.
Terrelle Pryor
After recording two catches over his first five NFL seasons, Pryor came out of nowhere to post 77 receptions, 1,007 yards and four touchdowns for the Browns in 2016. But he hasn't done anything since, his numbers diminishing with every subsequent stop as he jumped from Washington to the Jets to the Bills and was finally cut out of Jaguars training camp in August. Pryor is 30 and was never really good -- there's a reason he's been signed by nine different teams - but as a natural athlete to plug into the offense and send deep every other play, he might provide some value for the desperate. Are the Eagles that desperate?
Brandon LaFell
The caveat here is LaFell suffered a ruptured Achilles almost a year ago, so the simple reality is he might not be ready to play. Heck, at 33, chances are he'll never play again. Before the injury, however, LaFell was still a viable player. The nine-year veteran had 12 catches for 135 yards and two touchdowns in six games with the Raiders, and the year before that, 52 catches, 548 yards and three touchdowns for the Bengals. Even those numbers were possibly a sign of decline though, so not sure there was much left in the tank before a potentially career-altering injury. Still, he's been productive at every stop, including a two-year stint with the Patriots.
Pierre Garcon
Garcon's knees might be shot, as he wound up on injured reserve in back-to-back seasons with the 49ers, the last of which was on pace to be his least productive since he was a rookie. The Eagles don't need somebody to get them through 16 games though. They need somebody to get them through the rest of this year, or at least until Jackson gets back. Could Garcon handle that? He's 33 and was never the greatest athlete at his position, yet he carved out a long NFL career with 628 catches, 7,854 yards and 38 touchdowns. The bigger question is whether he's even taking workouts at this point.
Aldrick Robinson
Though not a household name, Robinson spent seven seasons in the NFL, with over 230 yards receiving and at least one 40-yard reception in five despite getting exactly that number of starts in his career. In fact, just last season for the Vikings he was over 230 again with five touchdowns, yet failed to make the Panthers in camp and has been on the street. In terms of realistic options that don't involve players who have been on the Eagles roster at some point, this might be the only one that can actually help.
