Jay Ajayi's Future, Super Bowl Euphoria in This Eagles Mailbag

It wasn't all that long ago that the Eagles won Super Bowl LII in Minnesota, but it's time to turn the page. 

Their Super Bowl defense begins next Monday. 

The Eagles will begin their offseason workout program for the 2018 season on April 16 and OTAs will begin on May 22, before the mandatory minicamp and eventually training camp will be here before you know it. 

In the meantime, you have questions, I have answers: 

In the short term, this is an easy answer. Ajayi will be the Eagles' top running back in 2018. He finished up the 2017 season strong and will have an entire offseason in Philly; that'll help. The 24-year-old is just a year removed from his Pro Bowl season in Miami, so there's a chance he can be something special again this season. 

The real problem for the running back is his health. He has a long-term knee injury that has been labeled as "chronic." That's a scary label for any player's knees, but especially a running back who was a workhorse in his one stellar season. There are reasons the Dolphins were willing to give up on him. The big one was reportedly his impact in the locker room, but it's fair to wonder if the Dolphins thought they were never going to bring him back for a high salary because of his knee problem. That's a question the Eagles will have to answer soon enough, especially if Ajayi has a big 2018. 

It's going to take a long time. A couple weeks ago, when I flew to Orlando for the owners meetings, I was at the airport and wasn't sure which carousel the baggage from Philly was going to. I didn't need to look it up. Instead, I just found the one with about 20 people wearing Eagles Super Bowl gear. Those people are everywhere. I imagine the NFL sold a ton of it. 

Another story: I shared this on Twitter, but I'll share it here too. I was in Southeast Alaska on vacation last week and stopped into the small town of Coffman Cove, Alaska (population 200). The bartender at the only bar in town, "The Dog House," happened to be an Eagles fan. When she told me that, we chatted about the Super Bowl win and I showed her my photos from the celebration. Eagles fans are everywhere and they're going to enjoy this for a long time. 

Bald eagle. I saw over 100 of them in Alaska last week. It never gets old. Locally, Noah the Eagle from the Elmwood Park Zoo comes to training camp every year and Challenger sometimes flies before games. 

Guice is an interesting prospect. He's fun to watch and is an explosive, tough runner. He would seem to fill the void from losing LeGarrette Blount. I tend to think Guice will be off the board before the Eagles pick at 32, but he would be an option. He doesn't have a pass-catching background, but neither did Corey Clement and he had 100 receiving yards in the Super Bowl. 

I'm not sure which Hurst you mean. There's DT Maurice Hurst from Michigan and there's TE Hayden Hurst from South Carolina. Maurice Hurst is probably gone by 32 and it might be too early for Hayden Hurst. Don't sleep on either position in the first round though. 

Depends. I give a free pass for anything right now because they won the Super Bowl. And I actually like it as a boo. Like, if the Phillies stink and you want to let them know by chanting the name of the other team in town, cool. But there better not be any during the Sixers' or Flyers' playoff runs. That's their time. 

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