EAGLES 101

Despite all of the hype coming out of the Philadelphia Eagles' camp this off-season after some of their high-profile moves, there still are question marks heading into the season. In 2011, the Eagles will enter the season with two rookies holding down their kicking game. With David Akers leaving Philadelphia and signing with the San Francisco 49ers this off-season, fourth-round pick Alex Henery will be asked to hold down the kicking game. The Eagles are also going to be relying on a rookie punter, Chas Henry, after Sav Rocca was cut this off-season.

Thursday night's game against the Baltimore Ravens to kick off the Eagles' preseason schedule will be our first taste of these rookie kickers. For years, we have never had a question mark at the place kicker position as David Akers consistently held that role down for over a decade. Tomorrow night will be the first step in either putting the question mark to rest, or really beginning to worry about the kicking situation in Philadelphia.

Alex Henery was the Eagles' fourth-round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft out of Nebraska. Henery posted an 89.5 (68/76) completion percentage in his four seasons with the Cornhuskers, accumulating 397 points throughout his career. Henery was just 5/11 for field goals beyond 50 yards with Nebraska, but was a very consistent 21/22 on field goals between 40 and 49 yards deep. 

Chas Henry was picked up by Philadelphia after they got rid of their punter Sav Rocca this off-season. Henry, who played four seasons with the Florida Gators, averaged 45.1 yards per punt in his senior season in 2010. Rocca often out-kicked his coverage during his time here in Philadelphia, but hopefully Henry will not make the same mistakes. 

Going into a season of such high expectations with two rookie kickers is definitely something that could raise some eyebrows, but the Eagles obviously have a lot of confidence in these guys as they have not gone out and made any other moves to solidify the kicking game. Tomorrow night's game against the Ravens will be the first chance for Henery and Henry to show us that they are ready for this level.

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