NFC East: Eagles sign draft picks to four-year contracts
Saturday, June 17, 2006 By JOHN NALBONE
Unaccustomed to setting the market for NFL rookies, the Eagles and team president Joe Banner are crunching their numbers earlier than usual due to an accelerated preseason schedule that kicks off with the Hall of Fame Game against the Oakland Raiders on Aug. 6 in Canton, Ohio.
To that end, the team signed their final two picks of the April draft, linebacker Omar Gaither and defensive tackle LaJuan Ramsey, to four-year contracts yesterday.
Terms were not immediately available.
The 6-foot-1, 235-pound Gaither was a fifth-round selection (No. 168 overall) out of the University of Tennessee. He was a two-time All-SEC performer for the Volunteers and will be in camp next month looking to land a spot on special teams and as a backup to middle linebackers Jeremiah Trotter and Mark Simoneau.
Ramsey (6-3, 291) was a four-year contributor at both tackle and end for USC. He was the Eagles' final pick (sixth round, No. 204). He replaced Mike Patterson, the Birds' first-round selection in 2005 and his former college roommate, on the Trojans' defensive line.
The Eagles' preseason camp schedule includes 19 days of practice open to the public over a span of nearly four weeks. Rookies and selected veterans must report on July 20, with practice beginning the next day. The rest of the squad reports July 23, and the Eagles will remain at Lehigh until the day before their third preseason game -- at Baltimore on Aug. 17.
The Eagles will be on the field at Lehigh every day in that span except game days and the days after games. However, their practices on the days before games will be closed, as will their first day of practice with the entire team assembled on July 24.
Unaccustomed to setting the market for NFL rookies, the Eagles and team president Joe Banner are crunching their numbers earlier than usual due to an accelerated preseason schedule that kicks off with the Hall of Fame Game against the Oakland Raiders on Aug. 6 in Canton, Ohio.
To that end, the team signed their final two picks of the April draft, linebacker Omar Gaither and defensive tackle LaJuan Ramsey, to four-year contracts yesterday.
Terms were not immediately available.
The 6-foot-1, 235-pound Gaither was a fifth-round selection (No. 168 overall) out of the University of Tennessee. He was a two-time All-SEC performer for the Volunteers and will be in camp next month looking to land a spot on special teams and as a backup to middle linebackers Jeremiah Trotter and Mark Simoneau.
Ramsey (6-3, 291) was a four-year contributor at both tackle and end for USC. He was the Eagles' final pick (sixth round, No. 204). He replaced Mike Patterson, the Birds' first-round selection in 2005 and his former college roommate, on the Trojans' defensive line.
The Eagles' preseason camp schedule includes 19 days of practice open to the public over a span of nearly four weeks. Rookies and selected veterans must report on July 20, with practice beginning the next day. The rest of the squad reports July 23, and the Eagles will remain at Lehigh until the day before their third preseason game -- at Baltimore on Aug. 17.
The Eagles will be on the field at Lehigh every day in that span except game days and the days after games. However, their practices on the days before games will be closed, as will their first day of practice with the entire team assembled on July 24.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:41 AM
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