Jamar Chaney

Now we know why the Eagles weren't casting lines to Stephen Tulloch or Curtis Lofton. They were fishing for a bigger score. And they pulled him in Tuesday night - Pro Bowl linebacker DeMeco Ryans - and on first impression the Eagles looked like they bagged a big one. All they had to give up was a fourth-round draft pick and a swap of third-round picks with the Houston Texans to get the 6-foot-1, 250-pound Ryans. On the surface, the acquisition plugs what were gaping holes on the Eagles defense last year.

MOBILE, Ala. - Howie Roseman has a problem. His two drafts, while not complete busts and still not near final judgment time, have yet to deliver what would commonly be referred to as an impact player. Roseman, who has increasingly become a lightning rod for fan discontent, enters his third season as Eagles general manager with a resume that highlights some of his successes in the latter rounds, but buries his less-than-impressive selections in the early rounds. Of the 12 players the Eagles have chosen in the first four rounds of the last two drafts, 10 have started a total of 76 games if you include Alex Henery's 16 starts at kicker.

Linebacker Jamar Chaney had surgery Tuesday to repair a herniated disk in his neck, the Eagles said. Chaney suffered the injury in the final game of the season, the team said. The Eagles initially said he had a concussion, while Chaney said he had a stinger. "Minor setback for a major comeback!" Chaney wrote on Twitter Wednesday. Former Eagle Ellis Hobbs returned from a similar injury to play for the team in 2010, but his season and career were ended by another neck injury that year.

Walking out of the Eagles locker room following the season-ending win over the Redskins, Howard Mudd was dressed to ride. The Eagles offensive line coach had his motorcycle boots on and his helmet in hand, but he was not riding off into the sunset. Before the game, Mudd told his linemen that he planned on returning for his 39th season as an NFL coach. "I didn't know the cat was out of the bag," Eagles tackle Todd Herremans said. "I like Howard. I like his methods.

As rumors about their coaches swirled, Eagles players backed both Andy Reid and Juan Castillo on Wednesday and said they were focused on their final game. "We all love Coach Reid. Coach Reid's a great coach, great person to be around," wide receiver Jeremy Maclin said. "I've got the most respect for him, and I love playing for him. " Defensive players came to Castillo's defense. "Juan's done a great job. When you have the talent that we have on defense, it shouldn't all be placed on him, it should be placed on players," linebacker Jamar Chaney said.

Odds are the Eagles' season will be over by the time a certain plump, red-faced man is flying through the skies on Christmas Eve. The Birds need a New York Jets victory over the crosstown rival Giants before they tee it up at Dallas on Saturday. And then they have to beat the Cowboys if they are to head into the final weekend with their postseason hopes still flickering. It's not out of the realm of possibility, nor is a miracle finish next week in which the Eagles beat the Redskins and the Giants bounce back to top Dallas.

Here's a strange statistic: defensive end Juqua Parker has run the ball into the end zone one more time this season than Michael Vick . Parker opened the scoring Sunday night against the Jets with a 47-yard fumble return, his second touchdown of the year and third of his career. He had a 56-yard fumble return Week 1 at St. Louis and an interception return for a touchdown in 2008. Parker's score Sunday came after Kurt Coleman knocked the ball loose from Santonio Holmes . "I saw him have it in his right hand, and I just went for the shot because I knew I had a [teammate coming]

He was booed. He was labeled a wasted draft pick. Even his family experienced the brunt of fan anger. Casey Matthews hopes that a second chance, and more time to learn, will improve his standing with the Eagles and in the city. Matthews has taken over as the middle linebacker in the Eagles' nickel package, gaining a more prominent role after spending most of the last nine weeks on the bench. "It's another opportunity to go out there and show what I can do and take advantage of it this time," said Matthews, a fourth-round pick.

NOT MANY NFL stats reflect how your offense and your defense are doing. Turnover differential does. It shows the difference between how much (or how little) your offense is screwing up and how much (or how little) damage your defense is inflicting on the other team. Shockingly enough, the 4-8 Eagles are tied for last in the NFL in turnover differential, at minus-13, the worst figure of the Andy Reid era, in fact, the Birds' worst since the 1983 Marion Campbell season. The 22 interceptions their quarterbacks have surrendered are the worst figure in the league.

PERHAPS IT is a swan-song melody. Maybe it is a lame excuse. It might just be the truth. Besieged coach Andy Reid acknowledged yesterday that the Eagles' most glaring weakness results from the inexperience of its defense's core. And, hey, what coach can be held responsible for youth? The Eagles had designs on the Super Bowl but stand at a devastatingly disappointing 4-8 . . . with an error-prone, skittish group supporting the defensive line. The most frequently used linebackers and safeties, five players, have a combined 78 career starts among them.