That's far from a guarantee for Andy Reid and company, who often throw us for a loop in the draft. But it wouldn't be surprising.
Peters has emerged as one of the best left tackles in the game, and excels in both the pass game and run game. The holes he opened up last season allowed McCoy to have a career season. Not only did he open up holes for McCoy in the run game, he did it in the passing game as well. Peters' downfield blocking is some of the best in the league, and throwing screen passes to McCoy and letting Peters go to work to clear the way down field was a pleasure to watch last season. We likely won't be seeing any of that in 2012.
According to Football Outsiders, Peters allowed just one sack last year. While he does not protect Mike Vick's blindside, he is still a valuable piece of the Eagles' offensive line and has become the elite left tackle in the league.
Can someone like McNeill or Bell be an asset to the Eagles? Sure, and they are both better options than Dunlap or anyone else currently on the roster. Yes, the Eagles have moved Herremans to the left side before, but that has a zero percent chance of happening because Vick is a left-handed quarterback. They need Herremans to protect his blind side, so he will stay at right tackle.
No matter how the Eagles try to replace Peters, they simply won't be able to do it. They can pray at the outside chance that he can return for some action very late in the year or in the playoffs, but at this point, don't expect to see Peters until 2013.
Sources: Football Outsiders, ESPN.com
Victor Filoromo is a born and bred Philadelphia sports fan, and has been through the best and worst of Philadelphia sports. He is a regular contributor to the Yahoo! Contributor Network's NHL and MLB coverage.
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