What are Howie Roseman's Best Options to Cure Eagles WR Woes

The Philadelphia Eagles are thin at wide receiver right now. That's just the reality of the situation.

This is a problem early in training camp, a problem that can be fixed rather easily. The Eagles have a temporary solution, signing Brandon Hayes for wide receiver depth (and masking a bigger issue as well).

Is Hayes masking a bigger problem right now? That may not be the case, but certainly the Eagles front office are taking all the measures necessary to make sure they have a functional wide receiver group come Week 1.

There are a few solutions Howie Roseman and company can make in the coming weeks. Wide receiver is a concern, but it isn't a major problem if the Eagles take these steps.

Patience with Makai Lemon

This may be the hardest pill to swallow for the Eagles right now. The Eagles were banking on Lemon to be an instant contributor in the offense, but that appears more and more unlikely once the regular season begins.

Lemon had a hamstring injury in the spring that caused him to miss the majority of OTAs and minicamp. He has already missed consecutive practices in the summer after going down Monday with a similar injury.

The Eagles need to be patient here. They can't rush Lemon back from what they say is a short-term injury, and they don't have to at this stage in the summer. This is a long season, and the big picture is for Lemon to develop and contribute.

Lemon doesn't appear to be ready by Week 1 like the Eagles had hoped -- or at least the way they had hoped.

Players just need to get healthy

The Eagles are down three of their top six receivers right now (pending on how one views their top six receivers). DeVonta Smith and Makai Lemon are both down with hamstring injuries, and both are believed to be short term. Britain Covey is also out with a hamstring injury.

Smith should just be treated in bubble wrap until Week 1. The Eagles know what he can do, and the passing game won't work if Smith isn't the WR1. Dontayvion Wicks is the WR2, a role he seems to be very comfortable in based on how the first week is going.

Obviously Lemon needs to get healthy before he can get the reps he needs with the offense. The Eagles also knew what Covey can do since he's been around for several years. Covey is battling for a job on this roster, but his ability to return punts likely results in him sticking around anyway.

This goes back to patience, which the Eagles need to be at this time. Get the top players healthy.

Is there any other free agent signing coming?

Never say never when it comes to adding talent to the roster, especially with Roseman.

Wicks has been the best receiver not named DeVonta Smith through the first week of camp. After Wicks, Darius Cooper has shined. While Cooper has staked his claim on WR5, that could be problem he's outperformed Hollywood Brown.

The Eagles are one week into this thing, so there's more to see from Brown. While it's important to note Brown is on a one-year deal and the Eagles aren't giving him real money (over $8 million). He still is expected to make this roster as a WR4.

The depth looks fine on paper when everyone is healthy, but that clearly isn't the case right now. One injury to the top three wideouts and this wide receiver group doesn't look as deep, which is the case with Lemon's hamstring issues.

There are some notable free agents available -- Tyreek Hill, Keenan Allen, and Curtis Samuel are the big names. The other names that could compete for a roster spot are Brandin Cooks, Tyler Lockett, and Skyy Moore.

The talent pool is thin for a WR5 spot, even though these are notable names. Are they better options than Cooper and Johnny Wilson?

A veteran like Diggs or Allen could help, especially Nick Sirianni's relationship with Allen. Perhaps a veteran helps this team get through the dog days of August while competing for a roster spot.

The Eagles also had James Proche in for a tryout in minicamp, but didn't sign him. Kind of telling they signed Brandon Hayes over Proche.

A free agent signing is unlikely, but can't rule out the possibility.

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