Grateful Reagor eyes bright future

MONTAE REAGOR can see just fine through that swollen left eyelid, the Eagles' newest defensive tackle assured reporters yesterday.

Reagor, who signed a 3-year deal that the NFL Network said was worth $8.25 million, with $2 million guaranteed, said he underwent cosmetic surgery Friday to clean up the aftermath of an orbital bone fracture that ended his 2006 season after five games. The swelling will go down soon, the effects of the minor knee cleanup he recently underwent will fade, and he'll be 100 percent, probably in time for minicamp, Reagor said.

In fact, Reagor seems to feel he sees more clearly now than he once did, before the Oct. 22 car crash he feels he was lucky to survive. For some people, missing most of a Super Bowl championship season would qualify as a tragedy. Reagor thinks he had a brush with real tragedy, when his SUV flipped repeatedly after another vehicle slammed into it while he traveled to a home game against the Redskins. After living through that, missing the Super Bowl wasn't so terrible, Reagor said.

"My life passed right before me," Reagor said. "I'm very, very grateful to be here. My thing is, just appreciate life and appreciate what you can do while you can do it.

"It was very tough to be out there on the field not being able to play, but I did a lot of things behind the scenes to help the coaches in the playoff run," said Reagor, who helped defensive line coach John Teerlinck break down film of Colts opponents. "I helped the guys in the locker room, just my leadership being there . . . giving [the other defensive linemen] my input and just being an inspirational leader. I was fired up for those guys. I was their biggest fan, and I think the part I played helped motivate them to put them over the hump."

This is not to say that after nearly 3 1/2 years as a Colts starter, and repeated playoff disappointments, it was easy to watch the team finally win it all without him.

"Unbelievable," Reagor said when asked what it was like on the sideline in Miami. "I was very, very fortunate; very, very blessed to be there. The guys understood how emotional I was, because I wanted to play so bad, but I couldn't. I begged them to let me put my uniform on just to at least act like I was going to play, but I couldn't do it. It was very, very emotional; a very happy situation, and I'm just glad we came out on top."

Reagor joins a crowded defensive-tackle rotation with the Eagles. Though general manager Tom Heckert said yesterday that keeping six d-tackles was theoretically possible, it's unlikely. Unless someone gets hurt in minicamps or training camp, the financial commitment to Reagor probably is bad news for either Sam Rayburn or LaJuan Ramsey. This is not a 1-year, veteran minimum deal, like the one signed last spring by easily discarded Ed Jasper.

"I think I bring poise to the game. I think I bring a lot of quickness, a lot of big-play capability . . . I'm very quick on my feet," said Reagor, who added that he expects to compete for a starting role. "I'm a good pass-rusher . . . I think I have a lot of big play in me and a lot of big plays left in me."

Said Heckert: "It's the same as we've always said - the more the merrier on the offensive and defensive lines," Heckert said. "We thought he was a good football player, thought he'd come in here and help in our rotation and just compete with all the other guys. I think he's a good player, and you can't have too many of those guys."

Reagor, who turns 30 in June, notched 10 1/2 sacks in the two complete seasons he played before his accident. Though the Eagles certainly need to do a better job stopping the run, they haven't gotten much of a pass-rush push up the middle the past few years, either.

"It's apparent this guy can rush the passer inside," Heckert said. "Obviously, we were up and down there last year, inside pass rush, so I think he can help us there, but also, he's a good run player, he really is. He's a little different type of guy, more of an athletic, quicker type of player.

Reagor, listed at 6-3, said he is about 5 pounds lighter than his listed playing weight of 285. He lost weight in the wake of the accident.

"I haven't been able to work out for a while, but physically I'm starting to get back to working out, just getting to where I need to be physically, and making myself comfortable with the situation," Reagor said.

Heckert agreed that free agency is winding down; though he noted that cap casualties can still hit the market between now and training camp, it seems more likely that whatever needs the Eagles have not addressed so far will have to be taken care of in next month's entry draft.

"I feel good," Heckert said. "We're getting [Jevon] Kearse back, getting [Donovan] McNabb back [from injury]. We think some of these young guys can help us this year. We feel we did help us a little bit with [free-agent wideout signee Kevin] Curtis and with this guy, getting [running back Correll Buckhalter] back, and the guys we did sign, we feel good going into the draft."

The Eagles' most notable free-agent losses are quarterback Jeff Garcia (Tampa) and wideout Donté Stallworth (New England). They have added wide receiver-kick returner Bethel Johnson from Minnesota, Curtis from the Rams and Reagor. They have brought back free-agent cornerback Will James, safety Quentin Mikell, defensive end Juqua Thomas and Buckhalter, while signing backup quarterback A.J. Feeley to a longer-term deal.

The most glaring unmet need would seem to be at linebacker, where Ryan Fowler agreed to terms with the Eagles, then reconsidered and took a richer Tennessee offer. The Birds have done nothing to upgrade a below-average group, other than expect a contribution from 2006 third-round pick Chris Gocong, who sat out last season with a neck injury. They lost situational linebacker Shawn Barber to the Texans in free agency this week. *