Lito missing from voluntary minicamps. Problem? or No?

   Lito Sheppard, two time Pro-Bowl corner for the Eagles, is unhappy. And rightfully so.
    For those of you living under a rock, in February the Eagles splurged in free agency on some guy named Asante Samuel, who's won a thing or two in the last few years and had a couple interceptions. By that, I mean he has two Super Bowl rings, and in 2007, he had more INTs (6) than the bird's starting CBs combined (5). He had a whopping 10 in 2006. The Eagle's biggest defensive flaw is their inability to create turnovers, and Samuel surely will help them in that category. He was added to a secondary that included future Hall-of-Famer Brian Dawkins and two solid corners: Sheldon Brown and Lito Sheppard. Samuel is clearly a star, and his presence would help compose the most fearsome secondary in the league. So what's the problem?
    The answer is complex, but here are two keys:

1) Asante Samuel's cap hit is a staggering $9,145,000 in 2008, almost three times what either Sheldon and Lito are on the hook for. While the luxury of three first string corners is nice, it's hard for a team to pay the salary of all three of them when they can possibly move one of them to help other, less fortunate areas on the team (see next point). And most likely, Brown or Sheppard would not be happy playing nickel, a spot usually occupied by the immortal Joselio Hanson. Also, while Sheldon may be content with his salary, Lito's Pro-Bowl status seems like it should beget more money. I'm sure Lito doesn't think Samuel is three times the player he is. Instead of having to deal with restructuring, the Eagles thought perhaps they could..

2) Trade Lito Sheppard. Reid, Heckert, Banner and co. were positive that a package of Lito, picks, and other spare parts would be enough to acquire a world class talent at wide receiver, namely Larry Fitzgerald or Roy Williams. They were wrong. The time to trade 2008 draft picks came and went, and Lito Sheppard still sits idly on the trading block with no takers.

So why is Lito unhappy? The team he was drafted by and played very well for over the years desperately tried to trade him. Now it looks like he's stuck in Philly, having to fight for playing time with not only a Super Bowl Champ, INT-happy, big money, Pro Bowl corner, but with a draft class mate, longtime teammate and much-less-injury prone Sheldon Brown.
The team wants him gone, he's going to have to split PT and he's not getting more money. That's why.
And he's skipping a minicamp this week.

Now that we're all up to speed with the situation..
What should the Eagles do? What should Lito do?
Do they continue trying to move him? That hasn't worked so far, and it's clear they're not getting a premier wideout for him. The perception of him from other GMs seems to be that he's injury prone, and not worth the money. Those who clamor for Chad Johnson think he may be a key ingredient in a trade package for him, but it's highly doubtful. And as for getting a second-tier receiver for him? Not the brightest idea. The Eagles have had plenty of second-tier receivers over the years, and here we are, still searching for that number one. And someone with Lito's talent shouldn't be shipped out for someone in the solid-number-two role. Besides, we have four solid-number-twos anyway.
{Aside: Actually, that's being too nice- we have one 2 (Curtis), three 3's (Brown, Avant, Baskett when they actually use him-don't get me started), and a big ol' question mark (DeSean Jackson). We don't need another two. Please.}
Or do what the Eagles seem intent on at the present- Work the three of them into a rotation. Although it seems like that's overkill- three starting corners- when one thinks about the possibilities, it sounds more and more attractive. A nickel package of the three of them renders 3 WR sets obsolete. Welker in the slot? No need to call on Hanson, James, a linebacker, Dawkins, or worse yet, CONSIDINE (!) to defend him. Throw a two-time Pro Bowler on him. Here's a nightmare-What if Dallas somehow (as unlikely as it is) gets Chad Johnson and what if Terry Glenn finds his groove again? No other team in the league would fare better than an allstar nickel package of Samuel, Sheppard and Brown. As far-fetched as that scenario is, the fact is the Eagles could cover them. The birds would fear no passing game. And if one of the top two gets injured, there's a stud backup waiting in the wings to claim the starting job, putting the Eagles one step ahead of the game.
    What they should do is similar to the last option. Keep all three. But instead of keeping one on the sidelines during normal packages, which is just dumb considering their talent level, start Asante and Lito. Keep Dawk at free. Bump Sheldon to strong safety. Although he is a quality corner, he is the least skilled in coverage of the trio and simultaneously the best in run support. He would be a great safety who could easily cover tight ends and running backs, and it would relieve the defense from having to switch into nickel packages. It would give Dawkins more time to mentor Quintin Mikell, who should be a strong replacement for Weapon X when he retires. Mikell can even spell Dawk on some passing downs, as even the great number 20 has lost a step. And most importantly... it keeps Sean f'ing Considine off the field.
    For some reason, Andy Reid is infatuated with the hapless safety from Iowa. Sure, Sean, puts in a good effort, and he's okay in run support. But for the love of God, he is absolutely hopeless in coverage. He can't cover ANYONE, unless maybe his grandmother lines up against him in a touch football game at a family reunion.. As far as I'm concerned, he's still in the Soldier Field endzone, trying to stop Mushin Muhammed from catching the game winning touchdown pass, flailing his arms wildly like an air-traffic controller.
    And that's pretty much what it comes down to. Why have Mikell, who has talent but a ways to go, or worse, Considine, on the field, when one of the three ultra-talented corners will sitting on the bench? It doesn't make sense to me. If no quality offers come for Lito, and all three are kept, the only move that makes sense is to install Sheldon as safety and put Lito and Asante at the corners.
    And trade Considine for a bag of maple bats.