The first surprise of Eagles training camp so far is, for better or worse, we’re on our way. Well… we’re not, but the Philadelphia Eagles are. After practice, the boys sprint to the end zone. After practice, the offensive line moves from sideline to sideline. It seems like the training camp is focused on conditioning. Hey, no one’s complaining about that.
The veterans and rookies finished training on Tuesday. The first two training sessions were held on Wednesday and Thursday. The other one will be held on Friday and Sunday during the rest period. There’s already a lot to discuss.
Head coach Nick Sirianni denied reports of internal conflict. It was good to see. It was also good to see Jalen Hurts do the same. This allows us to focus on the work on the field. As expected, there were some surprises, good and bad.
Cooper DeJean and Landon Dickerson will both start training camp with injuries. Before the Birds even took the field, we learned that Cooper DeJean injured his hamstring and was placed on the active/non-football injured list. Landon Dickerson missed the first day of practice and was limited the second day. He is recovering from a toe injury. C.J. Uzomah might be bad at football. On day one, we saw Zach Baun drop back into coverage and set up C.J. to score. Uzomah fended off a particular pass from Kenny Pickett. It was actually one of the best plays of the first day of work.
On day two, Avonte Maddox smacked the ball out of Uzomah’s hands after Uzomah caught the ball in the flat. We wondered at times if Grant Calcaterra had a chance to make the roster as a TE3 behind Uzomah and Dallas Goedert. Maybe we need to adjust this and ask if Grant is the TE2 or if Uzomah is off the roster.
John Ross is getting first-team minutes in his second training session, but the ball isn’t going his way. Parris Campbell is making the most of his opportunities. On Wednesday, he was the third wide receiver for the first team. We’ve seen his continued chemistry with Jalen Hurts. For now, he seems like the front-runner for the job (unless a third WR is still on the roster).
John Ross was in the lineup as the WR3 on Thursday. I don’t remember him doing anything notable, though maybe I missed something, but that was probably because the ball just wasn’t going his way. He’s said to be quicker than we remember. Campbell is more aggressive with his touches on the ball, but there’s no need to take Ross out of the discussion just yet. He seems like he’s definitely in it, but Jalen seems more comfortable with Campbell.
Tyler Hall gets extra reps in training. This may mean nothing in the long run, but Tyler Hall has been getting first-team appearances at the nickel cornerback position in 7-on-7 drills. With Cooper Dejean out, he could get more reps, but the max seems to be the practice squad.
The Eagles bring back Griffin Herbert. Why? Speaking of top performance, Griffin Herbert is back again. I don’t know why exactly. I’ve heard some discussion about him possibly signing with the Eagles, but many of us are hoping for Justin Simmons. Instead, the Eagles are returning a player who will likely be at the bottom of the wide receiver rankings. Offensive lineman Gottlieb Eise was taken off the active/injured list to make room.
I know the Birds need players at every position this part of training camp, but this seems like a wasted effort.
Aeneas Smith is problematic. We’ve seen Aeneas Smith botch punts and drop passes in contested and non-contact practices. He’s a newbie, we know that. It’s too early to give up, but I won’t lie and say I’m not worried about his hand. James Bradberry is still on the Eagles roster. James Bradberry is still on the team. Wasn’t traded or bought after June 1st. That doesn’t mean he’ll be on the active roster on Opening Day. We’ll see what happens, but Cooper Dejean and Sidney Brown are both absent, which could leave the door open.
Or, the Eagles could use this “versatility” angle to entice a willing trade partner.
Worth noting: Jalen Hurts is looking sharper than ever this time around. Jalen Hurts sometimes gets a lot of criticism for having “difficulties” in training. Right now, he’s practicing to work on some aspects of his game, not to get a perfect QB rating. Still, many seem to value summer efficiency. Those people will be happy to hear that he’s doing well. Kenny Pickett looked okay in the first training session of training camp, but regressed a bit in the second.