Rookie minicamp has recently wrapped up for the Eagles. Instead of simply grading the Eagles draft class as I do every year I will instead be taking a closer look at how the players the Eagles acquired during the draft look thus far and how the team’s new roster should serve the team this upcoming season. Let’s dive in.
The TE room is already very good due to the presence of Dallas Goedert. Sixth-round pick TE Grant Calcaterra could be the next Brent Celek or he could struggle early on. I feel confident that he will become a Celek type of player for the Eagles. Zach Ertz while a hero forever in the hearts of Eagles fans was not as athletic as Brent Celek in his prime. He was very very reliable that being said. The point being a nice blend of athletism and consistency would be nice. The concussions do worry me a little however if Grant can stay on the field I feel confident Eagles fans will like what they see out of him. If he improves as a blocker he should be able to unseat Jack Stoll for the TE2 job. Grant will want to be as productive as possible because Tyree Jackson is a player with massive potential as well. Jackson should be healthy enough to play by week seven. Grant Calcaterra if you read this article remember that and let it fuel you. This is an improved position even if Grant and Stoll wind up rotating while Grant improves his blocking. We all know he can be a dangerous pass-catching threat.
The WR room has not been this good since the days of Desean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. Perhaps it is even better. Imagine if (a more humble) Terrel Owens had played alongside Jackson. It feels like the Eagles finally now have that kind of dangerous combination with their WR corps now with Devonta Smith and draft day trade acquisition A.J. Brown. Let’s not forget WR Quez Watkins who is certainly an underrated player who mans the slot position extremely well and can line up at any position. The starting trio of WRs that the Eagles now possess will keep defenses up at night. The depth at WR has a chance to be special as well. Free-agent acquisition WR Zach Paschal should see his share of red-zone targets and will rotate into the slot with Watkins. Greg Ward Jr. has a knack for catching TD passes in the red zone which is unusual for a smaller WR and one could even argue should he still get looks there with all of the additions at the position that the Eagles have made this offseason. I’d say yes. I think he’s earned it and you can never have too many pass catchers that consistently find paydirt.
Greg Ward Jr. does this very well unlike Jalen Reagor a former first-round bust who I don’t envision being on the team come September. The Eagles should just take a conditional 7th-round pick for him given the talented rookie undrafted free agents they have added as well. WRs Britain Covey and Devon Allen both figure to be big upgrades in the return game which would be Raegors only realistic shot of making the team. The problem for Jalen Reagor is that both players are far more dynamic punt and kickoff returners. Allen is a more well-rounded WR than Covey however Covey has the potential to be a Devin Hester type of kick returner as he was in college. I think Allen will land on the practice squad as the Eagles usually keep five WRs for gameday and Britain Covey will earn that last roster spot as an electrifying kick returner. The Eagles have lacked a talented return man since Desean Jackson was still in midnight green and still in his prime. Britain covey has a real chance to break that seemingly decade-long streak.
Could the Eagles possibly be more stacked at DT? The short answer is no. They have the most talented interior pass rush and run defenders in the NFL after drafting Milton Williams in the third round last season and superstar Jordan Davis early on in the first round this year. Yes, Davis needs to lose a few pounds but he’s an absolute beast. I’m not concerned about him. I’m excited to watch him play and learn from pro bowl DTs Javon Hargrave and Fletcher Cox. I don’t see the need to keep more than four interior rushers on the active game roster. It’s wise to stash a 5th DT on the practice squad in case of an injury but I don’t see the need to rotate five interior rushers. I will say it again. The Eagles have the best DT group in the NFL.
The Eagles finally have a damn good group of LBs for the first time since they fielded a pretty good unit with Mychal Kendricks and Nigel Bradham during their Super Bowl run. I think that this group is superior to that group. There’s a little addition by subtraction with letting Alex Singleton walk in free agency given his tendency to miss tackles. He was no Nathan Gerry however he was no Jeremiah Trotter. T.J. Edwards is a very good player and for years was the best LB on the team. That changed quickly when the Eagles used their third-round selection at no. 83 to select Nakobe Dean out of Georgia. Dean should have been a mid-first round pick but Howie Roseman used a magical wand to land Dean early in the third round. It’s the steal of the 2022 NFL Draft in my opinion. Many Eagles fans were upset when they passed on Dean in the second round. The team had no idea they would be lucky enough to get another shot at drafting him in the third round and they sure drafted him quickly.
Nakobe Dean will excel as the team’s middle or sam backer. I’ll put him at sam for now given the bird’s new hybrid defense. He is the only LB in my time covering the Eagles that can actually take over a game. The ultra-athletic Nakobe Dean can rush the pasher, tackle ball carries in the backfield for massive losses, batt passes down, force fumbles and intercept passes on a regular basis. He fell in the draft due to an overblown injury concern. When the Eagles had Dean in for a pre-draft visit he was given a clean bill of health by the team’s medical doctors. He fell quite unnecessarily. That said Eagles fans everywhere are not complaining. Pro-bowl free-agent acquisition Hasson Reddick figures to be the team’s Mike LB despite being a DE in Arizona. It doesn’t matter as the Eagles will use Reddick as a LB in their new hybrid defense to both stop the run and get after opposing QBs and when the Eagles defense is in a 4-3 he will do what he does best which is punishing opposing QBs as a pure pass rusher. LB Shaun Bradley is also certainly no scrub and should see some playing time when the defense is in a 3-4 or in disguise at times. Unlike previous Eagles DC Johnathon Gannon current Eagles DC Johnathon Gannon values the LB position. This group has improved vastly. That may be an understatement.
The Eagles have the best Offensive Line in the NFL. They give QB Jalen Hurts loads of time in the pocket and simply bully teams when they run the ball. The Eagles used a second-round pick on Center Cam Jurgens who was arguably the first or second-best C in the draft. That being said I don’t even want to talk about Jurgens until Jason Kelce officially retires. Dear Jason Kelce, please keep playing football even after your age 35 season. The team should be able to trade their former first-round pick, Andre Dillard, to an OT needy team and get a decent return in the form of a second or third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. There’s a slight argument one could make to just keep him in case of an injury but it’s a weak argument after OL Jack Driscoll a former 5th-round pick proved that he can play at a high-level last season at times when OT Lane Johnson had to miss a few games. former 7th round pick LT Jordan Mailata figures to make his first pro-bowl this year. We all know how damn good Kelce is at C, now healthy Lane Johnson is arguably the best RT in the NFL, Mailtata is a beast at LT, and last year’s second-round pick Landon Dickerson has settled in nicely at RG. Issac Semula is a very good LG as well. You know you have the best O-Line in the NFL when you’re describing your worst starting OL as very good. This position has improved but purely from a depth and health perspective.
The backup Quarterback spot may have improved as undrafted rookie free agent Carson Strong has pun intended a strong arm. This may free the Eagles to trade their current backup Garner Minshew to a QB needy team for a 4th or 5th round pick in 2023 or perhaps a starting DB. Strong had a very impressive rookie minicamp. QB Carson Strong was seen by many as a player that could have been selected as high as the third round. He threw 77 TD passes in college for Nevada winning numerous awards along the way. He also completed over 70 percent of his passes in his final two seasons in college. I’m amazed he wasn’t at least drafted via a day three pick by one of several teams such as the Carolina Panthers who desperately need a talented passer. While I’m impressed by Carson Strong and his ceiling make no mistake as this is Jalen Hurt’s team as long as he continues to improve, and I believe he will. He has the best supporting cast he’s ever had to work with now in his third season with the Eagles and in his second season as the team’s full-time starting QB.
The running back group didn’t get any better or worse. It is simply still a very good unit when everyone’s healthy. RB Miles Sanders leads the pack and Kenny Gainwell and Boston Scott are excellent change of pace backs. I’m not sold at the moment that undrafted rookie free agent Kennedy Brooks is the short-yardage bruising back that the team still needs before September but he has a shot and was productive in college. I would re-sign Jordan Howard on the cheap just to play it safe or add a cheap veteran. I think Sanders will go off given that this is a contract year for him. This group has a chance to really take it to the next level if and it’s a big if the Eagles sign a punishing free agent short-yardage back who can stay healthy. Perhaps I’m wrong (I hope that I am) and RB Kennedy Brooks proves to be a very good short-yardage back. Time will tell.
The birds have a great CB1 in Darius Slay and I seem to be in the minority of writers who believe second-year CB Zech Mcpherson is ready to start opposite big play Slay. He sure has Darius Slay’s endorsement and that is quite obviously a good thing. Anthony Harris is a good FS. Marcus Epps is a good FS/SS but he’s just not great. Avonte Maddox is an excellent nickel CB. The team needs to add a Safety, and I think they will before the season starts. I don’t think they desperately need a CB as many others do. The secondary is very good and will be even better than they are due to the team’s vastly improved pass rush. Rookie undrafted free agent Josh Jobe who had a good career at Alabama could get some playing time in certain packages. I will say this again. The Eagles need another starting safety pretty badly and I believe they will sign an older CB (perhaps Joe Haden) and convert him to Safety. Even if the Eagles roll with what they have (I don’t think they will) the group has improved by default as opposing QBs will be getting rid of the football far before they want to this season.
Lastly the special teams unit: If one of Britain Covey or Devon Allen can return kicks during the pre-season in the NFL like I believe they can that will be a huge boost for the team. As previously mentioned I am leaning toward Britain Covey at this moment in time. If he makes the team I will be calling him Captain Britain. Kicker Jake Elliot rebounded with a great season last year and I expect more of the same although with the offense improving drastically he should be kicking field goals less often. Even if Punter Arryn Siposs returns (it is unlikely) the special team’s unit will have improved due to an improved return game. I think that the Eagles are simply waiting for another team to cut their second-best punter after a training camp battle. Then the Eagles will sign a better punter to replace Siposs. That is simply my prediction.
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All in all the Eagles have taken a huge step forward in the offseason and are now favored to win the NFC East. I agree with the assessment and hope they win a playoff game or two as well. The Dallas Cowboys lost their best player when they traded WR Amari Cooper in the offseason, their O-line is in shambles, and Ezekiel Elliot has been run into the ground. They’re still a good team but unlike last year they are very beatable. I’m predicting a season split. The Washington…Commanders foolishly traded for QB Carson Wentz who is a shell of his former 2017 self. The New York Giants are well still the same and that has to be hard on their fans. The Philadelphia Eagles should certainly win their division this season. The bigger question is how will they fare in the playoffs? I’ll write more on that come December. The Eagles are considered by many experts to be a dark horse candidate to go to the Super Bowl this season and rightfully so. I think they’re a year or two away. That being said the last time they were a dark horse candidate to win the Super Bowl they indeed did win the big game. This will be an exciting season for Eagles fans.
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