Eagles training camp: 8 winners, 7 losers and 3 IDKs from the second set of practices

Now that the Philadelphia Eagles are into their second block of practice at training camp, let’s assess the biggest winners and losers so far.

NICK SIRIANNI

I like what I have seen from Sirianni so far. I appreciate that he’s not afraid to start fires under players who could very well benefit from a tough love (Jalen Reagor, Travis Fulgham). The emphasis on player development is evident. So did his efforts to reduce injuries by sticking to shorter training camp practices. Of course, none of this means much if we find out that he can’t actually result in a lick when real matches start. This is the real test. So far, however, everything is fine.

ZECH MCPHEARSON

If the Eagles didn’t sign Steve Nelson, ZMP would clearly be the favorite to start at the cornerback opposite Darius Slay. The rookie fourth-round pick has made a lot of plays with the ball this week. He also had good reps as a race defender. I don’t remember any representative where he was really badly beaten. ZMP is currently projecting itself as the best away save behind Nelson and Darius Slay. He has college experience playing in the slot machine, but the idea here is that Josiah Scott will be the best replacement behind Avonte Maddox in this role. But even if he doesn’t contribute much this year, ZMP could be a future incumbent. He’s been running the best rookie DB Eagles training camp since Jalen Mills in 2016.

JORDAN MAILATA

With Andre Dillard in trouble, he could have won the left tackle competition by default. But this is not the case. Mailata has proven he deserves the incumbent job on his own merits.

JOSH SWEATSHIRT

Sweaty continues to appear every day. You look really disruptive there.

DEREK BARNETT

Sweat’s good summer eclipsed what was also a good camp for Barnett. I don’t know if he gets double-digit sacks, but I could very well see Barnett have a career year.

TY MCGILL

I don’t know if he’ll be on the list. But it always flashes at least once during each workout. He pleads to be DT3 behind Fletcher Cox and Javon Hargrave.

QUEZ WATKINS

I was impressed with Watkins’ precise road race. Looks like he took a big leap from Year 1 to Year 2 in this regard. Quez is also quite fast and is capable of making difficult captures. I don’t expect him to steal a starting job, but he deserves a few shots as a WR4 role player.

JASON HUNTLEY

Huntley is expected to be part of the Eagles roster. He is really dangerous when he finds the light of day; he absolutely flies to the end zone. And, while it doesn’t matter, he’s clearly their best option on the kick return.

ANDRE DILLARD

He lost the left tackle battle and he might not even justify a place in the 53-man roster. I’ve never seen an offensive lineman (who wasn’t an obvious camp corps) get as badly beaten as Dillard when he loses reps.

SANDING MILES

I really want to believe in Sanders. I really liked what I saw of him as a rookie and I think he has his head on his shoulders when it comes to working to improve himself. But his extra efforts have so far been in vain as he still has problems with falls and fumbling around. I expect Sanders to be a dynamic, home threat in the racing game. But flaws could prevent him from being one of the best running backs in the NFL.

DAVION TAYLOR

We had Taylor in our “winners” section after the first set of practices. But he suffered a calf injury which described him as “week to week”. Taylor’s lack of reps is costly given his inexperience in football. He may have missed his chance to start the season as a starter. And if he doesn’t play in the regular season, that only hinders his long-term development.

NICK MULLENS

I wrote this about Mullens on Sunday: “He was arguably the best passer at the start of the Eagles training camp.” And it was true at the time. Since then, however, Mullens has struggled. It has always been pretty strong when it comes to QB3 standards. He’s definitely better than Clayton Thorson and Matt McGloin. But I don’t see him pushing for QB2’s place at his current pace. Could be linked to the practice squad instead.

MICHAEL JACQUET III

MJ3 was the first CB2 team to return to OTAs before the Eagles signed Nelson. He was also the first CB to leave the bench when Slay got his first veterans day off last week. He has since been passed on the depth chart by McPhearson. Backgammon has been pointed out several times, often for being too eye-catching.

HAKEEM BUTLER

Butler’s size might be intriguing, but his playing isn’t. One of the camp’s most invisible players. He risks being sidelined in the first round of Cups (although the Eagles are light at WR, so maybe not). Speaking of which, as a reminder:

Tuesday August 17 – Switch from 90 to 85 players

Tuesday August 24 – Switch from 85 to 80 players

Tuesday August 31 – Switch from 80 to 53 players

MICHAEL WALKER

Walker has always been a long shot to make the roster, but his chances look even slimmer as he’s running out of time with a foot injury.

JALEN REAGOR

On the bright side, he had his best training at the Eagles training camp on Thursday. That one-handed grip he made? It was awesome. It was the camp game. On the dark side, Reagor hadn’t really stood out at the time. And he still made a number of mistakes at its best. Maybe Reagor can use Thursday’s training to get into a race where he’s racking up the right days in a row. This is what we have to see next.

JOE FLACCO

I can’t tell he watched Well overall, but Flacco has had a good time after a very difficult start to the camp. The former Super Bowl MVP made a few # elite throws in the race and showed he has the best arm strength on the team. Really was able to slip the ball in there sometimes. At the moment, he looks more worthy of QB2’s place. Still not worth $ 3.5 million guaranteed! 🙂

JACOBY STEVENS

The rookie linebacker stood out for the first time in camp Wednesday. He took out Jalen Hurts (although the ball was thrown directly at him) and helped detonate a running game. Stevens also impressed in his post-workout presser. But then we found out he was “week to week” with a hamstring injury. Not great.

JEAN HIGHTOWER

Hightower owned the title “The Catch of Camp” before Reagor took it away from him on Thursday. The 2020 fifth-round pick made a very nice contested catch jumping along the sideline despite tight ZMP coverage on Wednesday. Other than that, however, I didn’t see much of Hightower.

JASON GARRETT

I mean, “Coach” isn’t even in his official job title. He is the Giants’ offensive coordinator. I would love for the Giants media to start calling him “coordinator.” Or just keep sticking with “Jason”.

KIRK COUSINS