SÃO PAULO — At 1:30 p.m. local time, the lower bowl at Corinthians Arena was cleared of workers and the Eagles took the field for their walkthrough a day before they’ll play host for the first-ever NFL game in South America.
The stadium was mostly empty on Thursday afternoon but will hold 50,000 fans for kickoff on Friday night.
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“Can’t be more excited to be here,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. “We’re bummed, obviously that we don’t get to play our opener in front of our fans in Philadelphia, but we’re excited. This is my first international trip as a coach. To go out there into the stadium, to see the stadium and play here in front of the great fans here tomorrow.”
The Eagles always hold a walkthrough the day before a game but it’s not normally in front of onlookers and there’s never any media availability.
While the Eagles are trying to stick to their normal routine as much as possible, there are some concessions that need to be made. We saw one of them on Thursday. But Sirianni, along with the five players hand-picked to speak to reporters — Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Jordan Mailata, Jake Elliott and Tanner McKee — were all excited about the opportunity.
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“I’m very excited. I’m excited to be here,” Hurts said. “It’s a beautiful place. I think just being blessed and expressing my gratitude to have an opportunity to play, it didn’t really matter where. I’m just blessed.
“My personal perspective is I’m a kid from East Houston that used to play this game in the streets. Any piece of grass I could find, I’d go throw the ball around and really just enjoy the game, have love for the game. Just having the opportunity to come this far in this journey and be where we are. My spirit is full of gratitude to be here. Really just reflecting on how the journey has come for me. It’s a blessing to be able to play an international game and enjoy this moment with the people of Brazil.”
Two players out
The Eagles have ruled out two players for their season opener: LB Devin White and CB Isaiah Rodgers. White did not make the trip to São Paulo because of an ankle injury suffered in practice. Rodgers made the trip and was at the walkthrough on Thursday — but after being limited all week he will not play.
Without White, the Eagles’ top linebackers are expected to be Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun. Both guys took plenty of first-team reps and Dean actualy outplayed White as a MIKE linebacker this summer.
Without Rodgers, the Eagles will likely start Quinyon Mitchell on the outside opposite Darius Slay in the base package. Mitchell will then bump inside on nickel downs and be replaced by Kelee Ringo. That seems like the most likely outcome. But the other option is to leave Mitchell on the outside for the whole game and play Avonte Maddox in the slot.
Practice squad players spotted
The Eagles can elevate just two players from their practice squad for each game but they apparently wanted to have options in Brazil.
Several practice squad players made the trip. At Thursday’s walkthrough, the following practice squad players were spotted: Andre’ Sam, Parris Campbell, Ty Davis-Price, E.J. Jenkins, Will Grier, Nick Gates, Jack Driscoll.
The Eagles have until 4 p.m. on Friday to make their decisions on the elevations. My best guess is Gates as backup center and Jenkins as the third tight end.
A message to Brazilian fans
While the Eagles would obviously love to start the season in Philadelphia, they are technically the home team in São Paulo and that was evident the day before the game. The Eagles worked out at Corinthians Arena, while the Packers held their walkthrough as the Corinthians’ practice facility.
There is signage for both clubs throughout the stadium but the Eagles cheerleaders were working on their routine and the Eagles’ fight song played over the speakers. The Eagles also got to pick their jerseys in this game and went with a black-and-white combination, a tip of the cap to the local soccer team.
Sirianni said the Eagles are ready for the possibility that there will be cheering throughout the game, which is a bit unusual.
He did have a quick plea for Brazilian fans who will be going to the game:
“I’m going to say to the Brazilian crowd: We’re so excited to be here. Make sure you’re as loud as possible when Green Bay has the ball and then when the Eagles have the ball, this is the sign of Fly Eagles Fly and quiet down a little bit.”
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