The Eagles were back in full pads on Monday morning for one of the hottest practices of the summer so far.
They went for 1 hour and 34 minutes and it was steamy.
If Jason Kelce has any regrets about his decision to retire, he made a wise choice to show up for practice on Monday morning. He had to be thankful he didn’t have pads on today:
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Let’s get to the observations:
1. As always, housekeeping:
• Before practice, the Eagles signed linebacker Shaquille Quarterman and released offensive lineman Jason Poe. The Eagles were a little light at the linebacker position.
NFL
• Did not practice: Oren Burks (knee), Parris Campbell (groin), Mekhi Garner (hamstring), Brandon Smith (concussion)
• Limited: Mekhi Becton (illness), Tyler Steen (ankle), Eli Ricks (illness), Josh Jobe (concussion)
• Both C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Cam Jurgens left Monday’s practice early. We’ll find out more about them on Tuesday morning.
2. Some depth chart notes:
• Becton was the Eagles’ first-team right guard to start practice but Steen didn’t participate in any team drills so it’s not that telling. We’ll see what happens when both are full participants again. Lane Johnson also seemed limited but that might have just been veteran rest; Fred Johnson filled in at right tackle.
• Second-team OL: Max Scharping, Trevor Keegan, Dylan McMahon, Matt Hennessy, Darian Kinnard
• Third-team OL: Laekin Vakalahi, Nick Gates, McMahon, Scharping, Anim Dankwah
• Johnny Wilson continued to get WR3 reps with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. More on Wilson in a moment.
• Isaiah Rodgers again got first crack at the first-team reps opposite Darius Slay. This was his fourth straight day. Rookie Quinyon Mitchell continues to get first-team nickel corner reps.
• Devin White and Zack Baun continue to be the top pairing at linebacker.
• Without Gardner-Johnson, James Bradberry filled in at first-team safety. Just shows their lack of depth at the position.
3. The Johnny Wilson hype isn’t going to die down anytime soon. The 6-foot-6 receiver got even more first-team reps on Monday and made the most of them. In the red zone, Wilson made a fantastic catch with Kelee Ringo in coverage. Jalen Hurts threw to Wilson’s back shoulder toward the middle of the end zone and the huge receiver adjusted in the air and pulled it down.
Wilson is getting reps with the first team in the slot but also at outside receiver when the Eagles put Smith or Brown in the slot. He looks smooth doing both. Wilson also showed off some quickness in a 1-on-1 rep against Ringo.
4. In that same red zone period, Smith had a couple of touchdown catches as his tremendous summer rolls on. The first was a slant in front of Reed Blankenship, who just didn’t have a shot. The second came after Smith was motioned toward the formation and then broke free right in front of the right pylon.
5. Early in this practice, the Eagles were in a back up situation and Jordan Davis was able to get into the backfield to force a safety and get the defense off the field. Really good rep from Big No. 90. Before the safety, Becton was flagged for a false start and it seemed like he was beaten by Davis on the safety.
The second-team offense also sputtered in their backed up drive.
6. The second interception of training camp went to Shon Stephens, who had a pick-6 off Tanner McKee in team drills. McKee’s pass bounced off Will Shipley (the intended receiver) and into the arms of Stephens, who looked quick running the other way. Stephens also had a nice shoestring tackle during a live period later in practice.
The Eagles are so deep at corner that a guy like Stephens doesn’t really have a shot at making the roster. But he’s been playing well and if he puts out good tape in the preseason, he could get a gig elsewhere. Or he could also potentially earn a practice squad spot. Stephens came to rookie minicamp on a tryout after playing at Ferris State and West Liberty in college and earned a spot on the 90-man roster so he’s already a great story.
7. I didn’t watch 7-on-7s today, instead opting for OL vs. DL 1-on-1 drills.
• Becton had a very strong rep against Jalen Carter. While Carter might have lost his footing a bit, Becton was still able to show his strength and threw him to the ground.
• Good inside move from Bryce Huff to cross Jordan Mailata’s face and get into the backfield. Huff is going to set up everything with his speed, but he might be able to get tackles cheating a bit.
• Cam Jurgens has a tough assignment against Jordan Davis in these 1-on-1s and even though he probably still lost today to power, he held up relatively well.
• Every time I start to question why the Eagles keep investing time into Brett Toth, he ends up looking really good. That has happened the last couple days in these 1-on-1s. Today, he had a great rep against Marlon Tuipulotu inside.
• Max Scharping took a rep at left tackle and was able to get Nolan Smith wayyyy wide of the target.
• Seeing some good moments for veteran Terrell Lewis, who had another one against rookie Anim Dankwah in 1-on-1s. Julian Okwara also beat Dankwah around the edge.
• With Kelce watching, Dylan McMahon shut down a bullrush from big P.J. Mustipher.
• It’s worth noting that Zack Baun is taking reps in 1-on-1s even though all his practice reps have been coming at off-ball linebacker. He’s keeping his pass rushing skills sharp.
• I was a tad late getting to the 1-on-1s but Lane Johnson didn’t go. Instead, Josh Sweat got to face Fred Johnson, which was probably a welcome change. Lane Johnson is basically a brick wall in these drills.
8. Vic Fangio is letting Nakobe Dean blitz quite a bit and he looks good doing it. Dean on Monday beat Will Shipley for a “sack.” Dean has had some shaky moments in coverage but he looks at his best when he’s going downhill.
Shipley seems to be a willing pass protector but he was also beaten by Jeremiah Trotter Jr. for a sack the other day at the Linc. If the rookie wants to see the field on third downs, he has to be able to block.
9. Zach Baun blew up a misdirection screen pass to Saquon Barkley for what would have been a TFL. Baun was happy with that play but said his eyes failed him on a Lew Nichols touchdown late in practice. Still, Baun has looked solid.
And Jalyx Hunt blew up a tight end screen to Dallas Goedert when the first-team offense was facing the second-team defense.
But the second-team offense hit big on a TE screen to Grant Calcaterra, who was able to reel in a tipped pass and keep the rhythm of the play. He caught the ball and had horses in front of him.
10. Some notes from WR vs. DB 1-on-1s:
• Before CJGJ left practice, he had a great rep against Dallas Goedert. Goedert gained a step on him but Gardner-Johnson recovered to get a PBU.
• DeVonta Smith caught passes against Quinyon Mitchell twice with quick moves to gain an inch but Mitchell had very tight coverage. After we saw a lot of Mitchell vs. Brown, it’s fun to see Mitchell vs. DeVonta.
• A rare interception in 1-on-1s when Trevor Hall undercut a pass to Ainias Smith for the pick. Smith also had a drop earlier. The rookie is struggling a bit.
• Johnny Wilson showed some wiggle at the line to separate from Kelee Ringo.
• Shaq Davis had a chance at a big catch down the left sideline, but wasn’t able to keep control through contact with the ground.
Stupid Observation of the Day: Before practices, several skill guys will catch balls off the JUGS machine. That’s normal. But today, punter Braden Mann was out there catching balls. He was practicing receiving long snaps and then dropping into his punting form.
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