The Eagles were back there for day 2 in pads and they start to ramp up here as training camp continues.
Day 1 was a lighter 10-10-10 practice, but today was certainly more competitive.
I advised by the mandatory temperature control to practice today with a 97.8 to the 98.9 of yesterday. A cool morning for me.
Let us come to the observations:
1 Let’s, as always, start with injuries. Derek not practicing yet were Derek Barnett and Javon Hargrave. Their injuries are more important, although they reportedly have a good shot to be ready for the opener.
There was some good news on Tuesday as Jason Peters (lower body), JJ Arcega-Whiteside (lower body) and Duke Riley (illness) all returned to practice. Peters and Arcega-Whiteside were limited and did not do team exercises. Peters was involved in the group installation time at Judge Waiting.
Riley looked to be a full participant.
It was also a veteran maintenance day for Jason Kelce, DeSean Jackson and Malik Jackson.
2 A few depth chart notes:
Without Kelce and Peters, the official line-up of the Eagles’ first team looked like this (from left to right): Andre Dillard, Matt Pryor, Isaac Seumalo, Nate Herbig, Lane Johnson. It is interesting that the Eagles have chosen to get Pryor work at left guard instead of right. I think they are working through some contingency plans.
Without Jackson and JJAW, the top receivers were Jalen Reagor, Greg Ward and Deontay Burnett. Reagor gets start reps, but they also limit him because of how much he plays on special teams.
On defense, Avonte Maddox was CB2 for the second straight day. Jim Schwartz still claims it’s a competition, but it looks like Maddox’s job is to lose.
• Earlier in practice were the guys who returned points: Reagor, Boston Scott, Marcus Green, Quez Watkins and Adrian Killins Jr.
Jalen Reagor is working on efficiency. #Eagles pic.twitter.com/ge7QLmihMH
– Dave Zangaro (@DZangaroNBCS) August 18, 2020
3 In the first two days of practice we saw Jalen Hurts get a ton of reps as the quarterback of the third string and he even occasionally got second reps over Nate Sudfeld. It’s a big departure from last year, when rookie third-striker Clayton Thorson barely came on the field.
And Hurts is clear and electric player. He has made some great throws early in camp, but his ability to turn stands out even more. Tuesday, he showed off his legs in the red zone.
In one red zone / goal line period, Hurts showed his legs on four consecutive plays. The first was a sprint to the right and he was able to get into the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. The second game he sprints to the right, cuts inward to miss a man and scores a touchdown. The third play he escaped to the right, rolled and then jumped into the end zone. And in the end, he rolled straight, as he would enter it, but then threw a perfect pass to Josh Perkins for a touchdown.
He’s a weapon there.
4. During 11-on-11s, Wentz beat Zach Ertz in the seam for an enormous play that looked like a touchdown. But … in a real game, Avonte Maddox would have had the chance to confess to Ertz. The ball hung in the air and Maddox pulled up before hitting him.
Maddox joked to the practice that if it was one, he might have delivered a hit. He said Ertz is too important and they need to keep each other healthy.
5 We saw a few interceptions today: Two for Wentz and one for Hurts.
• The Hurts interception was a ball he sent with an air over a receiver and fellow rookie K’Von Wallace sat down and came low to pick it up. Nice job from Wallace to see it in and make the play.
• Wentz’s first INT was not his fault. He threw a catch ball to Corey Clement, but it hit Clement in the hands and jumped up to a straight Nathan Gerry, who took it the other way for a pick-6.
• Wentz’s second INT came after a flash. He tried to throw the ball away, but instead Jalen Mills read the scene all the way and grabbed it off. He picked it up on the left sideline. But give Wentz credit; he begged him.
It was not Wentz’s best day. In fact, after one throw-out, he threw on his helmet in wear.
6 Yesterday we talked about Reagor’s explosiveness, but I do not want people to think he’s just a deep threat. In fact, he dropped a deep ball that he probably should have had on Tuesday.
But we also see him working pretty well in those short and intermediate areas. Everyone made a big deal about Reagor’s 40-time combined when he showed up at 207 pounds inexplicably, but we haven’t talked enough about his 3-cone drill. He ran the 3-cone in 7.31 seconds, which put him in the 5th percent among receivers. But even though we see him working well in smaller spaces and he has an understanding of how he can use his body in small spaces. We saw that during 1-on-1 drills today.
7 TJ Edwards made the kind of play today that really explains why the coaching staff likes him so much. He may not be the fastest or most athletic linebacker, but his instincts are great. The Eagles ran a cool game from the wrong direction that started with Wentz jumping to the right and throwing a screen back to the left side of the field. But Edwards recognized it and was there to blow it up.
8 Perhaps the best catch of the day came from Deontay Burnett, who has been the forgotten recipient of the bundle. In the red zone, Wentz sprints forward and throws a rocket at a dive Burnett in the back of the end zone. In the first few days, Burnett made a few plays. The big problem for him is that the Eagles line up three receivers, but he has a chance on the outside to place on the 53-man roster and a really good shot to finish on the practice team.
9. It’s pretty cool to see Connor Barwin and Darren Sproles, both members of the front office now, helping the players on the field up. Tons of experience there.
That gives Darren Sproles a bit of coaching here. pic.twitter.com/29Efb5OKVl
– Dave Zangaro (@DZangaroNBCS) August 18, 2020
10 Two days of practice, two big hits from rookie linebacker Shaun Bradley. On day 1, he dressed Dallas Goedert, sending the tight end to his backside. Today, he took Burnett out on the smallest game of the day. The hit sent the defense wild, to the point that Doug Pederson had to get those guys on the sidelines.
11. The last play of the day was a beauty. Wentz dropped a beautiful dime to a streak of Hightower for a touchdown before the final flute.
12. Some cornerback odds and ends: I thought Sidney Jones did not have a great day. Have I hit a few times and missed an opportunity on what would have been a great INT … But Rasul Douglas made some plays; he was mostly physically on a rep against Hightower … I saw WR vs. DB 1-on-1s instead of OL vs. DL … Cre’Von LeBlanc was really hard on the lock receivers inside … I also saw one play in 7- on-7s, where Darius Slay was on a rookie (forget which) and tried the QB in a throw to bait, but Sudfeld did not take the bait. Some Slay veterans.
Stupid observation of the day: Don’t expect Reagor to take any reps at quarterback anytime soon. He tried to throw the ball to the ball boys today, missed and hit Ertz in the helmet. Doh.
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