Today was the Philadelphia Eagles’ eighth training camp practice ahead of the 2022 NFL season. This is what I observed at Lincoln Financial Field. NOTE: The BGN Radio recap podcast for this practice will be recorded early Monday morning and will be embedded here once it’s live.
• JALEN HURTS STOCK REPORT
Hurts had one of his best practices of the summer in front of fans at the Linc.
The Eagles’ first 11-on-11 play was Hurts calmly hitting a cross from Dallas Goedert for a first down and then. Hurts ran in for a touchdown on 3rd-and-10, though it might have been a sack on an actual play as the pass rusher had to drop. I’m not sure the Eagles’ practice scoring system gave the offense points for that play.
Badly connected with AJ Brown, who else, on a slant for a first down via catch-and-run. Faced with another 3rd-and-10 situation, Hurts found Brown again … this time for the highlight of the practice. Multiple angles provided by fans in attendance:
Hurts gave his WR a chance to make a play on the ball and Brown capitalized. Nice to see
With the Eagles running a two-minute drill in the final 11-on-11, Hurts found Brown once again for a contested sack against Bradberry.
Hurts didn’t make much of a mark in 7-on-7. Except for running back, which is like at least the fifth time in the last four practices. It looks too runny for a pure step drill.
Speaking of running, another Hurts highlight came when he used Brandon Graham on a keeper. He remembered the play of the Saints last year.
Hurts didn’t have a huge night in terms of pass volume; he used his legs quite a bit. But when he pitched, he made some good plays and avoided big mistakes. This seemed like a positive performance for him.
stock up
• JALEN HURTS STOCK TRACKER OVERVIEW
Day 1: Even stock
Day 2: inventory drop
Day 3: unloading stocks
Day 4: Even stock
Day 5: Provisioning
Day 6: Stock reduction
Day 7: Even stock
Day 8: Provisioning
• NEWS THE EAGLES
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), Le’Raven Clark (hamstring), Andre Dillard (concussion), Javon Hargrave (groin), Jordan Mailata (concussion), Jimmy Moreland (ankle), Boston Scott (concussion) , DeVonta Smith (groin), Jaquiski Tartt (personal reasons), Kary Vincent Jr. (groin), Greg Ward (toe).
Hargrave, Clark, KVJ, Moreland and Tartt are new additions to the DNP list.
There’s still a long way to go before the regular season begins, but it’s nothing less than ideal for the Eagles to currently be without their top three left tackle options. Kayode Awosika made first team appearances at LT while Josh Sills ran with the second team.
STRUCK IN PRACTICE: JJ Arcega-Whiteside got hit and left practice early. Kenneth Gainwell was being watched on the sidelines by coaches early in practice, but still participated in team drills.
• EAGLES ROSTER MOVE: With Mailata, Dillard and Clark currently sidelined, the Eagles re-signed UDFA offensive tackle Jarrid Williams. His squad is again 90 players.
• Jack Driscoll hasn’t had the best summer. The Eagles have been using him as their second team right tackle (as opposed to right guard) and he has struggled there. On Sunday night, Haason Reddick beat him pretty easily to “sack” Gardner Minshew. On the next play, Driscoll got too restless and was flagged for a false start. The 1-on-1 matchup between Graham and Driscoll has been described as the biggest mismatch in this summer’s drill. to be fair, Driscoll took on BLG during one such performance on Sunday evening.
• My guy Jason Huntley appeared in front of the fans. He caught a short pass and then picked up some extra yards after a nice juke in the open field. He then interrupted a great run later in practice. He is fast.
• Is Gardner Minshew in danger of losing his No. 2 quarterback job? I would say it is still too early to say that this will happen. But Minshew has struggled with his accuracy. And there was an 11-on-11 series where I was watching from the sideline as Reid Sinnett made both the second team and the third team. Sinnett has looked better than Minshew this summer. Sinnett had a nice ball to Deon Cain on a punt return route.
• Notes 1 against 1 OL vs. DL:
Isaac Seumalo held up well against Fletcher Cox.
Landon Dickerson easily handled Milton Williams.
William Dunkle, who has often struggled and might be one of the most overmatched players on the field, actually faced off against Jordan Davis. Before the 2022 NFL Draft, one of Davis’ concerns was how his level of pads might get too high. This was the case in his representation against Dunkle. On a positive note, Davis showed his power against Cam Jurgens.
• Marlon Tuipulotu belongs in the conversation for the most improved player on the roster. After struggling mightily in the preseason last summer, Tuipulotu is looking good in camp. He won a 1v1 where he broke his blocker (didn’t see who). Afterwards, Mr. T beat Seumalo to pressure Hurts into a run (if not a sack in an actual game). Later in practice, he had a “sack” against Minshew. Cox, Hargrave, Davis, Williams and Tuipulotu give the Eagles five roster-worthy DTs. Renell Wren, Marvin Wilson (Big Marv) and Kobe Smith have also had moments. Could the Eagles trade one of those players for some extra depth elsewhere?
• Kyzir White knocked down a Hurts pass intended for Dallas Goedert. TJ Edwards also threw a short throw from Hurts to Goedert, but couldn’t come up with the interception.
• Still no highlights from Nakobe Dean through eight practices.
• Devon Allen finally made a play of note, breaking up a nice gain on a screen reception. You could argue that he should have been able to take it home, though, if blazing speed is what matters. Later, Allen failed to get both feet (or even one?) on a fading target along the left sideline.
• JJAW made a diving catch at midfield that I’m not sure needed to be a diving catch with the ball ready and him wide open. But hey, he took it.
• After breaking out Saturday, UDFA cornerback Josh Jobe made some plays Sunday night. Staying in phase with Cain on a fade route into the end zone allowed him to force Cain out of bounds to prevent a field goal. Jobe also wrapped up Cain with a short throw down the sideline to keep the wide receiver in bounds and the clock running during a two-minute drill.
• UDFA cornerback Mario Gooodrich also made some plays, including a PBU on a throw to Allen. The competition for one of the final places in the CB is heating up.
• Josiah Scott, now playing safety instead of nickel CB, broke up a Minshew throw to Britain Covey in the end zone.
• Covey remains the first player to return to action during special teams drills. Covey was praised by Nick Sirianni before practice. Looks like he might be able to crack the list.
“When we were in rookie minicamp, he made a move early in rookie minicamp with some quickness, and you saw his quickness. That’s what you see with him. He’s very quick. He catches the ball well. And he has great idea of what to do out there and he’s smart. He knows every position. So he’s had a good camp, but I think what really stands out for him, and I don’t think it’s a secret to the rest of the NFL, it’s how fast he is. Everybody’s going to see how fast he is, and everybody’s going to remember the plays he made in Utah with his speed.”
• Tarron Jackson had a “sack” on Sinnett. Jackson definitely offers some juice fast.
• The Eagles announced a total practice attendance of “nearly 30,000.” It seemed like a generous way to round up.
For historical context, here’s a look back at his attendance totals over the years (per team announcement):
2016 — 36,000 (two practices combined)
2017 — 59,000 (two practices combined)
2018 — 75,000 (two practices combined)
2019 — “More than 40,000” (a practice)
2020 – No internships
2021 — 25,896 (one practice)
• For those wondering why the Eagles wore jerseys with lime green numbers, it’s to promote the Eagles Autism Foundation.
NEXT: The Eagles have a drive on Monday that is closed to the media. We will be back to watch them train at the NovaCare Complex on Tuesday from 10:00.