Analysis of the Eagles' initial 2026 53-man roster

The Eagles really kept four QBs but didn't hang onto either IPP prospect from Africa. Here's analysis of who they kept and didn't on their 53-man roster.

By Jimmy Kempski
PhillyVoice Staff

Jimmy/for PhillyVoice

Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee, Andy Dalton, and Cole Payton each made the initial 53-man roster for the Eagles.

The Philadelphia Eagles' 53-man roster is set! Well, until they make more changes, which should be right around the corner. 

But let's analyze the initial 53.

Quarterback (4): Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee, Andy Dalton, Cole Payton

Howie sat staring at his phone until the bitter end, hoping that someone would call and make a reasonable offer for McKee or at least offer a ham sandwich for Dalton. But, nope. The Eagles are keeping four quarterbacks, and they'll continue to shop McKee and Dalton.

The Eagles aren't the only team playing this silly "We're keeping all 4 QBs so you can't have one for free" game. At a minimum, the Vikings and Steelers are playing it too, which means that it's a buyer's market for crappy backup quarterbacks.

If they trade Dalton, maybe it'll be worth the added effort. We'll see what the return is. If they trade McKee, well, their QB2 will be 39-year-old Andy Dalton. 🤢

Running back (3): Saquon Barkley, Tank Bigsby, Will Shipley

A lot of fans were upset that the team cut Carson Steele, who was productive and fun to watch in the Eagles' final two preseason games, but the reality is that he runs a 4.77 40, and the Eagles rarely showed any fullback looks in camp. He was a pretty obvious cut.

Barkley and Bigsby form a really nice 1-2 punch, and Shipley finished camp strongly.

Wide receiver (6): DeVonta Smith, Dontayvion Wicks, Makai Lemon, Darius Cooper, Marquise Brown, Elijah Moore

Elijah Moore was a bubble player, but he landed on the 53 after a solid camp. The other five guys were locks.

Tight end (4): Dallas Goedert, Johnny Mundt, Eli Stowers, E.J. Jenkins

Jenkins is the surprise inclusion here. He has great size and is a decent enough blocker, but I thought Cameron Latu would have the edge (a) because the Eagles have had no problem getting Jenkins to the practice squad in the past, and (b) Latu is a quality special teams player. Interesting choice. Jenkins will probably be active on gameday.

Offensive line (10): Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, Tyler Steen, Lane Johnson, Markel Bell, Drew Kendall, Fred Johnson, Willie Lampkin, Micah Morris

Chalk. These 10 linemen were as expected, and it's a deep, very talented group.

Edge defenders (5): Jonathan Greenard, Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt, Arnold Ebiketie, A.J. Epenesa

The good news here is that Greenard won't begin the season on the PUP list, indicating that the Eagles think he won't miss more than three games. The bad news for many fans is that Joshua Weru won't make the team after he showed highly impressive athleticism in practice and the preseason games. It will be interesting to see if he gets claimed by another team.

Interior defensive line (5): Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo, Byron Young, Ty Robinson

The other "exchange dude," Uar Bernard, also did not make the 53. He is less likely to get claimed than Weru. The other five interior linemen were locks.

Linebacker (4): Zack Baun, Jihaad Campbell, Jeremiah Trotter, Smael Mondon

"Don't sleep on Chance now," Vic Fangio said of Chance Campbell, who the Eagles waived at 53-man cutdowns. "You guys, when you make your list out there, we like Chance. Chance is a good football player."

You're killing me, Vic.

Cornerback (6): Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Riq Woolen, Mac McWilliams, Kelee Ringo, Jonathan Jones

Ringo won't be a popular inclusion for a lot of fans, but he really came on this summer. Jones is getting healthy after injuring his shoulder during camp, and McWilliams survives for one more season.

Safety (3): Andrew Mukuba, Marcus Epps, Michael Carter

As expected. Undrafted rookies like Maximus Pulley and Kapena Gushiken pushed for roster spots, but fell short.

Specialists (3): Jake Elliott, Braden Mann, Rocco Underwood

Underwood made it! I thought he struggled early in camp, but got better as the summer progressed.

Injured reserve: TE Grant Calcaterra, CB Jakorian Bennett

The Eagles wasted IR spots on Calcaterra and Bennett for some reason.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/analysis-eagles-initial-2026-53-man-roster-jalen-hurts-andy-dalton-tanner-mckee-cole-payton/

The international guys are usually long shots. What bothers me more is that Lemon and Stowers both seem like red shirt guys this season due to the injury bug biting and lack of practice and preseason reps. Maybe they make meaningful contributions this year and maybe not. You never know with rookies. If not, the holes they were to fill are essentially, still holes. We'll see.

1 hour ago, PoconoDon said:

The international guys are usually long shots. What bothers me more is that Lemon and Stowers both seem like red shirt guys this season due to the injury bug biting and lack of practice and preseason reps. Maybe they make meaningful contributions this year and maybe not. You never know with rookies. If not, the holes they were to fill are essentially, still holes. We'll see.

Lemon so far has been living up to his name ... he is a lemon. But obviously waaaaaaaaay early in his career (it didn't even start yet) to make any kind of judgement on him. Hopefully both those guys turn out to be worthy of their draft selections.

The only surprise to me was Jenkins in lieu of a fifth LB.

I don’t get the Dalton logic. Never did, never will. I don’t get why Ringo is still here. And to be honest I don’t see the Shipley interest. But they managed to get Pierce on to the PS which is good.