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QUICK TAKES: FIVE NOTES FROM DAY 5 OF EAGLES’ TRAINING CAMP

By Victor Williams

August 2, 2022

 

The Eagles returned to practice on Tuesday for Day 5 of training camp.

Participation Report:

WILL NOT PRACTICE

• TE Grant Calcaterra – hamstring
• CB Mac McCain – knee
• WR Zach Pascal – illness
• WR Greg Ward – toe

The offense took a step forward in today’s practice; here are five notes from the first day in full pads.

The wide receivers put on a show

Practice got underway with WR/DB one-on-one drills and the receivers didn’t disappoint. DeVonta Smith beat James Bradberry on a go-route down the sideline and Hurts hit him right in the bread basket over tight coverage. Bradberry responded with a "Damn, Smitty!”

AJ Brown followed that up with a 9-route of his own, making a strong catch over Darius Slay, who got a hand on the ball. Brown was able to pin the ball against his helmet with one hand to maintain possession.

Jalen Reagor ran with the first-team in a session against the second-team defense, burning CB Zech McPhearson and hauling in a play-action pass for what would’ve been a 70-yard TD. He made another nice grab in one-on-one drills while using a stutter step to generate separation. Reagor is putting together a strong summer and will likely crack the final-53.

James Bradberry continues to impress

The ex-Giants cornerback had another productive day in practice, disrupting passes intended for AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith. On the throw to Brown, Bradberry punched the ball away from the receiver as it approached his hands. After getting beat on the play prior, Bradberry pressed DeVonta off the line of scrimmage causing an incompletion.

He also recorded a pass-breakup on TE Noah Togiai. Bradberry is showing early on why he’s been amongst the league leaders in PBUs since 2016.

Georgia boys getting first-team work

Jordan Davis started with the first-team today alongside Fletcher Cox. Rookie LB Nakobe Dean got his first reps with the first-team towards the end of practice. With TJ Edwards, Kyzir White and Davion Taylor all having solid camps, the Eagles don’t need to rush Dean along and can allow him to learn at his own pace.

For the first time in a long time, the team has depth at linebacker.

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Jalen Hurts with best passing day of the summer

Hurts had his first strong showing as a passer since camp started, hitting many of his starting receivers in stride. On the aforementioned 70-yarder to Jalen Reagor (with Jordan Davis in pursuit), the ball traveled about 35-40 yards in the air before finding its target. He got the ball out quick and on time, most notably to AJ Brown over the middle. Crossing routes have been incredibly effective in practice.

It’s been a rocky start to camp, but it is encouraging to see Hurts’ best performance coming on the first day of full pads. The narrative that he’s a "gamer” may hold some weight.

Injuries, special teams notes

OL Andre Dillard went inside with a trainer during today’s practice. Isaac Seumalo also went down, slamming his helmet in frustration. No update on their injuries as of yet. WR Quez Watkins left practice due to an illness but returned in street clothes.

DeVonta Smith was briefly looked at by trainers but appeared to be okay and finished practice.

Jake Elliott made all six of his FG attempts today, hitting from 28, 33, 37, 40, and twice from 42.

https://thelibertyline.com/2022/08/02/day-5-of-eagles-training-camp/

 

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Eagles training camp observations: Hurts makes it rain

 

The Eagles had their most intense practice so far of training camp on Tuesday morning.

Their first day in full pads coincided with some high temperatures and a longer practice that lasted over an hour and a half.

The Eagles will have a walkthrough on Wednesday and will be back on the practice field Thursday, when temperatures in Philadelphia are expected to push 100 degrees.

To the observations:

1. As always, we’ll start with a bit of housekeeping:

• Brett Toth, Richard Rodgers and Tyree Jackson remain on the PUP list. They’re on the roster but not practicing.

• TE Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), WR Zach Pascal (illness), Greg Ward (toe) and Mac McCain (knee) did not practice. Ward and McCain were new additions to the injury report. Pascal was on the field with a helmet but wasn’t ready to participate. Still, after a bout of food poisoning that put him in the hospital, it appears he’s on his way back.

• Andre Dillard (undisclosed injury) and Quez Watkins (illness) left practice early. Watkins was able to return to watch the end, which seems to be a good sign.

2. The highlight of today came on a deep ball from Jalen Hurts to Jalen Reagor during an 11-on-11 drills. Reagor, who was bumped up to first team after Watkins left, made the most of his first-team reps, which have been hard to come by this summer. On this play, the Eagles’ first-team offense was facing its second-team defense. Reagor split cornerback Zech McPhearson and safety Andre Chachere and pulled down a dime from Hurts. The ball traveled about 40 yards in the air and went for about a 70-yard touchdown.

Hurts has had an up-and-down camp but made some tremendous throws on Tuesday as full pads came on. While his pure arm strength has been questioned, he has a strong enough arm. At times during his first two seasons, it’ll look like Hurts might not because a ball comes out later or he can’t hit someone in stride. He doesn’t have a rocket attached to his shoulder but he can toss it.

Tuesday was his best day of the summer so far.

3. A couple of those impressive throws from Hurts came in 1-on-1s between receivers and cornerbacks. Here are some highlights from that period:

• Hurts started off the session with a beautiful teardrop to DeVonta Smith over James Bradberry, who had tight coverage. Nothing he could do.

• Then Hurts came right back and delivered a similar ball to Watkins, who was able to shake Avonte Maddox.

• Hurts then dropped it in the bucket to A.J. Brown over Darius Slay. He hit all three of his top receivers against the Eagles top corners in succession.

• A little later, Brown was flagged for OPI working against Slay. Brown briefly argued with the referee.

4. In back-to-back days, we’ve seen Hurts hit Brown in stride on a slant. These plays are going to be so important for the success of this offense. Brown has major YAC ability and if Hurts can lead him on these, there are big gains to be had.

5. The second day with shoulder pads meant the second day with OL/DL drills. It wasn’t as fun on Day 2, but still plenty to observe:

• Really good rep from Isaac Seumalo working against Fletcher Cox. Seumalo is clearly the Eagles’ right guard.

• Jordan Davis crushed some of the Eagles’ reserve linemen in these drills on Monday, but on Tuesday he couldn’t get past Jason Kelce. It was a fair matchup against a savvy vet. Although a little later, Davis walked through poor William Dunkle.

• Jordan Mailata and Josh Sweat have both come so far. They have had good battles for the last five years and have had a couple more in this camp. Sweat after practice happily (and jokingly) took some credit for all of Mailata’s success.

• After the 1-on-1s, we got to watch some 2-on-2s between OL and DL. Lane Johnson and Seumalo shut down a rush from Cox and Haason Reddick. Impressive to see Johnson and Seumalo work so smoothly together to pass off rushers on stunts. They have been teammates for a long time but are new to playing beside each other.

• On the next rep, though, Sweat and Javon Hargrave bested Mailata and Landon Dickerson on a T-E stunt to get after the QB. They were just a tad late on passing it off.

Sweat is quietly looking very strong, by the way. He had a nice sack in the final 11-on-11 period of practice.

6. In addition to the deep ball from Hurts, the Eagles worked on several plays near the line of scrimmage. So some screens, quick passes and some pick plays. They were whistled for OPI on one of those picks so they need to refine those teaching points. The receivers there have to realize contact can actually be detrimental in those cases. Just get in the way and move out of the way before you get flagged.

7. The Eagles began the day with a fun goal line period with the ball placed at the 3-yard line. Two plays apiece between the 1s, 2s and 3s. The defense had a great period:

• The first play was a Miles Sanders drop in the flat. The second play for the offense was a sweep to Brown, who found himself 1-on-1 with T.J. Edwards. Hard to tell what would have happened in a live period but Brown is not easy to take down.

• The second team offense gave the ball to Kenny Gainwell up the gut and he was stopped short. The next play was a pass in the middle to Jack Stoll, who was stopped short of the goal line by Derek Barnett.

• The third team handed off to Gainwell, who was again stopped short. The second play was a "sack” from second-year defensive end Tarron Jackson.

8. McPhearson was in coverage on that deep ball TD to Reagor but made up for it in the final period of the day with tremendous coverage downfield on John Hightower. It looked like he picked the pass but the ref ruled it incomplete because he landed out of bounds. Still an impressive play.

With McCain sidelined, the Eagles continued to rotate at the other cornerback spots (not McPhearson’s spot) with the second and third team. I really like how aggressive Tay Gowan is, but he’s a little too handsy. He’s been called for DPI a couple times in this camp. It’s something he needs to watch.

9. Late in practice on Tuesday, rookie linebacker Nakobe Dean got his first reps with the first-team defense. It has been a pretty quiet camp for Dean as the other linebackers have been making plays. He’s still learning. But he did show off his coverage ability on one pass to Dallas Goedert. It was completed but Dean stayed with him.

10. Jake Elliott is having a good camp. He nailed all his field goal attempts on Tuesday. From 33 yards, 40, 42, 37, 28, 42.

Stupid Observation of the Day: During the developmental period at the end of practice, Reid Sinnett tripped and was on the ground as big Davis was barreling through the offensive line. I let out an audible "oh my god” for fear that the young quarterback was about to be trampled by 340 pounds of nose tackle.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-day-5-jalen-hurts-makes-it-rain

 

16 minutes ago, 4for4EaglesNest said:

"Makes it rain" 🤣

I don't write 'em, I just post 'em.  

On 7/31/2022 at 7:05 AM, time2rock said:

• The best play from Hurts on Saturday came after a blitz up the gut from Kyzir White. Hurts was flushed out of the pocket, rolled right and hit Goedert with a laser beam on the right sideline.

I hope Nick is at least trying to stop him from always going to his right

1 hour ago, Mike030270 said:

I hope Nick is at least trying to stop him from always going to his right

Right, stepping up in the pocket when available is what he needs to practice.

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Eagles training camp observations: Defense wins on hottest day

 

The Eagles moved up practice an hour on Thursday to avoid the heat.

I guess it worked?

But it was still a steamy day in South Philadelphia for the Eagles’ longest practice so far of the summer. The Eagles went just over 1 hour and 45 minutes in full pads on Thursday morning. Players have a day off on Friday.

To the observations:

1. As always, we start with a few housekeeping notes:

• The Eagles’ injury report continues to grow. Here’s who didn’t practice on Thursday: Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), Mac McCain (knee), Greg Ward (toe), Jordan Mailata (concussion), Andre Dillard (concussion), DeVonta Smith (groin).

Mailata and Dillard suffered their concussions during Tuesday’s practice, but head coach Nick Sirianni wasn’t exactly sure when. Without the top two left tackles, veteran Le’Raven Clark worked with the first team and Kayode Awosika worked with the twos and threes.

Smith’s groin injury doesn’t seem to be serious. He was a spectator on Thursday. Word is that Smith felt some soreness/tightness in his groin and the Eagles are playing it safe.

• Zach Pascal (illness) missed the first five days of training camp after dealing with a nasty case of food poisoning. He was a limited participant.

• TE J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and WR Deon Cain both took trips to the medical tent and then left practice early.

2. The Eagles’ offense struggled some on Thursday. Whenever this happens, you have to figure out whether they were bad or the defense was good. Obviously, there’s always a little bit of both. But on this day, I’d give a tip of the cap to the defense.

The pass rush looked dominant at times and there were also several coverage sacks or wasted plays. There were plays during team drills when Jalen Hurts had some time and bought more but no one got open and he either had to take off or the play was whistled dead. There were plays that went nowhere even in 7-on7s without pass rush.

"I think when you’re in training camp, there are going to be ebbs and flows on both sides of the ball,” Sirianni said. "In fact, that’s what you want. You want there to be ebbs and flows on both sides of the ball. You don’t want one side to dominate the other side. So you’re going to look for those. There’s no doubt we have good balance on both sides of the football. Defense is presenting challenges, both with the looks and then with the players we have.”

As good as the defense was on Thursday, Hurts did not turn the football over. Sometimes in a practice like this, you’ll see the quarterback get frustrated with the tight coverage and the lack of plays and start trying some passes he normally wouldn’t. That didn’t happen today.

3. T.J. Edwards had a diving PBU during team drills and another that was nearly an interception during 7-on-7s. He also stuck Noah Togiai on a route and threw him to the ground after a catch.

I could make a strong case that Edwards been the best Eagle over the first six days of training camp.

4. Some notes from 1-on-1 drills between receivers and defensive backs:

• Britain Covey ran a couple impressive routes against nickel cornerback Josiah Scott to gain some separation.

• Avonte Maddox is having a very good training camp and had a couple pass breakups working against Quez Watkins. The two of them have had their battles this summer. But it’s impressive watching Maddox mirror him inside. Those 1-on-1s are tough for DBs, but Maddox was very good today.

• Good rep from Jalen Reagor, who beat James Bradberry outside.

• Smart play from Kary Vincent Jr. against Watkins. Watkins leaped to catch a ball in the end zone but Vincent wisely pushed him so he landed out of bounds.

• Nice high-point catch from John Hightower in the end zone over Tay Gowan.

5. A.J. Brown is getting a ton of targets in this training camp and is showing how well he can use his body to box out defenders. On Thursday, the Eagles got him in the slot a little bit. He’ll predominantly be used on the outside this season, but he can be a matchup problem inside too.

During on 7-on-7 rep, Hurts threw the ball behind Brown, but it probably had to be there to avoid defenders. Brown was able to contort his body in the middle of the field and make the grab.

There was another rep when Hurts hit Brown over the middle. Third practice in a row we’ve seen one of these passes hit.

6. During 7-on-7s, the Eagles’ OL vs. DL 1-on-1 drills were taking place on the other field. I was mostly watching 7-on-7s today but positioned myself in an area where I at least saw a few 1-on-1s.

• Jordan Davis got a win against Jason Kelce today, getting around the veteran.

• Brandon Graham used a bullrush to push Jack Driscoll back into the quarterback’s lap. Driscoll is a good player but Graham beats up on him sometimes in practice. Even in Year 13, BG doesn’t take plays off.

• Milton Williams is a forgotten guy on this defensive line, but he had one impressive 1-on-1 rep today, getting through the guard.

7. I noticed nickel cornerback Josiah Scott getting a few reps at safety on Thursday. He worked next to K’Von Wallace during an 11-on-11 period with the second-team defense playing the first-team offense. Scott is a 5-foot-9, 185-pound defensive back who is considered by many to be a nickel-only defender. But if he can show off some versatility, adding to his special teams ability, he might be able to make the team.

8. On one toss play, Miles Sanders took the ball right and we watched Haason Reddick track him down. Reddick’s No. 1 priority in this defense will be to rush the passer, but his athleticism and versatility will be seen on plays like this too. Not many pass rushers are chasing down Sanders and getting to him.

9. Rookie receiver Covey made a few impressive plays. He had that 1-on-1 rep against Scott that went for a TD. And he caught a touchdown a little later in team drills off the arm of Reid Sinnett. Covey shook Vincent on that rep.

10. The Eagles punted on Thursday. That’s something they haven’t done a ton of during camp. Arryn Siposs didn’t have a very good 2021 season but he’s the only punter in camp. According to ProFootballFocus, his average hang time in 2021 was 4.25 seconds. I tracked his hang time on his punts Thursday. I missed the first one; my apologies. But here were the rest: 4.52, 4.26, 4.51, 4.59, 4.39, 4.13, 4.51. Solid day for him.

The punt returners on Thursday: Kenny Gainwell, Reagor, Watkins, Covey. Interesting to see Gainwell with this group. He returned eight kicks last season but no punts.

Stupid Observation of the Day: It was super hot on Thursday, but that didn’t stop Reddick from rocking a hoodie.

To be clear, though, this hoodie doesn’t have sleeves.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-day-6-defense-wins-hottest-day-camp

 

ProFootballFocus didn’t do a very good job of timing punts last year then. Because I timed every Siposs punt and he averaged 4.34 seconds, not 4.25. That’s a pretty significant difference. 

9 minutes ago, FranklinFldEBUpper said:

ProFootballFocus didn’t do a very good job of timing punts last year then. Because I timed every Siposs punt and he averaged 4.34 seconds, not 4.25. That’s a pretty significant difference. 

Why?

There had to be a better use of your time, like folding underwear or picking petals one by one off of a dandelion. 

8 hours ago, pallidrone said:

Why?

There had to be a better use of your time, like folding underwear or picking petals one by one off of a dandelion. 

Because I enjoy doing so. I’m pretty passionate about the Eagles and I enjoy tracking data throughout the season. 

 

Gannon "explains" why the Eagles don't tackle in camp.

I understand- I learned to master the guitar by just staring at it, 
not actually playing it. 
https://twitter.com/NBCSPhilly/status/1555920412755857408?s=20&t=lQ0ANDmW-HZC5prkh7KQdw

On 8/6/2022 at 10:32 AM, Talonblood said:

Gannon "explains" why the Eagles don't tackle in camp.

I understand- I learned to master the guitar by just staring at it, 
not actually playing it. 
https://twitter.com/NBCSPhilly/status/1555920412755857408?s=20&t=lQ0ANDmW-HZC5prkh7KQdw

Meh... I get what you’re saying. But football players should be able to tackle. That’s what preseason is for. I’m sick of injuries to key players. I’d rather avoid it. 

4 hours ago, blindside said:

Meh... I get what you’re saying. But football players should be able to tackle. That’s what preseason is for. I’m sick of injuries to key players. I’d rather avoid it. 

I get it, but playing half speed gets you killed. There are already 3 concussions in camp. When is the last time the Eagles had 3 concussions in 2 weeks- in TRAING camp??

Notes from yesterday's TC practice.

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Eagles training camp observations: Goedert continues to dominate

 

The Eagles held their 12th training camp practice of the summer at the NovaCare Complex and will be heading to Cleveland later this week for some joint practices.

On Tuesday, the Eagles were in shorts and shells for a practice that lasted just under an hour and a half. It was a "yellow” practice today.

To the observations:

1. As always, housekeeping:

• Miles Sanders landed on the report with a hamstring injury. Sanders also missed Sunday’s practice with "leg soreness” so the hamstring designation isn’t a great sign. This is a big season upcoming for Sanders as he enters his fourth year in the NFL.

• Limited in practice: Le’Raven Clark (hamstring), John Hightower (groin), Jimmy Moreland (ankle), Boston Scott (concussion).

• Did not practice: Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), Christian Ellis (hamstring), Marcus Epps (back), Javon Hargrave (toe), Jason Kelce (elbow) Jared Mayden (ankle), Sanders (hamstring), Greg Ward (toe).

• James Bradberry was injured during Tuesday’s practice. He took a brief trip to the medical tent. While he didn’t leave practice, returning to watch, he did not participate in any more 11-on-11s or 7-on-7s during this session.

• Andre Dillard was practicing on Tuesday. He left the field early on Sunday after getting in a few fights. The Eagles took him in to check him out for precautionary reasons because Dillard recently got over a concussion.

• New defensive back Ugo Amadi (the return in the JJAW trade) was in Philly on Tuesday but was not yet practicing. He’s wearing No. 32.

2. Jalen Hurts threw his best pass of the summer on Tuesday. In an 11-on-11 session, he threw a perfect deep ball to A.J. Brown, hitting his best friend in perfect stride down the right sideline. Hurts threaded the needle between cornerback Josh Jobe and safety K’Von Wallace in coverage. Sure, this wasn’t a pass that beat normal starters, but it was still a tight window. The defensive backs had tight coverage.

We’ve seen Hurts throw some pretty teardrop deep balls in practice but this one was more of a laser out of necessity. Came off his hand with impressive zip.

3. Give credit to Hurts for having a strong day of practice because he didn’t get off to a great start. The Eagles’ defense dominated in a team red zone period at the start of camp. Hurts found Zach Pascal for a touchdown on the first play but then the defense didn’t give up an inch. We saw some sacks, tight coverage and a pass breakup as Jonathan Gannon’s unit put on the clamps.

4. In his two practices since returning from a groin injury, DeVonta Smith has been a major part of the offense. Early in camp, Brown was seeing way more targets but that has flipped the last two days. The thing that really impresses me about Smith is his body control. He can leap in the air, contort his body and make sure his feet come down in bounds about as well as anyone in the league.

He had a couple near the sideline. On one, he was able to make a sideline catch with Josh Sweat (!) in coverage. On the other, he caught a rocket from Hurts, who rolled left. It was a play that would have been a sack in a real game, but Smith’s catch was still impressive.

5. On that aforementioned play, it was Haason Reddick who should have been credited with a sack. On that particular snap, Reddick lined up as a standup rusher inside Brandon Graham, who was the defensive end. Reddick shot the B gap and was untouched on his way to Hurts. Reddick will obviously be used primarily as an edge rusher but we’ve seen them move him around a little bit.

6. It was a big Dallas Goedert day. Heck, it’s been a big Dallas Goedert Summer. He’s been targeted more than any other Eagle in training camp and Tuesday might have been his best day yet. During 7-on-7s in the red zone, Hurts hit Goedert on three consecutive passes. The last one was a touchdown in front of T.J. Edwards, who had tight coverage. Goedert is just really hard to cover because of his ability to use his body to box out.

A little later on an 11-on-11 rep from the goal line, Hurts pulled the ball on a play action rollout and found Goedert in the end zone. It was a perfect touch pass from Hurts, who waited out the defender long enough to force a decision. Those plays put defenses in a bind because Hurts has the ability to run it himself but you can’t leave Goedert either.

7. Second-year running back Kenny Gainwell hasn’t had a great camp and dropped a couple passes on Tuesday. One was tougher than the other but they were both balls he probably should have hauled in. Gainwell has the smoothest hands of the running back group but there have been a few hiccups this summer.

8. Jordan Davis got one of his big paws in the air to bat down a pass from Gardner Minshew during team drills. Those plays might show up during the season, especially if Davis gets double-teamed as much as we expect.

9. Without Marcus Epps on Tuesday, the Eagles tried a few different players next to Anthony Harris. We saw Wallace, Josiah Scott and Reed Blankenship get reps with the first-team defense. Jaquiski Tartt and Andre Chachere did not.

While working with the third team, Blankenship had an interception that was thrown directly at him by Reid Sinnett. Still, nice concentration from Blankenship, who made the play.

Scott also got some reps at nickel cornerback on Tuesday with the second-team defense. First time I remember him back there since he began playing safety. But we also saw Chachere get some reps at the nickel too. Gannon really cares about versatility.

10. Noah Togiai had another impressive day. He’s been stacking them the last week or so. He had a touchdown catch in 7-on-7s and then again in 11-on-11s. His second touchdown was a beauty in the back of the end zone. He caught the Minshew pass over Chachere.

Stupid Observation of the Day: Normally, I try to avoid the football at all costs during practice. No good can come of it. (If I make a play, no one cares; if I make a fool of myself, everyone cares.) But on Tuesday, an incompletion came in hot and took a bounce right toward me. Snagged it with one hand, underhand tossed it back to the ball boy. Phew. Disaster averted.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-day-12-dallas-goedert-continues-dominate

 

What is going on with Gainwell?

Maybe we need to resign Corey? Looks like we have no RBs who can catch.

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Eagles training camp observations: Eagles vs. Browns gets a little chippy

 

BEREA, Ohio — As the Eagles joined the Browns for their first of two joint practices on Thursday, a lot of the NFL’s attention was on Deshaun Watson.

The NFL and NFLPA reached an agreement that the Browns’ quarterback will serve an 11-game suspension and will pay a fine of $5 million after dozens of allegations of sexual misconduct against Watson.

So safe to say Jonathan Gannon’s big welcome-back-to-Cleveland press conference was not the biggest one of the day.

Anyway, the Eagles and Browns still had a practice that started at 2 p.m. and lasted about 1 hour and 48 minutes. Watson mostly worked with the Browns’ second-team offense. Overall, it was a fun day of work for both teams that had plenty of chippy play throughout and plenty of fun trash talk … but they avoided fights.

After the practice, Fletcher Cox said the leadership councils for both teams met before the session out of respect and vowed to keep their guys in line. That’s pretty typical before these practices, Cox said.

Overall, it was hard to pick a winner and loser of this practice day. It was definitely a closer competition than the four days of joint practices (all wins) we saw the Eagles in last summer.

Let’s get to the observations:

1. Even a trip to Cleveland won’t stop us from doing housekeeping first:

• James Bradberry (groin) was added to the practice report. He left Tuesday’s session early. Bradberry made the trip to Cleveland, but it’s clear the Eagles aren’t going to rush him back.

• Miles Sanders (hamstring) missed his third practice.

• Marcus Epps (back) returned to practice and was again a first-team safety. Good news he missed just one day. Boston Scott (concussion), Le’Raven Clark (hamstring) and John Hightower (groin) were all full participants after being limited on Tuesday.

• Did not practice: Bradberry (groin), Sanders (hamstring), Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), Javon Hargrave (toe), Jason Kelce (elbow), Christian Ellis (hamstring), Greg Ward (toe).

• The Browns were without two key defensive players. Edge rusher Myles Garrett is out for personal reasons and CB Denzel Ward was limited (didn’t participate in team drills) as he comes back from a foot injury.

2. Landon Dickerson might be wanted for attempted murder in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. The Eagles’ big left guard had a monstrous block during the competition 11-on-11 team drill late in practice.

Dickerson (6-6, 332) met Browns linebacker Jacob Phillips (6-3, 228) in the hole and demolished him. This was such a forceful pancake block that Phillips’ imprint might still be on the field. Dickerson celebrated over the linebacker with a little dance.

Lane Johnson didn’t see the play live. But he’s excited to watch it later.

"I was downblocking. But I heard it,” Johnson said. "And then I saw him get up and do this s— (dancing). So I’ll have to go back and watch it.”

3. The Eagles’ offense came out on fire during WR-DB 1-on-1 drills. Hurts started it off with a beautiful sideline pass to A.J. Brown, who brought it in with one hand after beating Greedy Williams in coverage. Then we saw catches from Quez Watkins, DeVonta Smith, Zach Pascal, Britain Covey, Jalen Reagor and Deon Cain. There were seven straight completions before the ball hit the ground when Watkins couldn’t bring in a deep ball one-handed.

The most impressive reps of those seven completions might have come from Pascal, who routed up Herb Miller so bad the cornerback fell to his knees.

4. When the Eagles’ offense and defense split fields today, I stayed with the Eagles’ offense and my colleague Reuben Frank watched the defense. So this one is courtesy of what Roob told me. The Browns ran the ball quite a bit in this practice and also worked on their play action game way more than the Eagles do. The Browns had a few runs go for big yardage and hit some deep shots off the play action.

This is good for the Eagles to see a different kind of offense in the summer.

For what it’s worth, every time I glanced to that field, it seemed like there were some big plays happening downfield and the Eagles were on the losing end of it.

5. For the most part, Johnson held his own against Jadeveon Clowney, who is still a really good edge rusher. Johnson shut Clowney down in 1-on-1s and mostly slowed him down in 11-on-11s except on one rep when Clowney actually caught Johnson off balance and knocked him to the seat of his pants.

"It felt good, man. It’s always good to go against competition,” Johnson said. "Having guys like that makes you better for the season.”

6. During the competitive 11-on-11 period with everyone watching, Josh Sweat picked up a nice sack. And then with the second team, Patrick Johnson had a sack and another play where he applied a ton of pressure. Johnson has come on very strong.

7. Second-year tight end Jack Stoll had a great catch late in practice on a slant from Gardner Minshew. The pass was slightly behind Stoll, but he was able to reach his arms back and catch the pass without breaking stride. Stoll had just four catches for 22 yards as a rookie but has been solid this training camp.

8. Hurts had one of his best throws of the summer. On an off-schedule play, Hurts stepped up to his left (something he’s generally not great at) and delivered a 20-yard strike near the left sideline to Brown. Hurts had to get it into a tight window just over the outstretched arms of Ronnie Harrison Jr.

Overall, Hurts had some ups and downs, but I thought it was a pretty solid day for him and a great day for DeVonta Smith, who was pretty much unstoppable early in practice. Even late in the day, Hurts tossed a deep ball to Smith, who couldn’t catch it but was able to draw a DPI.

It wasn’t a perfect practice for Hurts, though. In particular, there was one play when Hurts rolled to his left and tried to throw it across his body to Dallas Goedert in the middle of the field. The dangerous pass was broken up.

9. When the fields were split, Hurts and the first-team offense had the advantage over the Browns’ first-team defense but Minshew and Reid Sinnett struggled at first, each throwing interceptions. The Browns celebrated each of those picks with vigor, something that raised the intensity level of the practice.

10. Another observation from Roob: Jordan Davis had a dominant period during early 11-on-11s, stuffing a run and then creating pressure for Haason Reddick to clean up with a sack.

Stupid Observation of the Day: Eagles receiver and Olympic hurdler Devon Allen has had a pretty quiet training camp but gave me one of my favorite moments of the summer on Thursday. After tossing a Browns player to the ground during a special teams period, he hurdled over him in celebration.

The Browns didn’t appreciate that.

"Why get mad at an Olympian?,” Brown said. "That’s what he does.”

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-day-13-eagles-vs-browns-gets-little-chippy

 

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Eagles training camp observations: A few dominant performances

 

BEREA, Ohio — These last two joint practices against the Browns are why Nick Sirianni believes in them so much.

The Eagles and Browns were pretty even on Thursday but the Eagles were clearly better on Friday as the practice session shifted into the red zone.

While the Eagles are sticking around in Cleveland for their preseason game on Sunday, don’t expect to see the starters playing in that one. Still, there will be plenty of youngsters ready for all those snaps.

Let’s get to Day 14 observations:

1. As always, housekeeping:

• Didn’t practice on Friday: James Bradberry (groin), Miles Sanders (hamstring), Javon Hargrave (toe), Jason Kelce (elbow), Greg Ward (toe), Christian Elliss (hamstring).

• While head coach Nick Sirianni avoids any timetable talk, word is that the Eagles expect Sanders and Hargrave back for Week 1. They’re just being precautions. Bradberry, meanwhile, is day to day.

• Limited: Grant Calcaterra (hamstring) returned to practice for the first time since July 30. Sirianni admitted Calcaterra is obviously behind, but it was good to see the rookie tight end return to the field.

2. A.J. Brown had the catch of the day during early 11-on-11. As the Eagles worked in the red zone, Jalen Hurts lofted up a pass for Brown, who outmuscled Browns corner Greedy Williams, wrestling the ball away from him as Williams was tossed to the ground. As Brown stood over Williams, he stared him down. Absolute posterization.

Not to be outdone, Dallas Goedert won a 50-50 ball over safety D’Anthony Bell in the end zone just a few minutes later.

Brown and Goedert have been the most reliable targets for Hurts this summer and it’s important to note how much Hurts seems to trust them, especially with these jump balls. A big criticism of Hurts is that he’ll only throw to receivers who are wide open. But if he has trust in these guys in practice, perhaps he’ll be willing to trust them in games too.

3. Aside from that play when Goedert Moss’d a safety, he had an impressive one-handed grab on a perfectly executed screen pass. On that play, it was fun to watch rookie Cam Jurgens get out in front. The rookie from Nebraska had a block about 15 yards downfield.

4. Browns defensive end Myles Garrett returned to practice on Friday after missing several days because of a personal matter. While Garrett didn’t partake in team drills, he did go in 1-on-1s against Jordan Mailata twice. On the first one, Garrett had an impressive bullrush to push Mailata deep into the pocket. Mailata said that one was a win.

That was supposed to be all they did, but Mailata asked Garrett to go once more. On the second rep, Garrett tried a speed rush around the edge and Mailata used his strength and quickness to widen Garrett’s path well wide of the quarterback. That was a Mailata win, so they finished 1-1. It was great work.

Also, during a team drill, Mailata had a great block to spring Boston Scott on a run up the gut. OL coach Jeff Stoutland started yelling, saying that play would be on their teaching tape.

5. Even without Hargrave, the Eagles’ defensive line was a wrecking crew on Friday against a pretty good offensive line. Late in practice, Haason Reddick was victimizing Browns tackle James Hudson III. After a summer dealing with Lane Johnson, it’s fun to watch Reddick unleashed against other tackles.

Another guy who had a great period in the team-wide competition at the end was rookie Kyron Johnson. Johnson hasn’t flashed a ton in his rookie training camp but had a sack on Deshaun Watson (working with the second team) and pressured him out of the pocket on another.

The other three players who really impressed on the line were Josh Sweat, Jordan Davis and Tarron Jackson. Sweat had a couple "sacks” on Friday. Davis, simply put, is a problem inside. He showed that in 1-on-1s. And Jackson is a completely different player in Year 2. I was watching the Eagles’ offense on Friday but every time I glanced at the far field at their defense, Jackson was in the backfield.

6. Rough end to this practice from second-year running back Kenny Gainwell, who has been struggling some recently. The relatively sure-handed Gainwell had another drop. This one came in the middle of the field in the red zone. Just can’t happen. Then right after, Sirianni was loudly yelling at Gainwell for messing up his assignment.

7. The Eagles used a ton of read-options in this practice and it’s fun to watch how comfortable Hurts is with these plays. Sometimes he pulls the ball or hands it off a the last possible moment.

A note on these plays: While Johnson pretty much handled Jadeveon Clowney in pass protection, Clowney was wrecking run plays. He has such a long first step that he was in the backfield so quick. It led to Sirianni jokingly asking Clowney to stop ruining their plays.

8. Reid Sinnett got a few second-team reps on Friday but didn’t make the most of them. He missed a wide open Britain Covey and the offense looked a little disjointed with him in there. But don’t worry about Sinnett losing that No. 3 job. Carson Strong finally got some reps and didn’t look sharp. On one play, he showed off his cannon of an arm but fired a bullet to no one in particular that struck a large pad in the back of the end zone. It’s been a rough camp for the rookie from Nevada.

9. The Eagles back end made plenty of plays on Friday. Kyzir White had an interception and was made at himself when he dropped another. He’s an excellent cover linebacker. And then Marcus Epps and Darius Slay had huge pass breakups in the most competitive period in practice. Epps had a diving PBU on a pass targeted for tight end Harrison Bryant. And then a few plays later, Slay batted down a ball intended for Amari Cooper. On that play, Cooper was open but the pass from Jacoby Brissett was late and Slay closed super fast.

10. Scary moment for Calcaterra in his first practice back from a hamstring injury:

Stupid Observation of the Day: Since the Browns practice in Berea, Ohio, the Eagles used the locker room at FirstEnergy Stadium to dress before practice. They then took busses from downtown Cleveland to the Browns’ practice facility, about 25 minutes away. By the time the Eagles got there, they had to use the bathroom. So each day there were about 20 NFL players lining up to enter one of those trailer porta potties before practice. It looked like Sirianni took his class on a field trip.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-day-14-few-dominant-performances