Getty Eagles free agent signing Haason Reddick had a breakout game, with his first 1.5 sacks in Eagles green.
The Philadelphia Eagles wrapped up their third practice of training camp on July 30, one day before the Kelly green wave hit the City of Brotherly Love. That’s right. The new alternate jerseys were released to the masses and fans started lining up (and, yes, tailgating at the Pro Shop) at 3:30 a.m. to cop the reimagined versions of the vintage uniform.
The team will wear the Kelly green alternates for two regular-season games at Lincoln Financial Field: October 22 against Miami (8:20 p.m.) and November 26 versus Buffalo (4:25 p.m.). Okay, now let’s dive into what happened at training camp. Pro Bowl linebacker Haason Reddick (groin soreness) returned to the practice field for the first time this summer and participated in individual drills. He was a limited participant at Sunday’s session, along with cornerback Avonte Maddox (toe) and defensive end Derek Barnett (knee).
Head coach Nick Sirianni provided an injury update on Reddick: “He has been getting better. We’re hoping he gets some reps out here today with some individual stuff. So, excited that he is going to do that, and we know how much he changes a game when he is in there.”
Meanwhile, Maddox is still fighting a setback from the “significant toe injury” that he first injured in Week 16 last season. The starting nickel corner missed eight games in 2022 while dealing with a variety of ailments before returning for the playoffs. Sirianni said: “He’s still recovering from some of the different things. I think it’s the same toe.”
Sirianni said Haason Reddick is expected to do some work today. Not sure how much #Eagles
5 Things That Stood Out at Practice
The Eagles’ third practice of camp lasted approximately 90 minutes with temperatures hitting a rather comfortable 80 degrees. Jalen Hurts ran the 11-on-11 period like a surgeon in what was arguably his best day throwing the football. He started a perfect 4-for-4 from the pocket, highlighted by a beautiful deep toss to Quez Watkins who grabbed the football in traffic.
Jalen Hurts Training Camp Stats Day 3:
16/19, 0 TD, 0 INT
Best day so far. Super accurate on some tough throws. Good job taking chances while also never really putting the ball at risk of being turned over. Offense definitely won the day vs. the defense and Hurts was why.…
Hurts had a would-be touchdown bomb to DeVonta Smith called back due to a holding call on rookie safety Sydney Brown but the dual-threat quarterback was crisp all day. Here is the best of what we saw on Day 3:
1. Quez Watkins Shines: The burner from Southern Miss hauled in four catches on seven targets after dropping a few balls during individual drills. Watkins looked confident and strong once the whistle started blowing for real, showing off a physicality previously not seen out of the fourth-year slot receiver. His first big play was a leaping grab in traffic on the first series of 11-on-11 work, then Watkins made an insane catch near the sideline where he grappled the ball away from Zech McPhearson who had tight coverage on him. He has been outshining Olamide Zaccheaus early at camp.
2. Hometown Heroics: Philadelphia native D’Andre Swift wasn’t the first running back to get first-team reps but he made the biggest splash. Jalen Hurts dropped one in the bucket, in between safety Terrell Edmunds and linebacker Nicholas Morrow, and Swift secured it for a big gain before falling to the ground. The play drew quite a few oohs and ahhs from defenders in the vicinity. Swift also showed great chemistry with Hurts in the screen game where he made checks and lined up wide as a receiver. His pass-catching ability gives him a noticeable edge over Rashaad Penny, Kenny Gainwell, Boston Scott, and Trey Sermon.
Jalen Hurts deep completion to … D’Andre Swift as the RB was falling down field along the left sideline. Impressive effort to stay with it. Nicholas Morrow was in tight coverage underneath and Terrell Edmunds was over the top on defense. #Eagles
3. Kelee Ringo Sighting: The rookie cornerback out of Georgia is still a work in progress but he flashed a bit during his third-team reps on Sunday. Ringo knocked a ball away from Tyrie Cleveland during 1-on-1 drills, then carried it over to 7-on-7 drills when he blanketed Deon Cain on a deep ball that fell incomplete. Later, Ringo got into the backfield on a corner blitz and forced Ian Book to dump it off for a minimal gain. There has been talk about potentially moving the 6-foot-2, 207-pounder over to safety but it doesn’t look like the team is ready to do that.
4. Rotational Pieces: Terrell Edmunds and Reed Blankenship were the starting safeties on Day 3, but K’Von Wallace got a long look after Edmunds got caught napping in coverage a few times. The position battle for the safety spot opposite Blankenship is officially a competition, especially with Budda Baker off the market. Meanwhile, the weak-side linebacker job remains up for grabs as Nicholas Morrow turned in another lackluster day. Christian Elliss didn’t wow on Sunday, but Shaun Bradley flashed by breaking up a pass during 7-on-7 drills.
I really like Tanner McKee. Not saying he has a chance to unseat Marcus Mariota but way ahead of Ian Book. He has great pocket presence, plus an accurate and strong arm. Developing a nice chemistry with third-team offense, particularly with Jadon Haselwood. #Eagles #FlyEaglesFly
5. Third-String Quarterback: With Marcus Mariota entrenched as the backup quarterback, my eyes were fixated on Tanner McKee and Ian Book as they fight for the third-string job. McKee (6-foot-6, 231 pounds) is the definition of a developmental rookie but it’s hard not to fall in love with his intangibles. He stands tall in the pocket. He has a strong arm and good accuracy which he put on display on back-to-back deep balls Joseph Ngata and Jadon Haselwood in 1-on-1 drills. His feet are a little wobbly, but experience and reps will fix that. McKee, a sixth-rounder out of Stanford, should be able to easily beat out Book.
Cam Jurgens Remains Starting Right Guard
Cam Jurgens has been the starting right guard for three straight practices. He was supposed to be in a battle for the first-team job with Tyler Steen, but it hasn’t played out that way to start camp. Perhaps the false start penalties from the other day have hurt the rookie’s chances. For now, Nick Sirianni isn’t declaring Jurgens the winner and mentioned that things will change once the pads come on.
“Again, really early. I think to say that he [Jurgens] is there and he is there exclusively would be unfair to the other guys that are competing with him because, again, you’re going to find out more and more as the pads come on,” Sirianni said. “So, he’ll be there today again, but nothing is in stone, and we’ll just keep working to make sure that we put the right five guys out there when we go.”
.@Eagles @LaneJohnson65 @JasonKelce @jordan_mailata @Landon_2012 CamJurgens Everyone should have “sleds” in the backyard. #FlyEaglesFly #BaldysBreakdowns