Philadelphia Eagles

Ten takeaways from day five of Eagles Training camp

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In what was the longest practice of Training camp so far, the Eagles seemed a little off the mark. From what appeared to be fundamental quarterback flaws to inconsistencies elsewhere, it was an interesting day inside the NovaCare Complex Bubble..but it wasn’t all bad. Here are ten takeaways from today’s practice.

Injury update:
Brandon Brooks and Ryan Mathews were absent from camp once again today, dealing with injuries already reported. Brooks’ hamstring injury  is said to be day-to-day and he’s expected to return sooner than the Eagles starting running back. Doug Pederson he expects both to be back next week however.

Wentz wobbles..:
It’s fair to say Carson Wentz wasn’t at his best today. According to almost everyone who was live-tweeting the practice, the second overall pick just couldn’t quite find a rhythm.

It’s to be expected however and we really shouldn’t panic. Wentz is a rookie and it would be incredibly surprising if he went through all of Training Camp without at least a few off-days. Wentz has all the right fundamentals in place, it’s just a case of developing him into the Franchise guy he has the ceiling to become..and that doesn’t happen overnight. Besides, Wentz wasn’t the only one who looked a little off.

 

…As does Bradford:
It appears as though there was something fundamentally wrong with the quarterbacks today. Sam Bradford also seemed a little inconsistent.

BGN’s Brandon Gowton saying “finally threw deep” sounds too familiar. It’s not the first time that we’ve seen Bradford go into a conservative checkdown mode in Camp..and the poor pass downfield doesn’t sound too encouraging for a quarterback whose main strength is pinpoint accuracy. However, it seems like all three quarterbacks were a little wobbly today..so maybe it was just fatigue. They have been practicing everyday since Monday and as we know, Wentz turned up two days prior to put in some extra work with Jordan Matthews.

 

The Green Goblin continues to plague the Offense..but there’s still a learning curve:
Jalen Mills just keeps on making plays, but we must be careful not to get too overzealous. He’s still a rookie, and a player who was drafted in the seventh round.

Two stark contrasts there for the LSU star who lined up with the second team to start the day. Mills keeps turning heads day in and day out..but it’s important to remember that there’s likely a long road ahead of him yet.

 

Cornerback rotation:
The more practices come and go, the more we’re beginning to get a clearer picture of how the Eagles secondary will look..at least heading into Pre-season.

It’s clear that the corners who have produced under Schwartz are taking an authoritative role here. We know that Rowe and Mills were taking the second team reps, with Nolan Carroll apparently bridging the gap between the experienced system experts and the young hotshots. Will this change over time? Most likely. Development is at the forefront of this camp so we could well see the likes of Mills and Rowe move up to the first team, while JaCorey Shepherd shifts his way up to the second team during some plays. McKelvin gave up the second lowest completion % in 2015..and he’s walked into camp carrying that same swagger he ended last season with.

 

Agholor playing with a chip on his shoulder:
It’s been a humbling offseason for Nelson Agholor, who is looking to put the controversy behind him and push himself harder than ever. Not only is he coming off of a slightly disappointing rookie season, but now he has even more reason to let his play do the talking..and he’s wasting no time making a statement.

That’s exactly the kind of attitude everyone is looking to see from the former USC receiver. It’s a new chapter for Nelson Agholor, and one he hopes is much brighter than his last.

 

Rise and Grymes:
One man who is still continuing to stand out from the overcrowded secondary is former CFL corner Aaron Grymes.

https://twitter.com/JoshPaunil/status/759023265528614913

We will have some more information on Grymes in today’s “The Outside Insider” Podcast which will be uploaded later today. Not only is Grymes impressing consistently, he’s not afraid to mix it up with the most notable receivers on the roster. An encouraging sign from a corner who faces such formidable competition. If you ask me, Grymes has become the new Jalen Mills..Mills is no longer the gritty underdog, he’s a guy everyone’s expecting to see on the roster come week one. The underdog honor now falls to the former Edmonton Eskimo.

 

Zach Ertz looks dominant:
Zach Ertz received a healthy payday during the offseason, cementing his future in Philadelphia, but in Training Camp he’s been reasonably quiet in the opening days. Maybe it’s because there’s been so many other headlines..but today that changed. The Tight end who’s primed for a breakout season looked extremely good according to the beats.

Considering how crucial Ertz is going to be to the success of Pederson’s Offense, it’s always encouraging to hear how dominant he can be..even at Training camp.

 

Eric Rowe responds:
There’s been plenty of speculation surrounding the future of Eric Rowe in recent weeks and a lot of it has been unsolicited. However, the second year cornerback responded to the recent reports with a relatively impressive day.

It didn’t help that Schwartz listed a few questionable corners ahead of Rowe when discussing the state of the Secondary which just caused even more speculation. But after Pederson said he had “some hiccups” in OTA’s, he seems keen to iron them out and re-assert himself in the starting conversation despite taking second team snaps.

 

Parkey takes back seat in kicker battle:
One of the most overlooked position battles on the Eagles roster is that of starting kicker. With Parkey dueling with Caleb Sturgis to earn his role back, the pressure is well and truly on..but Parkey hasn’t had a dream start.

There’s plenty of time left on the clock for both players to prove they’re worthy of the role..but the early upper hand belongs to Sturgis.

 

 

Photo credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

About the Author

Liam Jenkins

Liam is a 25-year old sports journalist from the UK and founder of the Philly Sports Network. In just five years he turned a hobby into one of the fastest-growing Philadelphia sports sites in the world, amassing 7,000,000 views and writing over 3,000 articles. Drawing attention from the likes of CSN, NJ.Com and Bleacher Report in the process, Liam is set on changing the way Philadelphia sports teams are reported on forever. You can contact him here: [email protected]

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