Philadelphia Eagles

Ten takeaways from day fourteen of Eagles Training camp

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NFL: Philadelphia Eagles-OTA
May 28, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles defensive back Eric Rowe (32) runs drills during OTA’s at the NovaCare Complex. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Today marked the final full practice before the Eagles first pre-season game against the Buccaneers on Thursday which meant for some, it was their last chance to make an impact and gain some extra reps ahead of Thursday night. Here are ten takeaways from today’s NovaCare Complex action.

 

Injury update:
As Zach Berman notes, there Eagles injury situation isn’t exactly looking any brighter as we head in to the final few days before Pre-season begins.

On top of this, it was later revealed that the knee injury Jordan Matthews sustained a few days ago is going to keep him sidelined through the opening two games of Pre-season. The Eagles expect the Wide receiver to be back in time to face the Colts in the team’s third pre-season game.

Mychal Kendricks left practice early today with reported hamstring soreness to put the cherry on the cake for the Eagles. Considering how light the depth is at linebacker, it sees a big opportunity for the rookies to step up if Kendricks misses any pre-season times..but isn’t exactly great news in the grander scheme of things.

 

Carroll steps up:
The cornerback competition is a vicious one..and Nolan Carroll has started this week explosively, which is exactly what he needed to do.

Physicality is the new theme for this Eagles Defense and it seems like Nolan Carroll has no problem lighting people up. It’s only Training camp, but it’s been a transitional period for the cornerbacks of the Eagles 2015 roster..so Carroll appearing to be emerging as a more physical corner is a great sign.

 

Uncharacteristically bad day for Givens:
Chris Givens has been one of Training camp’s pleasant surprises for the Eagles..but the former Ram appeared to struggle today.

Drops seem to be a universal problem for the Eagles and it’s the first time we’ve heard Givens have an “off-day” so to speak. After such a solid camp that saw him re-ignite his chemistry with Sam Bradford, this shouldn’t mean anything drastic.

 

Attitude adjustment:
Talking of drops however, there looks like there’s a change in attitude among the Wide receivers. Whether this is something that’s been implemented by Greg Lewis or something done of the receiver’s own accord..but it’s interesting to say the least.

 

 

This isn’t the first time that this has happened either. It’s been noted a lot more in recent practices but perhaps this is a way for the Eagles coaches to try and iron out the persistent drop issue.

 

Eric R…oh:
It’s been a tough camp for second year corner Eric Rowe and while signs of improvement and recently increased levels of physicality have helped him move in the right direction..he’s still struggling.

Rowe is going to need a big pre-season with such intense competition behind him if he is to cement a starting role in 2016.

 

Penalties could still be a problem for the Offense:
I wrote an article a week ago detailing how the Eagles struggled mightily with penalties on the Offensive line last year. In fact, Johnson and Peters ranked among the top 15 most penalized players per game in the NFL. That could still be a concern heading into 2016..

It’s something that simply has to be ironed out and in a new Offense, that’s going to take time. But as noted in the article, O-Line penalties cost the Eagles 258 Offensive yards in 2015..that cannot happen again.

 

Wentz wobbles:
One of the biggest criticism’s of the second overall pick so far has been his accuracy. That was once again at the forefront of comments today.

Like many fans and analysts, my eyes will be glued to the screen when Wentz steps out onto the field on Thursday, eager to see how he fares in his first live-game situation in an NFL environment after a developmental camp.

 

Rampant Randle:
Reuben Randle has easily been the most consistent receiver throughout Training camp and went on to make more big plays today.

If Randle performs at this level throughout the regular season, the Eagles will have arguably had the steal of Free agency. It’s been a very encouraging camp from Randle, especially considering how desperately the Eagles crave a safe pair of hands.

 

Pre-season prep:
Surprisingly, Wentz has seen a decline in reps over the last few practices. Again this may seem unconventional, but it could just be preparation for Thursday night.

With Pederson stating that Wentz is going to take a bulk of reps in the second half of the game on Thursday..this could just be a way to get him used to the rotation. However, we also know that development has been a key focus and that Wentz was set to see just as many reps as Bradford/Daniel to start Camp.

Towards the end of camp, the focus naturally shifts onto the starter who after all, will be preparing to lead his team for 16 games instead of watching in the wings. I don’t think this is anything against Wentz as such, more just a way of focusing on preparing the starters as the season draws near.

 

Agholor fired up:
Agholor didn’t exactly set the world on fire in 2015 and has had a fairly inconsistent camp..but he’s bringing the heat in the week running up to Pre-season.

The pressure is on going into his second season for a variety of reasons..and it seems as though he’s well aware of the challenge that lies in front of him. Agholor is very vocal when something goes wrong and appears to be just as expressive when the opposite happens. A good sign for the Eagles.

 

 

Mandatory Photo Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

 

About the Author

Liam Jenkins

Liam is a 29-year old sports journalist from the UK and founder of the Philly Sports Network. Having now ran PSN for a decade, Liam’s focus remains on building a platform containing the most complete coverage of ALL of Philadelphia’s sports teams.

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