The first wave of roster cuts are in the books but the Eagles still have 12 more roster moves to make before 4PM today. There were some surprising decisions yesterday, but who’s in good stead to make the team as a result?
S Rudy Ford
The Eagles have experienced a lot of movement at Safety this offseason, but the dial has been turned up to 11 recently. A flurry of roster moves prior to the preseason finale hinted that the Eagles would be looking for special teams contributors.
The man who led the Rams special teams unit in tackles in back-to-back seasons, Blake Countess was placed on IR recently and furthermore, both Tre Sullivan & Deiondre Hall (who both combined for 13 special teams tackles and over 70% of special teams snaps) were waived yesterday. The Eagles obviously need some special teams contributions at Safety and veteran Rudy Ford, who has 422 special teams snaps to his name, could be a shoo-in to make the roster given that he has somehow survived the first wave of cuts.
WR Greg Ward Jr.
Ward Jr. has been working to prove that ‘third time is the charm’ with the Eagles after trying to make the team in both of the last two offseasons. But this, after a stint in the AAF honing his craft, has been his most impressive yet and he’s really taken the fight to Mack Hollins. Ward Jr. amassed 87 receiving yards and a touchdown this preseason and there’s a strong chance he’s done enough to convince the coaching staff that he has enough upside to be kept around.
TE Alex Ellis
Richard Rodgers was placed on IR last night and the Eagles currently have two tight ends on the roster. If they want to run 13-personnel, keeping a fourth tight end may be optimal, but even if they just keep a third, one could argue that Ellis has shown much more in the last few weeks than Perkins has. Perkins may have the inside track due to familiarity with the team, but the receiving prowess of Ellis may be too strong to ignore.
OL Stefen Wisniewski
Wisniewski has struggled massively this offseason after moving inside to center and the team are yet to waive Matt Pryor, who has also had a tough time. The team may, just may, keep Wisniewski as a plug-and-play guard who can also play center if absolutely necessary. At this point, he’s a longshot, but don’t write it off.
LB T.J Edwards
Alex Singleton was waived yesterday, sparking a rise in ‘heartbreak anthem’ playlists everywhere. The Eagles are likely keeping Nate Gerry and L.J Fort, but Edwards exploded over the last few weeks, with Thursday night being the cherry on the cake. The UDFA is firmly on the bubble, but letting him walk would be a disservice after such a strong preseason.
Mandatory Photo Credit: AP Photo/Matt Rourke
