Training Camp might be some way off into the distance, but that hasn’t stopped the Eagles tinkering with their roster. The team announced a trio of roster moves on Wednesday, two of which left fans scratching their heads.
The team waived QB Jamie Newman and WR Khalil Tate, also announcing that prized UDFA WR Trevon Grimes had been waived with an injury designation.
Trevon Grimes might have a second rodeo with the Eagles
The waiving of Grimes was hardly surprising considering that he recently underwent a knee surgery, however it’s not all bad news. If he clears waivers, he will end up on the Injured Reserve list in Philadelphia, so we may well still get to see what he can do in Midnight Green. He never got that opportunity during the spring due to the surgery, but he’s a player that fans salivated over after he slipped through the cracks of the NFL Draft.
Jamie Newman waived
As for the waiving of Jamie Newman, this also came as a surprise. At 6’2, 234 lbs, he is a dual-threat quarterback who defined low-risk, high-reward.
In 2019, Newman garnered a PFF grade of 96.5 on throws of over 20+ yards, second to only Joe Burrow in the entire nation. He had just one play deemed ‘turnover worthy’ in 71 passes. Of those 71 passes, 13 went for touchdowns and only 3 ended in a turnover.
He transferred from Wake Forest to Georgia in 2020 with the intent of boosting his draft stock, but a COVID-stricken season impacted the community and family of the future Eagles QB, forcing his hand in a decision to sit out his final collegiate season. After OTA’s, the team had clearly seen enough to deem him not the player they are looking for to fill the cleats of Nate Sudfeld as QB3. Expect a correlating move soon, with the team ideally needing a third signal caller before Training Camp starts on July 27th.
A new face joins the Eagles
According to NBC Sports Philadelphia, former UDFA WR Michael Walker is joining the team. He caught on with the Jaguars in 2019 as a rookie and was very much a special teams ace, averaging 22.8 yards per kick return, totalling 411 yards and 2 fumbles in the process.
As a senior, he returned 40 kicks for 1,020 yards and 20 punts for 274, adding only 218 yards of receiving on offense. The Eagles do still have a huge void at returner and have been unable to find a suitable replacement for the departed Darren Sproles.
It will be interesting to see how he fares during Training Camp, but without much in the way of a UDFA haul due to the pandemic and rookie minicamp also limited, this may be a case of the Eagles kicking the tires on a player who newly hired exec and former Jaguars GM, Dave Caldwell, was high on.
Photo by John Korduner/Icon Sportswire
