The Eagles returned to the NovaCare Complex after a well-earned day off on Sunday. Here is everything you need to know from toda y’s action.
Injury updates
The main injury update today came in the way of DeVonta Smith’s status. The rookie wide receiver will be out for a couple of weeks after suffering an MCL sprain on Saturday evening. The good news is that the Eagles are just being cautious with an injury they don’t believe to be serious, and the Alabama product should be rejoining the team very soon.
Outside of that, we saw both of the Taylor’s (Davion & Shaun) pop up on the injury report today, although both participated in individual drills.
The rest of the injury report can be seen below:
However, if you thought that’s where the injury news would end, you were wrong. The Eagles kept up with their trend of suffering injuries by the bucketload on Monday. Nate Herbig picked up a knock and left practice early, leaving Sua Opeta the starting reps at left guard. That means that both Seumalo and Herbig are out while Brandon Brooks is currently listed as day-to-day. Not ideal with Landon Dickerson also on the PUP list.
Michael Walker reportedly went into the trainers tent after drawing special teams praise from Michael Clay not too long ago. He joins the never-ending list of Eagles wideouts to have endured some kind of injury trouble during camp. The only wideouts not to tick that box are Travis Fulgham and Jahmon Ausbon, with Andre Patton having only joined the team a few days ago.
Adding insult to ‘injury’, veteran DE Ryan Kerrigan exited practice early with an apparent hand injury. There haven’t been any further updates on this, but it should be another minor setback and nothing to overly serious.
Watkins SZN
For those that have been keeping an eagle eye on social media this year, you will have seen a lot of workout videos from Quez Watkins. That grind looks to be paying off for the second-year wideout, who went off for a pair of touchdowns today.
It’s not hard to remember how blazing he looked in the open field last year, even in a limited sample size. Watkins scored on a screen pass against Arizona in explosive fashion and if the Eagles will be using him in similar ways this season, it’s easy to see the upside.
Here come the rooks
It’s been a relatively tame camp for the rookies so far, but that changed somewhat on Monday. Kenny Gainwell also flaunted his potential on screen passes, while Zech McPhearson logged his first interception of the Summer. While the ball appears to have been an underthrow from Nick Mullens, Dave Zangaro was quick to note how the young corner high-pointed the ball on the sideline to make the play.
Mailata says anything you can do, I can do better
Jordan Mailata is reportedly in the ‘best shape of his life’ and is really taking it to Andre Dillard in the battle for the team’s starting LT spot. What he really needed to do to up the ante was prove he could shine where Andre Dillard has hasn’t.
Dillard has struggled somewhat against Derek Barnett in the early parts of camp, while Mailata has handled himself very well against Sweat. Today, Barnett lined up opposite the Aussie, and Mailata stepped up to the plate with confidence.
This is the kind of thing that will ultimately give him the edge in the long-run. If Mailata can consistently get one-ups on the former first-round pick, then it’s going to make Nick Sirianni’s decision that much easier when it comes to picking the starter.
Also, the tweet below is the kind of thing we absolutely love to see. Mailata’s work ethic is clear to see and he was one of the only players last year to constantly lift those around him between plays, picking up fallen teammates, and acting as a pillar of energy. To me, Mailata is soaring toward the starting role.
The underdog keeps barking
Another day, another Tyree Jackson highlight.
The former Bills QB has made plenty of progress since transitioning to tight end and it doesn’t look like that momentum is disappearing anytime soon. Here’s to hoping we see a preseason breakout!
Up next for the Eagles
The team will be back at the NovaCare Complex tomorrow for another practice, only this time the pads will be in use. It will be the first live-hitting practice under Nick Sirianni, so there will be plenty of things to look for on both sides of the ball.
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Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
