I'll admit it — I really, really miss writing training camp practice observations.
So when the Eagles released a 59-second video on Monday of the rookies practicing at the NovaCare Complex, I knew what I had to do.
Here are practice observations from the Eagles' rookie training camp video:
It Looks Like Fotball: There have been lots of questions about what practice will look like in a COVID-19 NFL. Well, in the brief glimpse we got on Monday, it looked…normal. Yes, coaches were wearing masks, and it was an edited video, but the sights and sounds were the same. Players were running the same drills they normally do. Linemen were hitting sleds, defensive backs were back peddling, receivers were getting hit with a stick as they made catches. The sun hitting the field at the NovaCare looked exactly how I remembered it.
Things are going to be different this year, but I would be lying if I said it wasn't reassuring to see how much that 59 second video looked like a normal football practice.
Rookie Receivers: We saw all three rookie receivers catch a pass in the video — Quez Watkins, Jalen Reagor and John Hightower. Reagors' catch came from quarterback Jalen Hurts on a short pass over the middle. Good news is it seems that they have caught everything thrown their way and have had zero drops. That is especially good for Reagor, who had drop issues in college, but caught both passes thrown his way in the video. A promising start to their Eagles' careers.
Jalen Reagor: One of my favorite parts of the beginning of camp is seeing how the different rookies look in their numbers. I was a bit skeptical of Jalen Reagor in No. 18, but seeing him run around in it wearing midnight green, I officially give it two-thumbs up. Not as crazy about Hightower's No. 82. Shaun Bradley in No. 54 feels like it means he will make a Pro Bowl.
Cameron Johnston and Jake Elliott: The Eagles' kickers make an early appearance in the video, as they are one of only a few sets of players that are allowed to touch the ball right now. Both of their kicks looked good, and it is safe to say that the Eagles are once again going to have no issues with either player, something they shouldn't take for granted.
K'Von Wallace: Wallace is shown a few times in the video. He goes through one drill without any gloves. Power move. It seems like he wore gloves during his games at Clemson, but I think Wallace going with a no-glove, white-tape on the fingers situation would be awesome.
Luke Juriga: Undrafted Eagles rookie center Luke Juriga is seen snapping the ball to Hurts in one clip. Seems like there were no issues. Stock is up.
Jalen Hurts: Hurts threw some beautiful deep passes during his time at Oklahoma and Alabama, and he did it again in the practice video, hitting rookie receiver Manasseh Bailey in stride down the sideline. For those asking it will not count towards my quarterback stats, since those are only in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills, and there were no defenders on the field for the throw. Still, I had Hurts as 2-for-2 in the video.
Eagles' Safeties: A shot at the end showed Wallace and underrated rookie safety Grayland Arnold talking together during a break. After four years of having Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod being the unquestioned starters, that will soon be changing. Jenkins is gone and McCleod could be gone after this season as well. Training camp is a time to get irrationally excited about the future of unproven players. You have to wonder if Wallace and Arnold, who fit exactly what the Eagles are looking for in a safety duo, could be the future.
Shaun Bradley: The video ends with rookie linebacker Shaun Bradley saying the team is there to do work. Bradley could be seeing a lot more work than expected after the decision by Jatavis Brown to retire on Monday. Bradley is known for his play against the run, and is a strong tackler, and should see time right away on obvious running downs when the team has three linebackers. The question is whether he can adjust to the speed of the NFL in coverage situations.
We're here to work.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/Iu9TW0hSB4
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) August 10, 2020You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
