The Eagles played their final preseason game on Friday night against the New York Jets, a contest that was the last chance for players on the roster bubble to make a good impression and win a roster spot.
Now, the Eagles have until Tuesday to cut their roster down to 53 players. The initial numbers on this roster will look weird — some positions will seem way too heavy, others way too light. But more roster moves are coming as guys will get claimed and others will go on injured reserve. So the strategy for this roster was trying to find the 53 guys the Eagles care about the most — not just what makes the most sense from a roster-building perspective.
So with 17 training camp practices and three preseason games now in the books, here is my latest 53-man roster prediction:
QB (2): Jalen Hurts, Joe Flacco
The Eagles slowly started taking snaps away from Nick Mullens as camp went on, giving almost all team reps to Hurts and Flacco. It is very unlikely they will keep Mullens, but he could be back on the practice squad. If he isn't, the Eagles won't be too upset, and they will just sign another quarterback.
RB (3): Miles Sanders, Boston Scott, Kenneth Gainwell
A debate throughout camp has been whether the team would keep four-or-five running backs. The Eagles top four at running back are clear, and it wouldn't be surprising if Sanders, Scott, Gainwell and Howard all saw the field in Week 1. The question is whether the Eagles will keep Jason Huntley, who sat on the roster all of last season, but did not have a strong training camp. Considering there are other positions they will need to go deep at (receiver, linebacker, safety), chances are they will release Huntley and risk him to waivers.
WR (7): DeVonta Smith, Jalen Reagor, Greg Ward, Quez Watkins, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, John Hightower, Travis Fulgham
Travis Fulgham has not earned a spot on this roster during training camp or the preseason. He has been basically a non-factor in camp, catching only 50% of his targets (worst on the team) and not catching a touchdown in team drills. He was bad on Friday night, letting the ball get stripped away just a few yards from the end zone after his only catch. Perhaps the Eagles will keep him, but if they do, it will be based simply off of his strong four-game stretch from last season.
Seven receivers is obviously a lot, but the Eagles seem to currently be trying to collect as many receivers as they can and hope a few hit. That has a better chance of happening the more receivers they have.
TE (4): Zach Ertz, Dallas Goedert, Tyree Jackson, Jack Stoll
The decisions at tight end are complicated. There is the potential of Zach Ertz being traded. There is a decision to make about the injured Tyree Jackson. There is the reality that they might need (and want) Richard Rodgers for Week 1. Plus, there is the very underrated camp of UDFA Jack Stoll, who the team might want to hold onto considering both Ertz and Goedert could be gone in 2022. The Eagles will likely carry Jackson through final cuts, release Rodgers, then re-sign Rodgers and put Jackson on injured reserve. The question is whether they want to risk Stoll to waivers, something they might be a little hesitant to do after losing Noah Togiai to waivers last year.
OL (11): Lane Johnson, Brandon Brooks, Jason Kelce, Isaac Seumalo, Jordan Mailata, Andre Dillard, Jack Driscoll, Sua Opeta, Brett Toth, Nate Herbig, Matt Pryor
PUP: Landon Dickerson
The Eagles have 12 offensive linemen they would likely want to keep — the 10 listed above plus Le'Raven Clark and Matt Pryor. Dillard seemed to play well enough on Friday night to beat out Clark for the final backup tackle spot. The question is whether the team will keep just Pryor, just Toth or both. Toth seems to have a high upside, but he doesn't have the experience that Pryor does. The guess here is, based off of Friday night and the injury history they have along the offensive line, is that they keep both. Clark's injury history likely means he will make it through waivers and onto the practice squad.
DT (3): Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, Milton Williams
The Eagles could go very, very light at defensive tackle initially, cutting T.Y. McGill and Hasaan Ridgeway and then bringing one (likely McGill) after initial cuts. The team doesn't need to be super deep at tackle, as they can move Milton Williams or Brandon Graham inside if needed. Plus, with Cox and Hargrave, they won't be going to their backups much on the inside anyway. Marlon Tuipulotu is cut then brought back on the practice squad.
DE (5): Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett, Ryan Kerrigan, Josh Sweat, Tarron Jackson
Outside of special teams this is the easiest unit to predict on the team — and it is the best unit as well. Tarron Jackson could make the roster if the team goes light at another position, like defensive tackle.
LB (7): Eric Wilson, Alex Singleton, TJ Edwards, Davion Taylor, Shaun Bradley, Patrick Johnson, Genard Avery
It feels wrong to be putting seven linebackers for the Eagles, considering they will only be playing two most of the time. It is hard to find who they will cut, however, unless they have a surprise cut in them with Davion Taylor. Genard Avery seems to have a role in the defense as a stand-up rusher, which could keep him on the roster despite missing the majority of camp with an injury. On the other hand, is another team going to pick up Avery, who has barely played since the start of the 2020 season and is currently injured? A surprise addition could be Patrick Johnson, who had been getting first-team reps during the final days of camp.
CB (4): Darius Slay, Steven Nelson, Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson
There was some positive from Michael Jacquet on Friday night, as he returned a fumble for a touchdown, but there was also plenty of bad as the Jets consistently targeted him. Add in his poor play last year (albeit against elite competition) and it is very unlikely he will be claimed. The Eagles could risk Jacquet to waivers, and if he were to get claimed, they could put Scott in at nickel and move Maddox to the outside cornerback should Slay or Nelson go down. If he doesn't get claimed perhaps he will be brought back on the practice squad and elevated for Week 1. Either way, the Eagles will have plenty of (bad) options for outside backup cornerback via the practice squad.
S (4): Anthony Harris, Marcus Epps, K'Von Wallace, Rodney McLeod
How confident the Eagles are that Rodney McLeod will play early in the season will impact their decisions at safety. Considering he hasn't yet practice in training camp, however, it is fair wonder if he will play in Week 1. If McLeod was healthy, Epps might not make the team. Now, however, it seems Epps will be on the roster, with Wallace the top backup.
ST (3): Jake Elliott, Arryn Siposs, Rick Lovato
The Eagles went throughout camp without signing a backup at any of their special teams spots, so this one is easy to predict.
Post Cut Moves:
** Put Tyree Jackson on injured reserve
** Put Genard Avery on injured reserve
** Put Davion Taylor on injured reserve
** Sign TY McGill to 53-man roster (giving them four defensive tackles for Week 1)
** Sign Josiah Scott to 53-man roster (giving them a backup nickel for Week 1)
** Sign Andrew Adams to 53-man roster (could play Week 1 if McLeod isn't ready)
** Sign Jordan Howard to practice squad, elevate for Week 1 (giving them four running backs)
** Sign Hassan Ridgeway to practice squad (backup defensive tackle if needed for Week 1)
** Sign Michael Jacquet to practice squad (Could bring him up if needed for Week 1)
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
