The Eagles opened their preseason on Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, giving us our first real look at the team's starting units.
Here are some takeaways from the 24-16 loss:
Jalen Hurts: Hurts got the start as expected and looks good on the opening drive. Hurts hit his first pass, a completion to Zach Ertz, then hit Dallas Goedert on a perfect pass from the pocket for a 34-yard gain. The drive stalled after two drops, but Hurts' passes were on the money in his first drive, which is exactly what the Eagles wanted to see.
Hurts' second drive started with a missed deep pass to Quez Watkins. It would have been a contested catch, but Watkins did seem to have some space between him and the defender, but the pass was overthrown. He followed up that miss with a nice throw to Zach Ertz for a first down, hitting him in stride over the middle for 13 yards. The drive stalled, however, and the team punted three plays later.
Overall it was a good first showing from Hurts, who finished 3/7 for 54 yards. He looked very good from the pocket and outside of his missed throw to Watkins his passes were on the money. The two drops likely prevented the team from opening the game with a touchdown, and from Hurts going 5/7 instead of just 3/7.
Jalen Reagor and Zach Ertz: The Eagles are counting on both Zach Ertz and Jalen Reagor to be big parts of their offense. Both dropped passes on the opening drive. Neither drop was excusable, as both passes from Hurts were catchable and on the money. Ertz came back on the next drive and made a 13-yard catch, while Reagor pulled in a 13-yard catch in the second quarter. Still, the two drops to open the game were killers.
Quez Watkins: The Eagles came out in 12 personnel with two receivers — and Reagor wasn't one of them. Starting in his place was Quez Watkins, who took a short pass on the third drive of the game 79 yards all the way for a touchdown. Watkins caught the ball with multiple defenders around him but used his elite speed to breakaway from the pack. There is no question Watkins has the best speed on the team and might already be one of the team's most dangerous players on offense.
If Sirianni really is going to play the best players, and not let where a player was drafted impact who plays, then Watkins should start Week 1.
Tyree Jackson: The question is no longer whether Jackson will make the team -- it is whether he is going to be playing in Week 1. The former quarterback turned tight end had a great showing on Thursday night, looking very comfortable at his new position and getting snaps with the second-team offense. Jackson's stock continues to skyrocket up.
Brandon Brooks: Right guard Brandon Brooks started the game and played the entire first series. That's a very positive sign for the Pro Bowl offensive linemen, who has missed the majority of camp so far, but seems on track to play in Week 1 after suffering a hamstring injury.
Linebackers: The Eagles were in a two-linebacker set the majority of the time when the starters were in. Eric Wilson and Alex Singleton, as expected, with the starters. The third linebacker was T.J. Edwards, a good sign for his chances of making the team.
Javon Hargrave: Hargrave got right through the Steelers offensive line on the opening drive of the game, drilling quarterback Mason Rudolph into the ground as he threw the ball. Hargrave has had a very good camp so far and it looks like the Eagles are going to get a much better player in 2021 than they did in 2020.
Starting Defense: The Eagles starting defense played just one series. They allowed no points and 41 yards one seven plays. There wasn't a ton to takeaway from the drive — they got the job done and got off the field.
Kick Returner: Quez Watkins was the team's starting kick returner. Probably a bad sign or Jason Huntley's chances of making the roster, considering his speed seems perfectly suited to be the kick returner. Huntley did, however, look good on offense when he got in at running back towards the end of the game.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
