With the Eagles officially announcing their seven UDFA signings, the team officially has 87 of its 90 roster spots filled out. Even though there are still three openings on the roster, we're taking an educated guess at which guys currently on the roster will be on the field for Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons.
**Italic font depicts starters**
QB: Jalen Hurts, Joe Flacco, Jamie Newman
Not much drama here, as Hurts is the clear starter and Flacco is the clear backup. UDFA Jamie Newman is the only question mark on if the team keeps him on the 53-man roster or try to get him on the practice squad. For now the guess would be he stays on the team.
RB: Miles Sanders, Jordan Howard, Kenneth Gainwell, Kerryon Johnson
It's been fun watching Boston Scott manhandle the Giants these past few seasons, but with Gainwell and Johnson now on the roster, they can handle all the responsibilities Scott has had and maybe even do them better. Howard would make the roster over Scott due to the difference in running styles with the team needing at least one "power back." The other running backs on the roster (Elijah Holyfield, Jason Huntley, and Adrian Killens) have too steep of a hill to climb to make the team.
WR: DeVonta Smith, Travis Fulgham, Jalen Reagor, Greg Ward, Quez Watkins, JJ Arcega-Whiteside
There's a lot of hype surrounding UDFA Trevon Grimes, so depending on how he performs in training camp he could steal JJAW's spot. Otherwise, it looks like John Hightower, Khalil Tate, and Jhamon Ausbon will be good practice squad candidates.
TE: Zach Ertz, Dallas Goedert, Caleb Wilson
This is a difficult situation since all signs appear that Ertz won't be on the roster come Week 1, but keeping him on the team in this scenario. Caleb Wilson, Jason Croom, Hakeem Butler, Tyree Jackson, and UDFA Jack Stoll will all try to fight for the third TE slot, but for now I'd give the edge to Wilson.
OL: Jordan Mailata, Isaac Seumalo, Jason Kelce, Brandon Brooks, Lane Johnson, Andre Dillard, Landon Dickerson, Nate Herbig, Jack Driscoll
As of now I believe Mailata will beat out Dillard for the starting LT position, but it's a flip of a coin at this point. The other lineman on the roster (Luke Jurica, Sua Opeta, Matt Pryor, Ross Pierschbacher, Brett Toth, Kayode Awosika, Harry Crider) all are on the outside looking in, but a few will likely end up on the practice squad.
DL: Brandon Graham, Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, Derek Barnett, Josh Sweat, Milton Williams, Hassan Ridgeway, Marlon Tuipulotu
The Eagles invested heavily in the defensive line in this year's draft, but I think there's one pick of the three that won't make the team -- Tarron Jackson. That's just due to the depth the team has at the position, but he's a good practice squad candidate. Joe Ostman, Matt Leo, T.Y. McGill, Raequan Williams, and Jaquan Bailey will all likely be cut at the end of the preseason.
LB: Alex Singleton, Eric Wilson, TJ Edwards, Davion Taylor, Shaun Bradley, Genard Avery
The Eagles used two draft picks last year on linebackers (Taylor, Bradley) and now they are converting two of their picks this year into linebackers (Jacoby Stevens, Patrick Johnson). Stevens and Johnson likely need a full year to complete their transitions so they'll end up on the practice squad. Joe Bachie and Rashad Smith will just be camp bodies.
CB: Darius Slay, Craig James, Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson, Michael Jacquet, Kevon Seymour
Arguably the weakest position group on the team, there's a significant drop-off in talent after Slay. Maybe one of the three open roster spots will be used to bring in a free agent cornerback. As of now I'd say Lavert Hill, Jameson Houston, Shakial Taylor, and Nate Meadors will be the cuts.
S: Rodney McLeod, Anthony Harris, Andrew Adams, K'Von Wallace, Marcus Epps
There's some worry at the position with McLeod coming off an ACL tear, but there's hope that Wallace will improve in year two. Elijah Riley and Grayland Arnold are the two players at the position on the outside looking in.
STs: Jake Elliott, Rick Lovato, Arryn Siposs
It's a little surprising that the team didn't bring in competition for the punter job, but as of now it's Siposs' job.
It's unclear how many players will be allowed on the practice squad this year. Before the pandemic it was supposed to be 12 players, but it was upgraded to 16 last season. Teams are only allowed to have two players with an unlimited amount of NFL experience, as all other players on the practice squad need to have less than two seasons of accrued NFL tenure.
16 Player Practice Squad Prediciton:
RB Boston Scott
RB Jason Huntley
WR John Hightower
WR Trevon Grimes
TE Hakeem Butler
TE Tyree Jackson
G Sua Opeta
G/T Matt Pryor
G Kayode Awosika
C Harry Crider
DE Joe Ostman
DE Tarron Jackson
DT Raequan Williams
LB Jacoby Stevens
LB Patrick Johnson
S Elijah Riley
