theathleticuk
From the World Cup to Major League Baseballs All-Star Game and LeBron James last decision, its been a busy summer in Philadelphia sports without the Eagles.
Well, summer break is finished.
The biggest show in town is back.
The Eagles report to training camp Tuesday and hit the field Wednesday for their first practice session.
The preseason opens Aug.
15.
The Athletics Zach Berman and Brooks Kubena break down what theyre watching this summer when practice begins.
Advertisement What I want to learn by the end of training camp Berman: Whether the offense can run new coordinator Sean Mannions system at a high level.
We wont know definitively, but there will be clues.
In 2021, it was obvious during training camp that the passing game would be an issue.
In 2022, it was clear the Eagles would field an explosive offense.
Last year, the offensive absences kept the group from finding a rhythm during the summer.
There will be growing pains, but the offense is facing one of the NFLs elite defenses every day.
Is there efficiency from the passing game the ball not hitting the ground, third-down conversions, players finding open space? Are holes opening in the running game? Is the group mostly healthy by the end of the summer? Positive signs for the offense will be key.
Ive said this before: The floor for the Eagles will be set by the defense; the offense will determine the ceiling.
Kubena: Couldnt agree more.
I want to know whether there are signs the 2026 Eagles have a top-10 offense again.
When players such as Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley and Lane Johnson speak, are they speaking optimistically about the system with vague platitudes? Or are they speaking with substance in their confidence? Are stories emerging that demonstrate Mannion is giving them a schematic advantage and isnt in over his head? How crisp, comfortable and dangerous does Hurts look? Because those are the primary indicators of whether the system asks are sensible.
Is the offense raising eyebrows against a defense that has more depth and talent than it did last year? Will the Eagles struggle in joint practices as much as they did against the Cleveland Browns last year? Under-the-radar story that could get bigger by end of training camp Berman: Jalen Carters contract.
Perhaps its not an issue either the sides agree to a new deal or theres no bad blood for waiting but this could be a simmering storyline.
Carter has the talent to be one of the NFLs best defensive players.
The defensive tackle market was reset by Jeffery Simmons, who signed a deal that pays him $35.276 million per season.
Carter has two years left on his deal after the Eagles exercised his fifth-year option, but the team is known to act quickly to sign its premium players.
Its a mild surprise there isnt a new deal yet, especially given that Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean are eligible for new deals after this season.
The Eagles might prefer to wait to gather more information.
I dont anticipate hell get any less expensive, and theres always the possibility of this mushrooming into a bigger public issue.
Kubena: The state of the edge rusher rotation.
There are more pressing matters and bigger questions for the Eagles.
But the defense will be a much-appreciated boon to the new offense if it can get off the field quicker than last year.
The 2025 Eagles defenses three-and-out percentage (27.8) was the franchises lowest since at least 2000, per TruMedia.
Sacks, tackles for loss and walled-off perimeters contribute significantly to that number.
The Eagles exited training camp last year with their weakest edge rusher group in the Nick Sirianni era, and the effects led to the Jaelan Phillips trade.
Jonathan Greenard didnt participate in team drills in OTAs or minicamp while recovering from shoulder surgery.
Does he look the part? Is there enough depth? Or are the Eagles signing Brandon Graham again? Who wins the job as second starting safety? Berman: Id lean toward Marcus Epps given that he started last season after Drew Mukubas injury and is a player you can trust he has 49 career starts but Im not ruling out Michael Carter II.
Carter was viewed as one of the NFLs top slot cornerbacks entering the 2024 season.
Even with a minimal effect on the defense after a midseason trade, the Eagles felt compelled to bring him back.
Im curious to see if he can push Epps.
Im also not ruling out a trade by Howie Roseman before the season.
If I had to make a pick at the moment, though, Id say Epps.
Advertisement Kubena: Epps.
He offers the most reliability and is entering his eighth season.
He knows the position.
It will be challenging for Carter, a career nickel, to learn a new position to the threshold of overtaking defensive coordinator Vic Fangios confidence level in Epps.
The Eagles have plenty of big-play potential in Mukuba and DeJean, who will play safety in base packages.
They need a second safety who helps diminish explosive plays.
Who will win the job as backup quarterback? Berman: Tanner McKee will remain the No.
2 quarterback.
I was surprised to see Andy Dalton split reps with McKee this spring, and Im curious to see how earnest a competition this remains during the summer.
Unless the Eagles trade McKee, I expect him to be the backup quarterback, given his upside leading the offense if Hurts were injured.
Its also not the best asset management if McKee is relegated to a third-stringer this season.
In that case, the Eagles should have dealt him during the offseason when his stock was likely higher.
Hes a fourth-year player on the last year of his deal.
Hes not a long-term developmental project for the team anymore.
Then again, Dalton is an accomplished backup who hasnt been a third-stringer.
This is a more curious situation than I anticipated.
Kubena: I am prepared to be wrong about this: Dalton.
I cant get away from the value he adds as a 16-year veteran who is still game-ready and capable much like Joe Flacco with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Dalton has played in 179 games; McKee has played in six.
Thats a significant disparity when a team is weighing who gives it the best chance of winning in an emergency.
I still need to see how McKee adjusts to a major system change.
He has 14 under-center snaps in the NFL, per TruMedia, and he totaled 46 under-center dropbacks in his career at Stanford versus 706 shotgun snaps.
The training camp standout will be ..
Berman: DeVonta Smiths average NFL Draft position on the fantasy football charts will be higher after training camp, because you can expect to see reports about how impressive he looks in this offense.
Smith was a No.
1-quality receiver even when A.J.
Brown was in Philadelphia.
Hes always been a good practice player.
My guess is Smith will be a high-volume target in training camp who mixes consistency with a few wow plays.
It will be clear that his production is set to jump, and the camp coverage will reflect as much.
Kubena: Hurts.
How much more fuel could have been added to his fire this offseason? How much more determined could he be to prove himself, yet again? If Mannions system is as sensible as Hurts suggested in OTAs, his restored potency will be impossible to miss.
Advertisement A reserve who will be a camp standout Berman: The Tank Bigsby hype will grow after camp.
He averaged 5.9 yards per carry last season on 58 carries, teasing the type of explosiveness that made him a threat in the offense.
Bigsby will get the ball in different ways this summer and will continue to showcase why hes the clear No.
2 running back and also one of the Eagles top offensive weapons, even as a reserve.
Kubena: Eli Stowers upside as a pass-catching tight end could be enticing within a system that will create more easy targets for its tight ends.
Dallas Goedert is Philadelphias most dynamic, all-around option at the moment.
Stowers (6-foot-4, 235 pounds) still needs to develop his body and, as a blocker, secure more snaps as an in-line tight end.
But there will be plenty of opportunity for the second-round pick to showcase his potential in team drills and joint practices.
The biggest concern at the end of camp Berman: The lack of depth on the interior offensive line.
Drew Kendall is the top reserve.
The Eagles added veteran Michael Jordan after minicamp.
If interior offensive line depth is a concern, its probably a sign of a good roster.
Yet, given the injury histories of Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens, there will be concern about how the line looks if one or both are sidelined this season.
New offensive line coach Chris Kuper was gifted one of the best offensive lines in the NFL; his value will be determined by how he develops the reserves.
Kubena: Is the passing game potent enough beyond Smith? When Brown was here, there was generally a hovering question about who the No.
3 option would be which was a largely inconsequential given Smiths and Browns star power.
But if defenses build schemes to stop Smith, is a receiver corps whose biggest upside player is first-round rookie Makai Lemon equipped to create explosive plays still? A trade Roseman should consider this summer Berman: Roseman should continue checking on the status of Browns safety Grant Delpit.
The Browns drafted Emmanuel McNeil-Warren in the second round and liked Ronnie Hickman enough to give him a second-round tender in restricted free agency.
Delpit turns 28 in September and is a free agent after this season.
It would be a good way to solve the safety question for the Eagles.
Roseman should be mindful about his 2027 draft inventory, but this move is worth making.
Kubena: Roseman should continue fielding calls on Jalen Carter.
As Zach said, he has the talent to be one of the best defensive players in the NFL.
His value as a 25-year-old with two years left on his rookie deal should be very, very high.
The Eagles arent ready to commit long-term to a player, however dominant, who was ejected in Week 1 last year for spitting on Dak Prescott, dealt with nagging shoulder issues that required medical attention, and experienced an overall dip in his game.
Other teams have expressed their interest in Carter in the past.
The Eagles should get at least one first-round pick in such a deal.
Could they get two? Or something close? And which player(s) could they trade for by pairing that haul with the 2028 first-round pick they received for Brown?.