PHILADELPHIA — It’s fair to say training camp could have gone better for the Philadelphia Eagles.
The question is how much it matters for a juggernaut that steamrolled its way to a Super Bowl title just a few short months ago.
That’s part of the difficulty in analyzing a champion as it gears up to try to repeat. Take the defense, for example. It’s led by one of the best in the business in Vic Fangio, who oversaw the league’s top-ranked unit in 2024. Many of the impact players from that group, including Jalen Carter, Quinyon Mitchell, Zack Baun and Cooper DeJean, are back, and all are considered ascending players.
But they parted with a number of contributors, including cornerback Darius Slay and safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and the competitions to fill those vacated roles did not provide resounding answers.
Kelee Ringo and Adoree’ Jackson split reps at corner all summer. Neither was able to cement the job, and the Eagles proceeded to trade for another potential option, Jakorian Bennett of the Las Vegas Raiders, parting with defensive tackle contributor Thomas Booker IV in the process.
“Usually, it does become obvious to everybody as to who’s going to win the job. That hadn’t happened yet,” Fangio said. “I think they all have done a good job in their own way. Had good moments, not so good moments. So, we haven’t reached that conclusion yet.”
It was a similar deal at safety with rookie Andrew Mukuba and Sydney Brown. Mukuba seemed to pull ahead after coming up with a pair of takeaways in his preseason debut against the Cleveland Browns, only to suffer a hamstring injury on the second-to-last day of camp. Fangio said both competitions will likely carry through the preseason finale against the New York Jets.
Injuries on the offensive side of the ball, meanwhile, proved to be a limiting factor. DeVonta Smith missed four days early in camp with back tightness and the last two with a groin injury. On the day he returned from the initial ailment, A.J. Brown popped up on the report with a hamstring — an injury that kept him off the field for most of August.
Then Pro Bowl guard Landon Dickerson tore a meniscus. While the prognosis could have been much worse, it did keep him on the sideline, at times with tackles Lane Johnson (rest) and Jordan Mailata (concussion).
The offensive operation was impacted, as you would imagine. Quarterback Jalen Hurts started off red-hot and finished Wednesday with maybe his best day of camp, but there was a lot of up-and-down in between as he synced up with new offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo while working short-handed.
From Hurts’ perspective, there was a good bit of progress made.
“I think we had a really good offseason and a really good training camp. And being able to build on the foundation we’ve established over the years,” he said.
“For context of what training camp serves as, you want to try and find an identity. I’m not saying we are leaving here with an identity but we know what we’re capable of and the things we need to work on.”
There were positive developments on several fronts. Nobody had a better summer than defensive tackle Moro Ojomo, quieting much of the concern about how the Eagles would compensate for the loss of Milton Williams in free agency.
Similarly, right guard Tyler Steen stabilized after a bumpy few days to start camp, increasing confidence that he’d be able to take over ably for Mekhi Becton.
First-round pick Jihaad Campbell made splash plays day in and day out, stirring the imagination of what’s possible with he and Baun roaming the middle.
“He’s kind of built like Micah [Parsons] a little bit,” running back Saquon Barkley said. “I feel like as he grows and learns the game a little bit more, you’re going to be able to put him in different spots. But just raw, uber athletic, can fly, aggressive.”
Add it all up, and where does it leave them?
Probably in a place where they’ll have to iron out some kinks on the fly. While Hurts, Brown and Smith know each other’s games extremely well by now, there just hasn’t been enough time on task for the starting 11 to expect everything to be super sharp from the jump — especially in a tweaked system featuring a new play caller.
On defense, Fangio will have to continue to experiment with personnel to see what pairings net the best results.
Philadelphia, as an organization that typically steers clear of playing starters in the preseason to preserve their health, is accustomed to using the beginning of the regular season to fine-tune things. The talent usually allows the organization to do so without digging a sizable hole.
But with an opening slate featuring the Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and an overall schedule with little give, the urgency to round into form quickly is heightened.
