Eagles left guard Landon Dickerson was one of two players to miss practice on Monday and head coach Nick Sirianni didn’t offer much of a hint about his status for Thursday night during a Tuesday press conference.
Dickerson provided a positive update of his own shortly after that press conference came to an end. Dickerson was on the field and dressed for practice as the Eagles continued their preparations for the Cowboys.
Dickerson missed most of the summer after having a knee procedure, but he was listed on Monday’s injury report with a back issue. Sirianni said that the back is the only reason why Dickerson was out of practice and that he’s been fully cleared to return from the knee problem.
Brett Toth stepped into the first team on Monday, but Tuesday’s return to work suggests he’ll be in a backup role on Thursday night.
Quarterback Tanner McKee (thumb) was the other player out on Monday and he’s still not throwing at Tuesday’s session. Sam Howell would back up Jalen Hurts as long as McKee remains out.
Once again, the Eagles have a new offensive coordinator in 2025.
Since Shane Steichen left the organization after the 2022 season to become the Colts head coach, Philadelphia has had Brian Johnson, Kellen Moore, and now Kevin Patullo in the role.
Unlike Moore, who helped the team win Super Bowl LIX before becoming the Saints head coach, Patullo has been with the organization since the start of head coach Nick Sirianni’s tenure in 2021. He was the club’s pass game coordinator for the last four seasons before being promoted to OC in February.
Patullo will make his play-calling debut on Thursday night when the Eagles open the season against the Cowboys.
“I’m excited. I mean, it’s fun,” Patullo said in his Monday press conference. “It’s a huge opportunity obviously, but it goes back to even in Year 1 with Nick [Sirianni] just working through all the situations and things that we’ve done together. I’ve been a part of so much of it, it doesn’t feel too much different, but it is exciting, and I think the guys feel good energy and they’re excited, too.”
One of the key relationships for Patullo is, of course, with quarterback Jalen Hurts. Patullo noted that he and Hurts have a good working dynamic, as both want to push each other to improve.
“He and I spend a lot of time together, and we have even prior to, just getting a feel for him and what certain things we like and what we want to do and when we want to do it,” Patullo said. “It is important everywhere I’ve ever been, you want to have a good relationship with the quarterback just so you can talk outside and off the field about things, so you have a sense of what they’re thinking and what they’re doing. So, when you call certain things situationally or just a random first intent, you’ve got a good feel for what may happen.”
After Philadelphia finished No. 7 in points and No. 8 in total yards last year, how much different will the offense look with Patullo calling the plays?
“It’s hard to say just one game, but I think there’ll be some new things,” Patullo said. “Whether there will be a ton of them or not, it just depends on the situation, how the game flow goes, and how they come up throughout the game.
“So, I think there’ll be a few things here or there, and then we’ll see throughout the season how much it continues in that direction.”
Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf said in August that the team is open to trading premium draft picks for players currently in the league and the Patriots have ample cap space, so it’s no surprise that some would wonder whether they tried to trade for Micah Parsons before Dallas sent him to Green Bay last week.
Head coach Mike Vrabel fielded questions about that during an appearance on The Greg Hill Show on WEEI on Tuesday morning. Vrabel said a Parsons trade “wasn’t something that we really invested a lot of time or resources in” and that “we have to build some depth there to this roster, and you do that from the draft.”
That led to another question about whether a run of poor drafts in recent years impacted their willingness to make a deal involving first-round picks at this time.
“No,” Vrabel said. “I’m just saying that when we build this thing, and moving forward, we want to build it and make sure that we’re building through the draft. And then again, like I said, retaining the players that we feel like have developed and have earned contracts. And while Micah Parsons is a great player, just probably wasn’t the best fit or the right time, I think, for us.”
Parsons will be lining up with the Packers while Vrabel and Wolf try to find and develop players who can have a similar impact on the game in the years to come.
After the Cowboys traded Micah Parsons to the Packers, owner Jerry Jones said it was a unanimous decision that included players on the team’s leadership council, which includes quarterback Dak Prescott.
Cornerback Trevon Diggs defended his best friend and former teammate Monday, denying any current players were unhappy with Parsons or wanted him gone.
“I think everyone liked him,” Diggs said, via Clarence Hill of All City DLLS. “I feel like there were some former players who are not here no more. There was a lot of, I would say, hate, jealousy, envy towards him because of who he is and the production he does on the field. Imagine if you come in here and you’re take somebody’s shine or taking somebody’s spot, you’re not gonna like that. They’re gonna feel a type of way, especially if you’re that type of person. Me personally, I never got no bad anything from him, like, ever, ever since he stepped foot on the team.”
It is well documented that Parsons and former defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence had a beef. Lawrence criticized Parsons after he signed with the Seahawks, setting off a public fight on social media.
Parsons’ podcast, “The Edge with Micah Parsons,” has been a source of contention with others on the team. A year ago, safety Malik Hooker, who remains with the Cowboys, questioned Parsons’ priorities because of his podcast, prompting Parsons to respond on social media.
“I guess his personality and who he is, he knows he’s a great player,” Diggs said. “He knows he’s good; he knows who he is. So, a lot of people don’t like that. So that could’ve been different. But when we’re in the locker, everyone’s joking; everyone’s laughing; everyone’s smiling; everyone’s happy. So I don’t know where those narratives came from. From my standpoint, he’s a great kid. He takes care of his family, takes care of his responsibilities on the field, and off the field, so he can’t do no wrong in my eyes.”
The contract negotiations between the Cowboys and former linebacker Micah Parsons weren’t simply about paying Micah. They were about the number of years the Cowboys would be paying him.
The Cowboys believed Micah had verbally agreed to a five-year, $202.5 million extension. Parsons held firm at a four-year extension.
Ultimately, Parsons got a four-year extension from the Packers. Which will put him in line for another major contract at least one year sooner. If, of course, he keeps playing at a high level.
As one source estimates it, the recent spike in the edge rusher market (it’s gone up by $13 million this offseason alone) could translate to an extra $65 million or $70 million, thanks to the fact that he’s under contract through 2029 and not through 2030.
Of course, Parsons needs to play at a high level to get another market-level contract. If he doesn’t, the Packers will tear up the contract before 2029 anyway. If he does, they may replace the contract with something closer to the current market in 2029 — or maybe even in 2028.
