It’s over. After 15 long and grueling days, the Eagles’ 2018 training camp officially came to an end this morning.
The work isn’t over, but when they get back to the NovaCare Complex next week, it’ll be more like preparing for regular season games.
Today was a light 10-10-10 practice, so it makes observations extremely tough. We won’t have any that are too specific because, as Doug Pederson says, the two sides of the ball “service” the other.
But we’ve done 14 days of observations and I’m not about to not do one on the last day. I’m digging deep today:
1. Ahh. The last day of training camp. It doesn’t quite have the same feel as it did when the Eagles would pack up their dorm rooms and leave Lehigh. All it means now is a little schedule change and slightly shorter days for the players.
2. The following players didn’t practice today: Nelson Agholor, Corey Clement, Donnel Pumphrey, Josh Adams, Markus Wheaton, Mack Hollins, Asantay Brown and Chandon Sullivan. (I didn’t mention the guys on NFI/PUP.)
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Agholor and Clement have lower-body injuries that don’t seem to be too serious; no rush to get those guys back on the field.
Sullivan and Adams got hurt during yesterday’s indoor practice. Sullivan came down really hard on his head after a great interception and Adams pulled up a little lame on the tail end of a run. It’s a shame for Adams, who has looked good when he’s out there and was making a strong push to make the roster.
3. During one of the 10-10-10 practice’s defensive sessions, we finally got our first real look at Christian Hackenberg. In these drills, you have to take everything with a grain of salt, but Hackenberg didn’t look good. His first pass was intercepted by Rasul Douglas. His second pass was intercepted by Kamu Grugier-Hill. His third pass was overthrown by about 20 yards.
4. I don’t have a specific Bryce Treggs observation, but I haven’t mentioned him enough. After coming off the NFI with a knee injury, Treggs put together a really nice training camp. Some of that might have been fresh legs, but Treggs has been getting some first-team work thanks to multiple injuries and is making a push for the roster. He could be the last guy in.
5. I’ve been kind of disappointed by Billy Brown this summer. Remember how much buzz there was about him in the spring? Well, since then, the team drafted Dallas Goedert and Richard Rodgers came as a free agent. Brown has sort of vanished into obscurity. He did have a great catch today, though. He reached out his right hand down the seam and was able to knock the ball back into his arms.
6. One scary moment today came when Rasul Douglas and LaRoy Reynolds collided at full speed. Reynolds was OK, but Douglas was down on the ground for about 30 seconds. Tough kid, though. He eventually got to his feet and was back in the practice two plays later.
7. The most encouraging scene of today didn’t happen on the active practice field. On the side field, Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Graham continued their rehab. Graham pushed a weight sled and Jeffery ran routes and caught passes.
8. In the defensive portion of practice, Nigel Bradham had great coverage on Wendell Smallwood about 25-30 yards downfield to tip a ball away. That’s great for a linebacker on a running back.
9. Didn’t see what happened to him, but Jalen Mills left practice early and Sidney Jones took over his LCB spot. Avonte Maddox got first-team reps in the slot again.
10. A quick swing pass to Darren Sproles today and the 35-year-old was off. That’s been the most impressive thing this training camp for me. Sproles is in his mid-30s, coming off two serious injuries, and looks as quick as I’ve ever seen him. He’s a physical freak.
Stupid Observation of the Day: Every day during training camp, the Eagles have Rita’s water ice for fans, but reporters partake as well. While my gluttonous colleagues eat the water ice for selfish reasons, I’m all about reporting my results. Remembering that I'd look really stupid with weird colored lips while still at work, here’s how I rank the flavors they had at camp:
- Mango
- Lemon
- Juicy pear
- Swedish fish
- Blue raspberry
- Cherry
- Eagles Bleed Green Key Lime