Reading the Eagles' Rookie Camp Tea Leaves
Former Tampa Bay coach Dirk Koetter recently provided some interesting insight to The33rdteamFB.com when discussing NFL rookie camps and what organizations are trying to accomplish with them.
"Let’s not kid ourselves, you know when rookie minicamp rolls around and you have a pretty good idea how many roster spots are actually going to be open and with very little variance," Koetter flatly stated. "Although you’re going to find some guys [who can make the roster], your first goal is to find out who can learn and who can retain information."
The Eagles rookie camp earlier this month featured 42 players, the team's five draft picks, a 13-man undrafted class, 19 tryout players, and five others including former Olympian Devon Allen (who did not participate in the portion open to the media), third-year International Pathway project Matt Leo, and a trio of young players still eligible for the process in defensive tackle Marvin Williams, SAM linebacker Christian Elliss, and 2021 sixth-round pick JaCoby Stevens.
Only one tryout player was rewarded with a 90-man offseason roster spot to date: Fresno State rookie receiver Keric Wheatfall.
We can only speculate why Wheatfall turned a sliver of an opportunity that amounted to a 5.2% chance by the numbers into the next hurdle of opening enough eyes to earn a practice-squad spot in the summer but Koetter, who also was a head coach at the college level at Boise State and Arizona State as well as an offensive coordinator in Jacksonville, Atlanta, and with the Bucs, explained what coaches generally look for.
"Part of processing [of] information is who can communicate," said Koetter. "And you can get some of that in a walkthrough without even going full speed."
Since rookie minicamp, one 53-man roster spot was already eliminated by the addition of veteran cornerback James Bradberry, something that further complicated things for what was a high-profile UDFA class at the position for the Eagles that featured Clemon's Mario Goodrich, who got over $200,000 guaranteed to sign, Alabama's Josh Jobe, and Duke's Josh Blackwell.
It would be an upset if the entire draft class wasn't penciled in when it comes to the final 53, even Day 3 picks Kyron Johnson, a SAM LB, and projected special teams difference-maker out of Kansas, and tight end Grant Calcaterra out of SMU via Oklahoma.
As for the long shots, one positive sign was undrafted quarterback Carson Strong being invited to Los Angeles over the weekend for the NFLPA's annual Rookie Premiere, an event that provides marketing partners of the league and union access to 40 of the expected rookie stars for the first time.
While the Eagles aren't going to care all that much that the NFLPA and many others expected Strong to be a draftable commodity, the fact is that one of those roster spots in Philadelphia that the coaching staff understands is up for grabs is QB3 where developmental project Reid Sinnett will try to hold off the more gifted Strong, a player whose major issues are with a troublesome knee and the lack of mobility that's traced to that.
Another name to keep an eye on is Stevens, who spent most of 2021 on the practice squad while trying to make the shift from LSU safety to NFL linebacker.
That might seem counterintuitive because the Eagles have added so much at LB in the offseason but a significant need at safety still exists so who's to say the Eagles don't slip Stevens back to his more natural position or just try to develop a hybrid who can play on the second and third levels on defense?
If Stevens proves he can excel on special teams as well as provide that kind of versatility, longshot could turn likely very quickly.
The final player to keep an eye on is former Oklahoma running back Kennedy Brooks.
The Eagles' plan at RB seems to be set with Miles Sanders entering his contract year with a chip on his shoulder and the expected second-year improvement from Kenny Gainwell as the third-down and hurry-up back. From there, Boston Scott is expected to be the top reserve.
Jordan Howard is waiting for his now annual phone call, however, but remember that came on April 13 last year so it's clear the Eagles want to try something else.
When it comes to speedster Jason Huntley vs. Brooks, the latter is more likely to better fill Howards's role as the so-called "chain-mover." At 5-foot-11 and 209 pounds, Brooks doesn't have Howard's size but his running style is a far closer match to Howard than Huntley's.
-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Extending the Play" on AM1490 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
