4 Takeaways From Eagles Initial Practice Squad: Is There Bigger Role for Jaydon Blue?

The Philadelphia Eagles have filled out their 17-man practice squad, setting their initial 70-man roster -- the key word here is initial.

There will be changes to the practice squad all season, whether teams actually decide to sign players to their active roster or the Eagles promote players to the active roster themselves. This roster isn't set in stone and probably will change before Week 1.

Let's look at the 17-man practice squad and the biggest takeaways from the practice squad signings -- including which players could help this team in 2026.

Jaydon Blue could see a call up or two

Would it surprise anyone if Blue would emerge as an extra running back on game days? The Eagles signed Blue to the practice squad after he passed through waivers, a new opportunity after falling out of favor in Dallas.

Blue is only 22 years old and was active on game days in his rookie season with the Cowboys. He finished with 38 carries for 129 yards and a touchdown (3.4 yards per carry), and only had one catch for five yards. This was a far cry from the pass-catching back at Texas that had caught 42 passes for 368 yards and six touchdowns two years ago.

The Eagles did have Blue in for a pre-draft workout last year, and he ran a 4.38 at the combine last year. Philadelphia could use another pass-catching back amongst the running back group, even though the Eagles have their three backs on the active roster.

If the Eagles wanted to call up a fourth running back, Blue could add another dimension to this offense -- even if he wouldn't get a lot of snaps. This move is also for the long term, as Tank Bigsby will be a free agent after this season.

Blue could be the RB2 in 2027, and the Eagles will have a whole year to develop him.

Britain Covey will be an early-season activation

The Eagles have used this form of roster gymnastics with Covey for the past few seasons. They would release Covey, get him through waivers, then add him onto the practice squad.

Philadelphia then would add Covey to the active roster after the third practice squad elevation. Teams get three practice squad elevations a season before they either have to promote that player to the active roster or keep them on the practice squad. This is what the Eagles will do with Covey.

Wonder why Covey is here? Remember how bad the Eagles were at punt returner when Covey was injured last season? The Xavier Gipson experiment still haunts a lot of people in Philadelphia.

Covey averaged 11.3 yards per return last season and led the league in punt return yards (417) in 2023. The Eagles need a reliable punt returner and Covey provides that.

Don't worry over losing Uar Bernard, Joshua Weru

The Eagles took the risk put waiving Bernard and Weru, two players from the International Pathway Program that didn't make the initial 53-man roster. Neither Bernard nor Weru are going to be on the 53 this year, as they have a long way to go before they develop enough to contribute to this football team.

The Eagles were able to get both to pass through waivers, and they'll be on the practice squad. While Bernard and Weru can sign to any team's active roster, that isn't going to happen this year.

Practices aren't open to the media, nor can other teams see any open practices. Weru and Bernard aren't going to have game tape since they are on the practice squad, as their game tape was from the preseason.

If teams didn't claim Bernard or Weru after the preseason, why would they sign either of them now? Their development is protected inside the Jefferson Health Training Complex.

No team is going to see Bernard nor Weru besides the Eagles. They'll get the whole year to work on learning the game of football, ready for an expanded role in 2027.

Robert Longerbeam is an active roster candidate

The Eagles have been seeking more cornerback depth, and were fortunate Longerbeam passed through waivers. The Baltimore Ravens selected Longerbeam in the sixth round of the 2025 draft after he ran a 4.39 at the combine.

Longerbeam missed his rookie seaosn with a knee injury, but he had a good summer in Baltimore. The Ravens were deep at cornerback, so Longerbeam ended up being a roster casualty.

Given the Eagles situation at cornerback, Longerbeam has a shot at the 53 this year. Behind the three starters, the depth is questioned with Jonathan Jones' shoulder injury. While Jones should return very soon, is Mac McWilliams a roster mainstay?

The answer? Probably not, and Longerbeam has more upside than McWilliams. The same goes with Ringo, who is a free agent after this year. Ringo is on this team because of his special teams ability anyway.

Longerbeam could add depth at cornerback later in the season, once he gets acclimated to the defense.

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