Biggest Winners And Losers From Eagles Minicamp: Eagles Rookies Nonexistent

The Eagles rookies were no where to be found on the field

Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Mandatory minicamp is in the books for the Philadelphia Eagles. School is closed for the year and summer break is here.

The Eagles won't be on the field for six weeks as the slowest point of the NFL season is upon us. But first, the report cards must be handed out.

How did this team fare through the two days of mandatory minicamp? Who were the standouts this spring and who failed to meet the grade. Who's stock rose and who's stock fell?

These are the biggest winners and losers from the mandatory minicamp following our observations form practice. Keep an eye on these players when training camp begins.

Losers: The top three rookies

This is how Day 2 of minicamp looked for the top three Eagles draft picks.

Makai Lemon was out with a hamstring injury, and he watched the entire minicamp with the setback. Eli Stowers wore a sleeve on his right leg and wasn't really a factor in the two practices, as it appeared he was limited with an injury. Markel Bell sat out the second minicamp practice, capping a minicamp where he wa sthe second team left tackle after getting first team reps at right tackle during OTAs.

That's the top three draft picks on this roster, injured and/or nonexistent. There's little cause for concern now, but it's fair to wonder if the rookies are behind the 8-ball in regards to their development.

The Eagles will play the long-term game with these players, but Lemon and Stowers are supposed to contribute to this offense this year. Nick Sirianni still seems to think highly of Stowers.

"You can feel some of the power when he's hitting the bags and hitting the guy across from him in an individual setting," Sirianni said. "I think that you can see that he has that power and it's very noticeable with his jumps, like his broad jump, his vertical jump.

"He has explosive power in his body and it's just about being able to go through those reps of getting better blocking, but we think he has that in his body with that, but he hasn't had to do it much and he's relatively new to the position. So, really excited about him and I think he's [an] extremely, extremely intelligent football player."

There's no reason to panic yet, but this isn't a good start for the rookies.

Winner: Tank Bigsby

The Eagles saw what Bigsby could do last season when he spelled Saquon Barkley last season, as he averaged 5.9 yards per carry on 58 carries. When Bigsby got the ball in these two practices, he was explosive and hit the hole quickly.

Philadelphia needs its running game to get back going, and the offense has hinted at Saquon Barkley getting those outside zone runs. Perhaps Bigsby is getting those runs between the A-gap and B-gap as a change of pace back, which would greatly benefit the passing game.

The Eagles have to like what they have been getting out of Bigsby this spring.

Loser: Tanner McKee

Nick Sirianni did everything but confirm McKee isn't the unquestioned QB2, which means there will be a significant battle this summer for that job. This is assuming McKee isn't traded.

"We're rotating there at the two spot," Sirianni said. "I'm not ready to say anybody is anything as far as positions. We don't have to make any determinations there, but what Andy [Dalton] and Tanner have been doing every other day is rotating there with the two's and both [are] getting a lot of good work."

Andy Dalton didn't have many reps with the third-team offense, if at all. McKee was taking those reps while Dalton was on the second team, and McKee looked uncomfortable in the offense.

Perhaps McKee isn't a fit in the offense, but this summer will be telling where he stands on this team.

Winner: Tariq Woolen

The Eagles may have gotten a gem here with Woolen, as his speed just keeps showing up every single day of practice. Woolen caught up with DeVonta Smith on a go ball on Day 1 of practice and disrupted the pass from being completed.

Jalen Hurts had Dallas Goedert seemingly open for a big gain between the seams, but Woolen used his speed to undercut the route and pick Hurts off. Woolen has bene simply dominant this spring.

The Eagles get to have Woolen with Quinyon Mitchell at cornerback and Cooper DeJean in the slot. Life is unfair for opposing offenses.

Loser: Cole Payton

Notice a theme here regarding the rookies and backup quarterbacks. Sean Mannion's offense is going to be difficult to learn, but Payton isn't looked strong in any of the minicamp practices.

Payton's highlight was throwing a deep ball with no one in the area, a pass that should have been picked off. The rookie has done little to stand out, but he's also supposed to be the QB3 (at best) and his still developing.

The Eagles top four draft picks haven't gotten off to a good start this spring. Hard to make much of anything in shells and shorts, but not participating nor standing out in shells and shorts isn't a good thing.

Winner: Jalen Carter

How does a player that didn't participate in team drills at all in mandatory minicamp a winner? When that player as about to get paid.

Carter is in the midst of getting a massive contract extension this summer. This will happen at some point, so it might as well happen now. The Eagles didn't indicate the resting of Carter was because of his shoulder injuries that required a procedure last December, another sign a massive contract is coming soon.

Chris Jones is the highest-paid defensive tackle in the NFL at $31.75 million a season. Carter may surpass that the next time the Eagles take the field.