Why Drew Kendall Is Making Strides And Becoming No. 3 Guard As Versatile Interior Backup

PHILADELPHIA — Second-year Eagles’ offensive lineman Drew Kendall is making significant strides in his development and is the clubhouse leader to be the top interior backup on game days.

Kendall, the son of longtime NFL guard Pete Kendall, is a natural center after spending all of his college career at Boston College at the pivot. That said, like any OL backup, cross-training is part of the gig, and the younger Kendall has a leg up there as well due to his bloodline.

In Year 2, Kendall has embraced the idea of versatility while also remaking his body with the help of an NFL strength room and digesting lessons from the proven veterans on hands and coaches Chris Kuper and Greg Austin, not to mention the reservoir of knowledge Jason Kelce can provide.

Kelce, the Eagles’ former All-Pro center and likely future Hall of Famer, was helping out at camp for most of the past week.

Embracing The Challenge

Eagles OL Drew Kendall. | John McMullen/Eagles On SI

The challenge of it all is something Kendall is taking head-on.

“Yeah, I like it a lot. It’s just another challenge, going from playing mostly center to now guard,” he said. “Like, I really embrace that. I’m about that as a guy and as a player. It’s never fun to take the easy way out. You want to comb over some things. So, it’s been good. It’s something that I’m constantly working towards and something that you’re always striving to get better at.”

In recent days, Kendall has taken first-team reps at left guard while the Eagles manage the workload of veteran Landon Dickerson. He’s also the second-team center behind Cam Jurgens.

Recently, Kendall and another interior backup, Jake Majors, have been splitting days as the backup center and LG. When Jurgens was forced to leave practice early on Friday, Majors took over as the center because Kendall has been working that practice at OG, so don’t read too much into that. All signs point to Kendall being the guy as the top interior backup.

He credits a combination of factors for his progress.

“I think it’s a lot of things. I can’t point at one,” said Kendall. “I think Steph (Stephanie Coppola, the Eagles’ head performance dietitian) does a great job with us from a nutrition standpoint. I’ve been able to kind of reshape my body a little bit and put on weight in good ways and shed weight in the bad ways. So I feel more comfortable there.

“[The] Strength staff does a great job with us from, getting our bodies right and making sure we’re strong and playing at our best. So I think it’s a combination of learning new techniques from the vets and then working with the great people we have in the building.”

Kendall gauged his current playing weight at just over 300 pounds.

“I’m about 300 to 305, depending on the day. And, you know, with this, you can lose some weight in camp, 305, [is] where I’m at right now. So I feel good.”

Kuper, an interior lineman himself in his playing days, has been a nice fit for Kendall as a mentor.

“He’s been great. He’s fun to work with. You know, he’s a former player, so he kind of understands the everyday grind of it all,” Kendall noted. “So it’s been fun to work with. He’s really smart. He’s played in a very similar system like this, so he kind of understands how to play it. And, you know, as someone who’s learning guard, he played guard at a very high level. So it’s great to learn from him.”

The final piece to the puzzle may be the Eagles’ new blocking scheme, which has received rave reviews from the starters and appears well-suited to Kendall’s athletic profile.

“I think this is one of the systems that can fit my game,” he said. “So it’s been fun to kind of learn it and learn the different tricks that I can use on different plays, use my athletic ability.”

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