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PHILADELPHIA − Perhaps it was just a matter of time.
But it certainly seemed like Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense were in sync more than they had been before in Day 4 of training camp.
That started right away as Hurts began the day by hitting three straight intermediate passes, even some across the middle, to Dontayvion Wicks, DeVonta Smith and Elijah Moore.
The Eagles practiced indoors on Aug. 3 because of heavy rains in the Philadelphia area throughout the morning.
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Sure, there was an occasional hiccup, most notably when cornerback Quinyon Mitchell jumped Hurts' pass in the flat to Moore, intercepted it and returned it for a touchdown. That, however, can be seen as an encouraging sign that Mitchell, who was an All Pro last season in Year 2, is becoming more of a ball hawk.
Mitchell has never had an interception in his two full seasons during the regular season. It should be noted that he has had two each in the 2024 and 2025 playoffs.
Andy Dalton was sharp as well, getting the second team reps at quarterback.
But Hurts was in command throughout the day. The Eagles ran some red-zone drills with the first unit, and Hurts immediately hit Smith just past the pylon for a touchdown. On the next play, Hurts rolled to his right, then fired across his body to Smith in the middle of the end zone for another TD.
As Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said, the progression on the new offense won't come linear, but rather in fits and starts. Still, Day 4 was much better than Day 3 on Aug. 1.
Eagles rookie WR Makai Lemon did not take part in team drills for undisclosed reasons. Lemon was in uniform and he did go through individual drills. It's not known if this is related to his hamstring injury that kept him out of the final two weeks of spring practices in June, although Lemon did say on Aug. 1 that he was fully healed.
In addition, right tackle Lane Johnson missed his second straight practice with an excused, non-injury reason. Fred Johnson and rookie Markel Bell alternated at first team at right tackle.
Other players who didn't practice were edge Keyshawn James-Newby (ankle), G Micah Morris (shoulder), OL Jaeden Roberts (calf contusion), and S Cole Wisniewski (hamstring).
We know that Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis are the big stars at defensive tackle, as both were paid handsomely with extensions during the offseason. Carter signed through 2031 on a four-year extension worth as much as $152 million while Davis signed a three-year extension through 2030 for as much as $78 million.
Moro Ojomo, the third DT, is also a budding star and should be paid handsomely this offseason either as a free agent or by the Eagles.
So it's easy to overlook someone like Byron Young, who has proven to be a valued backup. On Aug. 3, he penetrated the offensive line and stopped running back Tank Bigsby on a red-zone run up the middle. We haven't seen much from Ty Robinson, the Eagles' fourth-round pick last season. But the Eagles are at least four-deep at DT.
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Sign up for the "Eye On The Eagles" newsletter, emailed to your inbox every Friday morning. Read his coverage of the Eagles’ championship season in “Flying High,” a hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Eagles Day 4 camp observations. Jalen Hurts' best day? Top unit shines
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But it certainly seemed like Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense were in sync more than they had been before in Day 4 of training camp.
That started right away as Hurts began the day by hitting three straight intermediate passes, even some across the middle, to Dontayvion Wicks, DeVonta Smith and Elijah Moore.
The Eagles practiced indoors on Aug. 3 because of heavy rains in the Philadelphia area throughout the morning.
Buy Philadelphia Eagles tickets
Sure, there was an occasional hiccup, most notably when cornerback Quinyon Mitchell jumped Hurts' pass in the flat to Moore, intercepted it and returned it for a touchdown. That, however, can be seen as an encouraging sign that Mitchell, who was an All Pro last season in Year 2, is becoming more of a ball hawk.
Mitchell has never had an interception in his two full seasons during the regular season. It should be noted that he has had two each in the 2024 and 2025 playoffs.
Andy Dalton was sharp as well, getting the second team reps at quarterback.
But Hurts was in command throughout the day. The Eagles ran some red-zone drills with the first unit, and Hurts immediately hit Smith just past the pylon for a touchdown. On the next play, Hurts rolled to his right, then fired across his body to Smith in the middle of the end zone for another TD.
As Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said, the progression on the new offense won't come linear, but rather in fits and starts. Still, Day 4 was much better than Day 3 on Aug. 1.
Makai Lemon not in team drills, other injuries
Eagles rookie WR Makai Lemon did not take part in team drills for undisclosed reasons. Lemon was in uniform and he did go through individual drills. It's not known if this is related to his hamstring injury that kept him out of the final two weeks of spring practices in June, although Lemon did say on Aug. 1 that he was fully healed.
In addition, right tackle Lane Johnson missed his second straight practice with an excused, non-injury reason. Fred Johnson and rookie Markel Bell alternated at first team at right tackle.
Other players who didn't practice were edge Keyshawn James-Newby (ankle), G Micah Morris (shoulder), OL Jaeden Roberts (calf contusion), and S Cole Wisniewski (hamstring).
Why Eagles are loaded at defensive tackle
We know that Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis are the big stars at defensive tackle, as both were paid handsomely with extensions during the offseason. Carter signed through 2031 on a four-year extension worth as much as $152 million while Davis signed a three-year extension through 2030 for as much as $78 million.
Moro Ojomo, the third DT, is also a budding star and should be paid handsomely this offseason either as a free agent or by the Eagles.
So it's easy to overlook someone like Byron Young, who has proven to be a valued backup. On Aug. 3, he penetrated the offensive line and stopped running back Tank Bigsby on a red-zone run up the middle. We haven't seen much from Ty Robinson, the Eagles' fourth-round pick last season. But the Eagles are at least four-deep at DT.
More Eagles observations from Aug. 3
- With the 2nd offense going against the 1st defense during the first set of team drills, Dalton fired a pass down the seam to WR Johnny Wilson for a nice gain. Dalton also hooked up with Hollywood Brown and had a red-zone TD to Will Shipley.
- Uar Bernard, the DT from Nigeria who's brand new to football, had a "sack" during the developmental period at the end of practice. He's obviously still learning. As Ojomo pointed out, it was only Bernard's fourth practice ever and first with pads on.
- Cole Payton, the rookie QB, ended practice with a TD throw to TE Stone Smartt at the end of the developmental period. After a bad day on July 30, Payton has had two good practices. Sirianni said Payton "learned what he needed to learn" after that day.
- The Eagles will be fully padded on Aug. 4, and they will be hitting for the first time in training camp.
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Sign up for the "Eye On The Eagles" newsletter, emailed to your inbox every Friday morning. Read his coverage of the Eagles’ championship season in “Flying High,” a hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Eagles Day 4 camp observations. Jalen Hurts' best day? Top unit shines
Continue reading...
