The Linc – Is Travis Fulgham’s roster spot safe?
8 min read
#NFLBeast #NFL #NFLTwitter #NFLUpdate #NFLNews #NFLBlogs
#Philadelphia #Eagles #PhiladelphiaEagles #NFC
By: Brandon Lee Gowton
Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 8/28/21.
Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links …
Handing out 10 awards from the Eagles-Jets preseason game – PhillyVoice
7) The ‘Nervous’ Award : Travis Fulgham. On his first catch of the preseason, Fulgham was stripped of the ball near the goal line, and the ball squirted out the back of the end zone for a Jets touchback. He also saw his first action in this game late in the first half, after four other receivers — Reagor, Watkins, Ward, and John Hightower — got playing time before him. After a lackluster camp, Fulgham had a good day in the first of two joint practices with the Jets on Tuesday, but is that enough? Fulgham entered training camp competing for a starting job. A month later he’ll be sweating out final cuts.
Eagles’ roster decisions, Nick Sirianni’s preseason strategy and wet socks during tie with Jets – The Athletic
One aspect of the roster cuts we haven’t mentioned yet is that it’s the first time Howie Roseman and Sirianni are doing this dance together. Roseman has final control over the 53-man roster and is more likely to have the big picture in mind than Sirianni. So while Sirianni might be dismayed with Fulgham’s performance over the course of the summer, I think it’s Roseman’s job to make sure the Eagles don’t let an asset with his upside go for nothing. Set recency bias aside and it’s pretty clear Fulgham deserves to be on the roster more than Arcega-Whiteside. Meanwhile, I’ll have Ward on my projected 53, but I’m not fully convinced he’s a lock.
Philadelphia Eagles’ 53-man roster projection: How will DeVonta Smith impact receiver group? – ESPN+
WIDE RECEIVER (5): DeVonta Smith, Jalen Reagor, Greg Ward, Travis Fulgham, Quez Watkins. There is not a player older than 25 in the wide receiver room. The lack of experience is a bit concerning. But Watkins and Reagor have shown growth this offseason and are projected to start alongside Smith, making for a pretty explosive, albeit young, group. This is one of the more difficult position groups to project, with 2019 second-round pick JJ Arcega-Whiteside and the blazing John Hightower in the mix as well. In this projection, both of those players are left off.
Eagles Rookie Report Card: Kenny G shines – BGN
Kenneth Gainwell: B+. Kenneth Gainwell got a bulk of touches in the first half and did not disappoint. The mid round running back looked spritely as with the ball in his hands, exploding past the line of scrimmage and using good vision to make big gains. He had a touchdown running the ball by way of good blocking and a better read near the goal line. Gainwell chipped in some nice plays as a receiver, showing off his three down versatility. Gainwell blew a block and gave up a sack, which hurts his overall grade for the night. However, it is hard not to be encouraged by Gainwell’s potential in this offense as a versatile playmaker.
AFC East Champs – Iggles Blitz
The Eagles got the best of the Patriots last week and then got the best of the Jets this week. We’ll just assume they would do that to the Bills and Dolphins as well, right? Let’s crown the Eagles as AFC East Champs! Training Camp is over. I certainly feel better about the team than I did on August 1. That may sound funny when they’ve been outscored 52-0 in the last six quarters of preseason play, but that happened with second and third-string players on the field. We didn’t get to see the starters in the joint practices, but all the reports talk of how good they looked, especially the Eagles DL. Because we haven’t seen the team much this summer it is hard to get a feel for what their ceiling is. I think the struggles of the backup players means that staying healthy will be absolutely critical for this team to have a shot to be competitive. If this group does stay healthy, they can compete for the NFC East title. That tells us two things. First, the coaches have done a good job with these players. Second, the NFC East is still a weak division.
Nick Sirianni’s Eagles are healthy, but will Jalen Hurts and Co. be ready without the benefit of preseason? – Inquirer
There have been an assortment of soft-tissue injuries and various bumps and bruises. But the Eagles are slated to enter the season — one with an additional game — far healthier than they were in the previous three seasons. But the injuries can pile up if the players aren’t in game shape when muscles are stretched to the max. Of greater concern is readiness, or a lack thereof. Some past and current staffers believe the Eagles’ slow starts post-Super Bowl were partly attributable to a soft-hands approach that led to some using September, rather than August, as the month to get into shape. And that was with returning quarterbacks, established schemes, and teams not far removed from winning a title. How ready could Sirianni’s squad be without the benefit of long camp practices or significant playing time in the preseason?
2021 NFL preseason, Week 3: What we learned from Friday’s games – NFL.com
NFL Research: Joe Flacco completed 13 of 16 (81.3%) passes for 188 passing yards, two touchdowns and a 155.2 passer rating. Those numbers are each preseason bests for Flacco since at least 2016.
Why Sweat could have a breakout year and more in Roob’s observations – NBCSP
2. It’s a little concerning that Rodney McLeod hasn’t returned to practice nearly 8 ½ months after suffering a torn ACL. We’ve seen McLeod working with trainers on the side and he’s been very involved in practice from the sideline, but he remains on the PUP list 16 days before opening day. If he gets back to work next week he could still be available for the opener, but he’s running out of time. If McLeod starts the season on PUP, he wouldn’t be available until Week 7 at the earliest. If the Eagles think he’ll be ready significantly sooner, they’ll have to keep him on the 53 when final cuts are made on Tuesday. In the meantime, the Eagles do have a depth issue at safety, especially with K’Von Wallace day-to-day with a groin injury. Marcus Epps has had a decent camp and Andrew Adams has come on of late. One of them will have to start opposite Anthony Harris if McLeod isn’t ready.
Here’s what we learned about the Eagles in the preseason – PE.com
The defensive line has dominated the entire summer. It’s going to be interesting to see just how Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Gannon plays it, but the strength of the defense is clearly on the line of scrimmage. There are some pieces to sort out with Ryan Kerrigan coming back from a thumb injury and with Barnett working his way back from a shoulder injury, but it’s obvious a lot of talent is bunched up front. T.Y. McGill showed up with a strong preseason punctuated by two quarterback sacks on Friday night, and he’s fighting for a roster spot. When you have a good player like McGill battling to make the roster, you know you have an excellent group in the room.
NFC East Notebook: Major questions surrounding each team as training camp wraps up – Big Blue View
This is Hurts’ year where he will prove whether or not he can be the Eagles’ long-term solution at quarterback. Because with potentially three-first round draft picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, Philly is well-positioned to draft a QB at the end of this season if Hurts is not their guy. One of Hurts’ biggest tests will be reducing the turnovers. Between Wentz and Hurts, the Eagles turned the ball over 29 times despite recovering more than 70% of their offensive fumbles a year ago (the league average was 53.7%.), per ESPN. They finished with a turnover margin of minus-10 which was fourth-worst in the league. Meanwhile on the defensive side of the ball, Philly recorded just eight interceptions last season, which ranked 29th.
Report: Dallas Cowboys RT La’el Collins leaves Friday’s practice with a stinger – Blogging The Boys
Thankfully things don’t appear to be too serious with Collins at the moment, but this is too slippery of a slope to feel comfortable. Things like stingers can hover around for a while and at present moment the Cowboys don’t exactly have a swing tackle that is inspiring confidence.
Five players that need to stand out vs. the Ravens – Hogs Haven
Sam Cosmi. Rookie offensive tackle Sam Cosmi has been a pleasant surprise to most; he has essentially cemented his name as the starting right tackle for the team. However, we understand that he still has a ways to go before he’s solidified as one of the better tackles in the league; he is still raw and still has to sharpen up his technique. This week provides an opportunity to improve it. In the off-season, the Baltimore Ravens lost linebacker Matthew Judon and defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, which accounted for 31 percent of the team’s sack production from a year ago. However, Baltimore acquired veteran edge rusher Justin Houston and has two rising stars in linebacker Patrick Queen and edge rusher Tyus Bowser who may see a good amount of time on Saturday. So what do the linebackers have to do with Cosmi? Well, Baltimore has one of the highest blitz rates in the NFL and led the league in blitz rate over the past two seasons. So the Ravens won’t stop now against Washington; how will Cosmi react to the blitzes he’ll see? It’ll be important to note Cosmi’s progression in that regard.
NFL Reacts #4: Juiced for Jameis, Buffalo disadvantage, Squashing fantasy narratives, and worst NFL bets – The SB Nation NFL Show
Welcome to another edition of NFL Reacts! Stephen Serda, Kate Magdziuk, and Justis Mosqueda are juiced for Jameis Winston as the likely starter for the New Orleans Saints. We’re not quite as juiced for Teddy Bridgewater being the Broncos starter, but Kate believes Teddy is the best thing for this offense. The Bills continue to put voluntarily put themselves at a competitive disadvantage, and we’re killing some fantasy narratives with Kate! Justis discussed his favorite season-long NFL bets last week, so this week we’re discussing the bets to avoid at all costs.
…
Social Media Information:
BGN Facebook Page: Click here to like our page
BGN Twitter: Follow @BleedingGreen
BGN Instagram: Follow @BleedingGreenInsta
BGN Manager: Brandon Lee Gowton: Follow @BrandonGowton
BGN Radio Twitter: Follow @BGN_Radio
BGN Cameo: Click here for a personalized video message
