Fran Duffy and Ben Fennell offer 10 takeaways from Saturday's spirited practice at the NovaCare Complex that was attended by members of the military and their families.
1. Today for individual drills, I had my focus once again on the wide receivers as part of our Inside Training Camp broadcast. Watching that group work on deep balls and then continue those same looks in the "Routes on Air" session, it was clear that there would be some good deep shots and double moves in practice (that turned out to be the case). DeVonta Smith, A.J. Brown, and Jalen Reagor all pulled in impressive grabs over the course of these drills. – Fran Duffy
2. Watching the running backs go through their ball security drills, the coaches use a wide assortment of tools and gadgets to try and force the players to cough up the football. Boxing gloves, gloves on sticks, and balls attached to long cords, amongst other things, were all thrown at the running backs. The players overall did a great job of holding onto the rock in this drill – but one player I did take note of was rookie running back Kennedy Brooks. The undrafted player from Oklahoma is maybe the biggest back in the group. I'm interested to see how he performs once the pads come on and the preseason begins. – Ben Fennell
3. In the opening team period of the morning, A.J. Brown was able to finish a completion along the sideline on a comeback route vs. cornerback Darius Slay. Brown did a nice job fighting through contact at the catch point to secure the throw from quarterback Jalen Hurts. That physicality at that position is so pivotal in those situations. – Fran
4. Jalen Hurts has looked sharp through the first two practices and change, looking more poised, confident, and accurate than a year ago as I watch him complete passes to Brown, Dallas Goedert, and Quez Watkins. I'm excited to continue watching him develop through the rest of the summer, but this has been a good start. – Ben
5. Wide receivers and defensive backs take the field for one-on-one drills. DeVonta Smith catches a hitch route vs. Darius Slay, creating separation from the sticky cover corner. Quez Watkins shows off some slippery route running of his own with an out route against Avonte Maddox. The defense got on the board next thanks to the length of James Bradberry, forcing an incompletion on a fade ball to A.J. Brown. Later, second-year cornerback Tay Gowan got another pass breakup on a similar throw to receiver Devon Allen. It would not be the last time I wrote down Gowan's name in my notebook. He closed a team period later with a physical pass breakup and had some nice coverage in the last period of practice as well. – Fran
6. As 7-on-7 drills begin, and after four completions from Jalen Hurts (two to Brown, one to Smith, and one to Goedert), Gardner Minshew draws some "oohs" from the crowd with a nice throw to receiver Deon Cain on a dig route. The ball was placed perfectly over a defender underneath to Cain on the move, creating the ability for some yards after the catch. – Fran
7. The next team period begins with a screen pass to tight end Dallas Goedert down the right sideline. Center Jason Kelce was out in front and let out a huge celebratory yell at the end of the play as the lead blocker. I feel like that kind of block has been one of Kelce's signature plays over the course of his career, and that one was executed perfectly on offense. – Ben
8. A couple of moments later, Jalen Hurts threw perhaps his nicest pass of the day in the direction of DeVonta Smith. It was a comeback route on the near sideline, and there were two defenders in the area, one underneath and one over top. Hurts threw it with enough touch to beat the first man and enough mustard to beat the second, with Smith toe-tapping along the sideline to complete the catch. On the very next play, Hurts hit tight end Dallas Goedert on one of his staple routes, a sail route with impressive touch and anticipation. The ball was on the money and on time. – Fran
9. The last full team period with the starters happens and it appears to be a "third-down" period, with Head Coach Nick Sirianni announcing the down and distance on a megaphone before each play. After a Javon Hargrave tackle for loss on the first play, linebacker T.J. Edwards outstretches his arms to force a pass breakup on the far sideline. Edwards continues to be strong in coverage, displaying great eyes, angles, instincts, and confidence when playing in coverage. He also had a PBU on an angle route in one-on-one drills earlier in practice. – Ben
10. The first-team defense got the majority of the wins early in this drill, but the offense bounced back well a few plays in. Hurts stepped up and found Greg Ward along the sideline for a first down on a catch-and-run. On the next play, Hurts got some help from Boston Scott in pass protection, taking on a blitzing linebacker, before stepping up and finding Dallas Goedert to move the chains again. On the next play, Hurts dished the ball out to second-year ball carrier Kenneth Gainwell on a screen pass for a nice gain, but a giant white blur caught my eye late in the play. That blur? It was Jordan Davis hustling to the sideline to track down Gainwell. That effort drew praise from the coaching staff on the sideline. – Fran
Injury Report
Did Not Practice
WR Zach Pascal – illness
WR Keric Wheatfall – COVID progression
DT Milton Williams – elbow
