FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – There is no "winner" declared here. Nothing counts in the standings when two teams have joint practices. But the two days with the New England Patriots the Eagles are having are so important in many ways.

Off the field, a week together is a tremendous bonding experience, one that Head Coach Nick Sirianni and the players greatly value.

On the field, it is a chance to measure progress.

"I think we're still putting in a lot of different things. Our offense isn't in to its fullness," quarterback Jalen Hurts said. "Came out here and didn't necessarily gameplan for the team and so we treated it like a regular practice.

"And so I think it was cool to see some of the raw and unscouted looks, if you will. ... Ultimately, we're just trying to figure out our identity and what exactly we want that to look like."

It's all a process and to follow that step-by-step routine with diligence and honesty. You don't improve if you can't address mistakes and correct them. The Eagles and Patriots practiced on Tuesday in front of a huge and enthusiastic crowd at One Patriot Way for more than two hours, day one of two.

At the end of it all, progress is measured.

"It was good. Had four team periods. It was different getting somebody else out there on defense, somebody that doesn't know our snap count as well," right tackle Lane Johnson said. "Had some really good team periods – wished we would have finished better in the two-minute drive at the end – but all in all, I thought we had a really good day on offense."

The Eagles worked on their scheme and they continued to evaluate the roster and they saw how the coaching staff and players reacted to unscouted looks, a big part of these practices. There is minimal gameplanning, at best, so there were times when New England showed a blitz on defense or a formation on offense that required the Eagles to adjust on the fly.

That's what happens. That is how teams prepare for the regular season. For example, linebacker Zack Baun talked about working against New England's fullback, something the Eagles rarely do in the course of the regular season.

The benefits come down the road. The practices serve as the trial-and-error (or success) moments.

"I like today's practice, and the run game in particular, because they have a fullback. We haven't seen a fullback all camp, and if we see a fullback-like body in the backfield, it's a tight end, and it's not often," Baun said. "So it's cool to go against a fullback, something you always see a couple times a year, and you've got to be prepared for it."

The coaches will review what the practice looked like from an X's and O's and execution standpoint. That is the crucial part of this entire week – working on what needs correcting, marking points of emphasis, and elaborating on all of the coaching points of the week.

"And so I think we've got some strides to take in terms of our detail and really being aligned and on the same page from how we're going to run this new scheme, how we take this new coaching," Hurts said. "And I think when we come out here in practice, every day is an opportunity to learn from that.

"The good, the bad, everything is an opportunity to learn from. So that's what I really get excited about, cause you can come out here and you can have success on something. But just because you got the results you wanted, doesn't mean it was the way that it was supposed to be done."

Practice Observations

• Practice doesn't begin until 10:30 and wide receiver DeVonta Smith emerges from the locker room and heads to the Eagles' preparation area at the Patriots' practice facility before 9 AM to work on the JUGS machine. Limited by a hamstring injury, Smith keeps his hands sharp by spending about 15 minutes catching balls before heading back inside. Smith has watched practices wearing a headset so that he can hear the playcalls come in and mentally think through his responsibilities on each play.

WR vs. DB 1-on-1s

• Dontayvion Wicks set the tone from the opening snap, shaking Patriots cornerback Charles Woods clean with a fake outside into a slant route, creating a wide-open space for Jalen Hurts to throw the ball.

• On the defensive side of the field, cornerback Quinyon Mitchell renewed his practice rivalry with Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown on the opening snap. Brown ran a go route down the left sideline. Mitchell was in-phase with the receiver and as the ball came over the shoulder, Brown tried to cradle it in with one arm, but Mitchell knocked it away and to the ground.

• Hollywood Brown ran a go route deep down the right sideline, beating cornerback Carlton Davis by grabbing an over-the-shoulder ball from Hurts. On the next snap, Hurts delivered another dime, this time to wide receiver Darius Cooper who tuned up cornerback Kobee Minor with a go route.

• Cornerback Riq Woolen had an outstanding rep on the right side of the field against wide receiver Romeo Doubs. The receiver tried to fake an inside route and go up and over the top, but Woolen didn't bite. Woolen was all over Doubs and forced the deep ball away with ease.

First Team Period

• The first team period focused on early downs with the first-team units going against each other followed by the second-team units and so forth. The Eagles' run game set the tone early with success from both under center and shotgun formations. Running back Saquon Barkley found space several times both in the run and pass game. On the third play with Jalen Hurts at quarterback, right guard Tyler Steen pulled to free up Barkley.

"He's doing really well," right tackle Lane Johnson said of Barkley. "These landmarks in the run game are wider. It stretches defenses out, so he's got a lot more room to make some moves, stretching it from sideline to sideline. He made a lot of big plays. He had some big plays in the screen game today."

• Quarterback Tanner McKee did a great job sidestepping pressure in the pocket and unleashing an intermediate out route to the right side for wide receiver Danny Gray, who hauled in the pass for about a 15-yard gain. On the next play, McKee did nearly the same, identical thing by moving left to evade pressure and this time connecting with wide receiver Darius Cooper along the right sideline.

• Defensively, cornerback Riq Woolen was energetic throughout the morning, matching up down the field and getting his hands on a couple of quarterback Drake Maye passes. Great work against the run inside throughout the morning as the interior of the defense appeared to control the line of scrimmage.

Second Team Period

• Focusing on second- and third-down situations, the Eagles' offense opened with a pair of Saquon Barkley runs to soften the defense before Jalen Hurts' most explosive pass play of the practice. Wide receiver Elijah Moore lined up on the left side of the formation, ran down the seam, and turned to the corner. Hurts had a pristine pocket and uncorked a deep ball that Moore caught for a 45-yard gain down the field.

• Tight end Eli Stowers got the second-team unit fired up with a 20-yard reception down the seam from quarterback Tanner McKee.

• Safety Andre' Sam, who has spent the past couple of seasons on the Eagles' practice squad, got his hands on an interception thrown by quarterback Tommy DeVito. Edge rushers Arnold Ebiketie and A.J. Epenesa forced DeVito to step up and thread the ball through a narrow window in the middle of the field. The ball went off of wide receiver Kayshon Boutte's hand and into the arms of a diving Sam.

Third Team Period

• A move-the-ball period, Saquon Barkley opened up with a nice run to the left side, bouncing outside, followed by a screen pass to the left side. Running back Will Shipley got involved in the pass game, winning on a wheel route up the right sideline for a big gain.

• During this period, Markel Bell got some first-team reps at right tackle, while Drew Kendall saw some action with the ones at left guard.

• Quarterback Andy Dalton threw with impressive anticipation on an intermediate out route to wide receiver Quez Watkins for a gain down the right sideline. A few plays later, Dalton took a deep dropback and connected with wide receiver Samori Toure for a 35-yard gain on a deep over route.

• Zack Baun dominated in the run game, setting the edge and blowing up a New England run to the left side of its offense.

Final Team Period

• It was a two-minute drill, end-of-game situation. Dontayvion Wicks was Jalen Hurts' favorite target in this drill, with three consecutive receptions.

• Defensively, linebacker Zack Baun had a pass breakup and outside linebacker A.J. Epenesa created pressure off the edge to force a throwaway.