FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – You can imagine Vic Fangio in his laboratory somewhere poring through these two joint practices with the New England Patriots looking for plays and situations that he can show his players. Adjustments that weren't made. Alignments that weren't recognized.

Nuances during the course of a play that led to the Patriots having success.

Every day and in every way Fangio wants to challenge his Philadelphia Eagles defense, a unit that has the highest of high aspirations for the season ahead – and for good reason. The Eagles return most of the group that played so well in 2024 and 2025. They've added through the years – cornerback Riq Woolen in free agency, outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard via trade, linebacker Jihaad Campbell in the 2025 NFL Draft – and the goal is, as defensive back Cooper DeJean said on Thursday "coming out and being better than we were yesterday, that's a goal every day in Training Camp."

A defensive coordinator who knows how to put pieces in the right place and who has done so for more than 40 years in the NFL is molding this defense, one that is the projected to be the NFL's youngest (among the top 12 players).

The youngest.

And the goal is always to improve every single day. The defense is in a good place, but the understanding is that there is a lot of work to do because, well, that's the nature of the NFL beast. Never get complacent. Always strive for more. And, bottom line: Stay where your feet are.

"The standard is high for us, and we have high standard for ourselves," defensive tackle Jordan Davis said. "Nobody plays this game without the aspiration of winning the Super Bowl and I think that's one thing that we can all hang our hat on is just that we want to win, but we have to go through that process each week, 1-0, 1-0, 1-0."

New England gave the Eagles valuable looks with its spread offense, with its fullback in the formation and with the many weapons that the Patriots employ. Quarterback Drake Maye lined up and chucked it. The secondary was tested down the field and with crossers. The linebackers showed up in coverage.

It was fun to watch.

It was also encouraging from the Eagles' standpoint, because in these two days we caught a longer look at what this D can be in 2026. They wreck the line of scrimmage with Davis and Jalen Carter (even though he didn't practice on Thursday with an excused/personal absence). They have depth coming off the edge and will be significantly more dangerous when Greenard fully recovers from his pectoral injury. There are kinks to work out and areas in which to improve, but the state of the Eagles defense should be categorized as a definite "encouraging."

But that's not even the topic of conversation for the Eagles …

When you hear Fangio speak you generally hear him answer questions about specifics that didn't go the Eagles' way and he turns every one of those moments into a coaching lesson. A wheel route that was completed with linebacker A.J. Epenesa in coverage on Saturday night in Baltimore? A perfect time for Epenesa to see it and understand the adjustments he has to make when he sees it again. A coverage that didn't click in the red zone for New England? No doubt Fangio will have the players looking at that video over and over again with corrections in mind.

The important part of these two practices was achieved: Great work. Excellent challenges by a very good football team. No long-term injuries (apparently) to worry about. The Eagles took the test and they have more answers and they know that in this game, knowledge is power.

"I love doing these things," Fangio said. "I think these things are great. I wish we would do another one. It's great to go against a new team, new schemes, new players. You learn things. You're going to get unscouted looks and plays and see how people react. These things are tremendous and can't get enough of it."

Step-by-step, it continues on the road to September 13 and the opener against Washington. That's when we get the real real feel for how good the defense is. And even then, it can always improve. Fangio, in his infinite wisdom, wouldn't have it any other way for this young and, potentially, very, very good Eagles defense.