With the Hall of Fame Game behind us, the NFL season is officially here. Obviously the results don’t mean much until September, but the way rosters are shaped in August will be one of the most important factors that goes into how this season will play out.
For a Super Bowl contending team like the Eagles, we’re not expecting many surprises in the starting lineup. But if anything the backup spots are more important for a contending team than they are for anyone else.
Injuries are an inevitable part of the long NFL season, and having a roster capable of stepping up and remaining competitive when injuries happen is key, especially once the playoffs arrive.
We still have four preseason games and plenty of practice time to shake things up, but here’s a first look at my 53-man roster projection for the Eagles.
Eagles 53-Man Roster Projection (Version 1)
Quarterback (3)
- Jalen Hurts
- Marcus Mariota
- Tanner McKee
Obviously those first two sports are set in stone. Nobody is expecting Jalen Hurts to get cut in favor of Ian Book.
The McKee-vs-Book battle is kind of an interesting one for the QB3 spot, and it ultimately feels like spending a sixth-round pick on a quarterback after getting a season-long look at Book is a pretty bad omen for the latter’s future in Philly. An elite preseason could certainly turn the tide, but consider McKee a heavy favorite.
Running Back (4)
- D’Andre Swift
- Rashaad Penny
- Kenneth Gainwell
- Boston Scott
Would it be nice to carry Trey Sermon on the roster? For sure, but ultimately the Eagles’ RB room is strong enough that there’s no way we need to carry more than four. That’s especially true because unlike last year, when Miles Sanders wasn’t contributing well as a receiver, all of our backs can contribute both on the ground and through the air.
I’m not sure any of these four are a better pure rusher than Sanders, but I do feel confident that this unit as a whole is stronger than we had in 2022.
Wide Receiver (6)
- AJ Brown
- DeVonta Smith
- Quez Watkins
- Olamide Zaccheaus
- Brittain Covey
- Joseph Ngata
Brown and Smith are obviously locked in as the top two wideouts, and Watkins and Zaccheaus are all but locks for the roster. Things get much cloudier from there.
Brttain Covey’s role as a punt returner (and the offensive upside from the explosiveness that makes him so dangerous there) will likely sew up his roster spot, though where he lands on the depth chart is certainly up in the air.
Picking the sixth wide receiver (and even potentially a seventh) is a lot more of a crapshoot, especially with early training camp reports being pretty quiet around the deeper parts of this unit.
Ngata may be an undrafted free agent, but he was one of the year’s highest-paid UDFAs, which is always a good sign. He’s also a big, physical wideout which (outside of Brown) is something that’s a little lacking in this unit. I won’t die on the Ngata hill if Tyrie Cleveland or Devon Allen start showing out, but Ngata gets the nod in v1 of my projections.
Tight End (3)
- Dallas Goedert
- Jack Stoll
- Grant Calcaterra
Tight end is another position where it really just comes down to the final roster spot. Calcaterra will predominantly be competing with veteran Dan Arnold for the role.
My usual heuristic is to expect NFL teams to favor boring veterans over more exciting players, but the Eagles organization is among the most progressive in the league when it comes to not wanting to re-tread the Dan Arnolds of the world, so I’m holding out hope here that the exciting option wins out.
Offensive Line (9)
- Jordan Maitala
- Landon Dickerson
- Jason Kelce
- Tyler Steen
- Lane Johnson
- Cam Jurgens
- Jack Driscoll
- Sua Opeta
- Trevor Reid
A perk of projecting the roster on a Super Bowl contending team is that so many pieces are obvious. There’s no ambiguity with our top offensive linemen as the Eagles continue to have unprecedented continuity up front.
Tyler Steen joins the group with no doubts around his rosters status as the 65th overall pick.
My two long-shots here are Sua Opeta and Trevor Reid. Some people have the Eagles projected to carry eight linemen, but I don’t think there’s any more important position to carry depth at, and I like both Opeta and Reid’s game.
Opeta has experience playing both guard spots off the bench, and while he struggled at times last year, the contract he signed showed that Philly has full confidence in his ability to continue to provide depth.
Reid is more of an upside play, with really interesting physical tools but also probably needing a year or two to develop. Offenisve line is a position that we regularly see UDFAs make the roster, and Reid’s potential is high enough to keep him around even if we don’t think he can contribute right away.
Edge Defender (5)
- Hasson Reddick
- Brandon Graham
- Josh Sweat
- Nolan Smith
- Derek Barnett
This is one of the best edge rushing units in the NFL, and even with Robert Quinn gone, there’s just not room for any fringe players to make the roster here.
There are rumblings of Derek Barnett being traded, but with his contract restructure he may well stick around. Unless the trade happens, expect him to make the 53.
Interior D-Line (6)
- Jordan Davis
- Jalen Carter
- Fletcher Cox
- Milton Williams
- Marlon Tuipulotu
- Moro Ojomo
There are sort of two distinct positions on the Eagles’ interior defensive line, with Jordan Davis being backed up by Tuipulotu.
Jalen Carter is already showing flashes of being an every-down player, and Fletcher Cox remains at his most dangerous as a pass-rusher. Milton Williams is a near lock as the top backup for those two, and Ojomo is my long-shot pick here.
He seemed like a steal when he fell to the end of the seventh round, and his athleticism should be enough to beat out Kentavius Street for this final spot.
Off-Ball Linebacker (4)
- Nakobe Dean
- Nicholas Morrow
- Christian Elliss
- Shaun Bradley
I’m not convinced we need to carry four players at the linebacker spot, but Shaun Bradley could almost go to the end of this page with the other special teams pieces. He’s nearly an every-down player on the ST unit, and while we’d have liked to see him develop into more, there’s something to be said for having a stud special teamer on the roster.
Cornerback (6)
- Darius Slay
- James Bradberry
- Avonte Maddox
- Kelee Ringo
- Josh Jobe
- Zech McPherson
I tried to find space for Greedy Williams on here, but ultimately that just kind of felt like it was wishful thinking. We’d really have to carry seven cornerbacks to keep Williams around, and unless he really wows at camp then I don’t see that happening.
Reports out of camp don’t seem overly positive around Williams yet either, which makes it a little easier to leave off that CB7 spot in favor of guys who fit in on special teams like Bradley or offer long-term upside like Trevor Reid.
Safety (4)
- Terrell Edmunds
- Reed Blankenship
- Sidney Brown
- Justin Evans
Another spot with three locks up top and one roster spot up in the air. And this one really comes down to Justin Evans or K’Von Wallace. Despite exceeding expectations as a fourth-round pick initially, Wallace just hasn’t shown enough development to be worth keeping around.
With three strong players at the position, we can afford to gamble on Evans’ upside. Injuries have been basically the entire story of his career, but he was a second-round pick in 2017 and I’m willing to gamble on the potential that earned him that honor.
Kicker (1)
- Jake Elliott
You’re not here to read about why I think Jake Elliott will make the roster.
Punter (1)
- Arryn Siposs
I know fans are hoping that Ty Zentner can give Siposs a run for his money. While Zentner gets the all-hustle award (he’s consistently been the first man on the field at practices), punter isn’t exactly a position where coaches are going to reward heart and determination. They only care if you can punt.
Zentner was good in college, but so was Siposs. Any clamoring for Zentner over Siposs is just people trying to wish a more capable punter into existence though. Our best bet is probably to bring in competition with a free agent, but as long as the battle is between these two I’ll take Siposs.
Hopefully a couple preseason games give us some better insight into this one.
Long-Snapper (1)
- Rick Lovato
The Eagles like Lovato, and that’s good enough for me. I’m not going to try making a surprise prediction about our long-snapper…
This is obviously one of the best 53-man rosters out there, and that depth is going to be a big part of why the Eagles remain Super Bowl contenders.
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