The Philadelphia Eagles are one of the few teams in the NFL with a true franchise quarterback. While the Eagles have become a run-first team with Saquon Barkley leading the way, many teams would kill for a quarterback like Jalen Hurts, who ran the offense and helped Philadelphia win a Super Bowl.
Having a stable answer at quarterback is nice, but one of the most popular players on the team is who is behind him. The backup quarterback position has come down to Tanner McKee, Kyle McCord and Dorian Thompson-Robinson. But as the battle has shaken out during camp, there’s one quarterback that has turned out to be an early disappointment.
Eagles QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson Must Produce This Preseason
The Eagles brought in Thompson-Robinson in the Kenny Pickett trade with the Cleveland Browns with hopes they could tap into his potential. But as training camp enters its third week, the UCLA product hasn’t been able to separate himself from his peers.
Thompson-Robinson became a draft prospect during his final year with the Bruins, completing 69.6% of his passes for 3,169 yards, 27 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 2022. He also was a dual threat, running for 645 yards and 12 touchdowns. While the skill set was there, Thompson-Robinson never looked comfortable with the Browns, completing 52.6% of his passes for 880 yards, one touchdown and 10 interceptions in his first two seasons.
That resume made it unlikely that Thompson-Robinson would turn into the second coming of Hurts. But it also is disappointing that he hasn’t put up a strong fight. McKee, who has the benefit of two full years in Nick Sirianni’s system, has dominated the second-team reps and was a key reason why the Eagles decided to move Pickett after one season in Philadelphia.
The Eagles also invested a sixth-round pick in Syracuse Kyle McCord in April’s draft, signaling that Thompson-Robinson may have needed a miracle to make the roster. Thompson-Robinson rebounded after a rough start to camp but the numbers indicate he’s more likely to be released than seize the backup role.
This not only creates an audition for Thompson-Robinson to make the team during preseason games, but perhaps saves his career if a quarterback-needy team is intrigued by his potential. At this moment, Thompson-Robinson is like an old house that someone is trying to flip and could provide a return on that investment if he plays well in the preseason.