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The DiCecco Daily: What Will Joe Milton's Role Be For Eagles? · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Hey, what's going on, everybody?
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: Welcome in to another episode of DiCecco Daily. It's Andrew DiCecco,
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: Eagles beat reporter for InsideTheBirds.com. And we do have some
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: more news for the Eagles. They have signed quarterback Joe
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Milton off the Dallas Cowboys practice squad, and he's now
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: on their 53-man roster. In a corresponding move, running back
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: Will Shipley, who has the foot injury. Remember, there's a
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: partial tear to his plantar fascia. He's been placed on
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: injured reserve. So that's the roster spot. And now the
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: Eagles have three quarterbacks, if you're not including Jalen Hurts,
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: Tanner McKee, Cole Payton, Joe Milton. And there was some
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: intrigue for Joe Milton coming out of the draft. And remember,
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: he started at Michigan, ended up at Tennessee, and I
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: think he did some good things.
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: You like his size at 6'5, 236 pounds.
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: Has some background in this offense. At least just the
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: basic principles here. Played in five games over his time.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: And he began his career as a six-round pick in
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: 2024 of the New England Patriots. Was with the Dallas
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: Cowboys for 2025 and 2026. And he played in five games. So,
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: his first season... 22 of 29, 241, one touchdown, no interceptions.
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: The following season, 15 for 24, 183, and one.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: Touchdown and two interceptions.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: He's someone who has a very strong arm, but he's
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: very inaccurate. So he still is a tools-laden prospect. I
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: guess you can say he is 26 years old. And
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: he's going to need, he needs work. He needs more
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: polish to his game. But what I can tell you
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: is that he has a very strong arm. I liked
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: his college tape. He's intriguing and he can move.
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: A little bit. When you look at.
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: His 40 yard dash four, six, he can maneuver a pocket.
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: And I think that that kind of gives you a
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: quality simulation in the practice on the practice field. If
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: you're looking to try to simulate what some of the
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: things that J one Hertz can do, or even mobile
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: quarterbacks that you're going up against. So Joe Milton will
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: be your third quarterback, and the roster spot that he
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: takes belongs to Will Shipley, who's on injured reserve, so
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: he has to miss at least four weeks. The Eagles
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: have a lot of roster decisions to make this week,
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: and we're going to go through the injury report because
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: they got some encouraging news. No designation for wide receiver
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: Devontae Smith, and... I mean, that's as good a news
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: as you can hope for. So before we get into that, out.
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: Running back Saquon Barkley, hamstring. Defensive back Michael Carter, abdomen.
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: Outside linebacker Jay Lux Hunt, knee, ankle. Quarterback Jalen Hurts, calf.
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: Running back Will Shipley, foot.
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: Doubtful. Outside linebacker A.J. Epinesa, back. Questionable.
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: Cornerback Ja'Corian Bennett, knee. Tight end Grant Calcaterra, back. Guard
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: Landon Dickerson, knee. Center Drew Kendall, knee. And tight end
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: Eli Stowers. quad so you're not going to have Saquon
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: Barkley for another week that's not really a surprise we
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: were out there on the practice field this week and
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: didn't see Saquon at any point this week and I
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: didn't see him on the field last week either I
• 3:41
  Speaker 2: did see Devontae working he does not have a designation
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: so he will play so too will Dontavian Wicks who
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: let's not forget was on the injury report on Thursday
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: not practicing with a hamstring injury So the Eagles are
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: going to get their top two receivers to pair with
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: Makai Lemon, which is great news for them as they
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: move forward here in the interim with quarterback Tanner McKee.
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: So they're not going to be totally barren in terms
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: of their skill players.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: You have Dallas Goddard.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: You might have one or two of these tight ends
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: that I mentioned as limited in Grant.
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: Calcaterra and Eli Stowers.
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: Now both players, to be clear, would have to be
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: activated to the 53-man roster in order to even be
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: available today. So you'd have to clear out some roster
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: spots there. One of them I mentioned that cleared out
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: the spot for Joe Milton was Will Shipley. You have
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: other players that you can maybe toggle with and maybe
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: one you can bring them back on the practice squad.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: Like when I look at the tight end position, I
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: look at someone like Johnny Muntz. Clearly, the Eagles value
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: what he can bring as a blocker, although, to be
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: frank with you, I haven't seen a ton of the
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: imposing in-line blocking that I was expecting to see, and
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: he's a veteran at 31 years old that you could
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: probably get on the practice squad, but those are the
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: type of moves that you have to think about if
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: you're trying to make space for a lot of these players.
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: I mentioned those two. They're not the only tight ends.
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: Zach Ertz is out of elevations, and he's still on
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: the practice squad. you're eventually probably going to have to
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: figure out what you're going to do with him moving forward.
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: They have EJ Jenkins, who I think is a fine
• 5:18
  Speaker 2: in-line blocker, good size, helps on special teams a lot,
• 5:22
  Speaker 2: which I think goes a little bit overlooked, his role
• 5:26
  Speaker 2: on special teams and what he provides there.
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: And, of course, you have Dallas Goddard.
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: So they have an abundance of tight ends, and they're
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: going to have to figure out how they're going to
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: do it. Now, just because you were activated and practiced
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: this week or not even activated, you had your 21-day
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: practice window activated in practice this week, doesn't necessarily mean
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: that you're going to be active this week. And when
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: I look at someone like Landon Dickerson, depending on where
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: he is health-wise, if he's healthy and good to go,
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: I mean, he's playing.
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: He'd be the left guard without question.
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: And then all of a sudden you have some continuity
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: there on the left side. We'll see what happens with center.
• 6:08
  Speaker 2: I remember I mentioned Drew Kendall being limited. With the knee,
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: they have some options. I don't know where they're going
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: to go with center. You have Willie Lampkin. You have
• 6:18
  Speaker 2: Drew Kendall. And if they want to maybe give him
• 6:20
  Speaker 2: another week to rest that knee, then it would, in
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: that scenario, be between Willie Lampkin and Jake Majors. And
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: it would depend on who they feel more comfortable with
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: in this particular game. And then you got your right guard,
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: Tyler Steen, and right tackle, Markel Bell.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: Now, to be clear, I think it's the right move
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: to play Markel Bell. He's a young player.
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: You want to get him these on-the-job reps and this
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: on-the-job training. But in a game like this, where you
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: have someone like Tanner McKee, who isn't a statue by
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: any means, but he's.
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: Not fleet-footed by any means either... I don't know.
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: I personally would feel a little bit more comfortable if
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: I'm them with Fred Johnson there at right tackle. But understandably,
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: Markel Bell is the future at that position, or at
• 7:07
  Speaker 2: least they're going to know by the end of this
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: season whether or not he is in fact the future
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: at right tackle. So that's kind of where injuries stand
• 7:15
  Speaker 2: right now. Getting Devontae Smith back in the lineup is enormous.
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: And he spoke in the locker room Friday and he
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: mentioned that he sustained the hamstring injury.
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: In the Tennessee game. It was 100 degrees.
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: He mentioned being dehydrated, all those things.
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: And he played through it. He played through it again
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: against Chicago.
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: And he determined that after that, it was in his
• 7:40
  Speaker 2: best interest and the best interest of the team for
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: him not to continue to push it and make it worse.
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: So that's why he was sidelined for the past couple
• 7:49
  Speaker 2: of games. But That's a welcome addition for Tanner McKee,
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: who makes his first NFL start Sunday in a meaningful
• 7:57
  Speaker 2: NFL game. Remember, he started games in Week 18 in
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: the past. But this is the first time where he's
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: going to have to step in with a game that
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: means something.
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: And the running back situation.
• 8:08
  Speaker 2: We talked about no Will Shipley, no Saquon Barkley, no
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: Tank Bigsby. You're going to see a lot of Damian Pierce,
• 8:17
  Speaker 2: who spoke on Friday yesterday. I really like Damian Pierce's personality. Man,
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: does he have some charisma. Just always upbeat and a
• 8:24
  Speaker 2: lot of energy. It's easy to see why Nick Sirianni
• 8:26
  Speaker 2: took a liking to him. But you have Damian Pierce.
• 8:30
  Speaker 2: You have Carson Steele. Both are on the 53 already.
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: And then Jaden Blue is on the practice squad. He's
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: been here since the beginning of the season. And so...
• 8:43
  Speaker 2: Because he has familiarity, he would make sense. You have
• 8:47
  Speaker 2: to have three running backs. So you get them on
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: the game day roster via elevation. And I would imagine,
• 8:55
  Speaker 2: I just mentioned A.J. Epinesa is out. Grenard sounds like
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: it's going to be a game time decision. He's going
• 9:00
  Speaker 2: to have to test out that ankle on the field.
• 9:03
  Speaker 2: So kind of going back to what I was saying
• 9:05
  Speaker 2: earlier in the week, I mentioned this, I think, Tuesday.
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: I wouldn't be surprised if you see Keyshawn James Newby,
• 9:12
  Speaker 2: the rookie edge rusher out of New Mexico, is on
• 9:14
  Speaker 2: the practice squad, elevated for this week as well. So
• 9:18
  Speaker 2: my predictions would be Jaden Blue and Keyshawn James Newby
• 9:22
  Speaker 2: in terms of just the practice squad elevations. And James
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: Newby is an interesting player. I really liked him coming
• 9:28
  Speaker 2: out of the draft. I thought that that was a
• 9:30
  Speaker 2: smart pick at the end. He was very productive in
• 9:33
  Speaker 2: the three colleges that he played for, Montana Tech, Idaho.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: and New Mexico he's a smaller guy and and when
• 9:40
  Speaker 2: I mean when I say that I mean he has
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: a linear build he's a speed rusher I think he
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: runs at four or five so I have to think
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: that if he is elevated he can help you on
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: special teams I like his his personality I've enjoyed the
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: conversations that I've had with him really smart guy and
• 9:56
  Speaker 2: it seems to me like he's someone that yes he
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: missed a lot of time in camp with an injury,
• 10:01
  Speaker 2: but he has his wits about him, and he's a
• 10:06
  Speaker 2: smart enough guy. You can see he has the football
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: acumen necessary to pick things up, and it's not an
• 10:11
  Speaker 2: easy system to learn for an edge rusher because you're
• 10:13
  Speaker 2: asked to do different things, presumably, than he was asked
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: to do in college. But That's kind of where I'm
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: leaning right now, just based off of numbers. But even
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: earlier in the week, my gut just told me, I
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: was like, I'm going to keep an eye on James Newby. Now,
• 10:28
  Speaker 2: we'll find out Saturday by 4 o'clock Eastern time whether
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: or not he is one of those players elevated. But
• 10:36
  Speaker 2: Jaden Blue, we talked about, draft pick out of the
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: Dallas Cowboys last season, fifth-round pick, smaller guy, 5'9, 198 pounds, had,
• 10:42
  Speaker 2: I think, 38 carries last year as a rookie. good
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: quickness and he does have the ability to return kicks
• 10:53
  Speaker 2: he's good in the open field and as the third
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: running back you just need to have three running backs
• 10:58
  Speaker 2: available i don't really anticipate him getting any touches because
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: carson steel who was available for the eagles in london
• 11:08
  Speaker 2: didn't get any carries and that was even when damian
• 11:10
  Speaker 2: pierce was the only running back after Will Shipley went down.
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: So the Eagles are going to be undermanned in certain positions,
• 11:17
  Speaker 2: but from a wide receiver standpoint, they're going to have
• 11:21
  Speaker 2: all their guys, and we'll see if they have a
• 11:24
  Speaker 2: Landon Dickerson in the mix.
• 11:26
  Speaker 1: So it may not look as bad or as.
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: I should say, diminished as it initially appeared earlier in
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: the week. There's going to be some patches there where
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: you're going to need some reserves to step in there
• 11:39
  Speaker 2: and give you a good effort, and they will, but
• 11:42
  Speaker 2: you can't really replace what a starter is going to
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: give you, obviously, but I don't think it's as dire
• 11:48
  Speaker 2: as it initially appeared.
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: And the injury report certainly dictates that.
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: I think you're going to see a good game from
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: both Devontae Smith and Dontavion Wicks. And I think what
• 11:59
  Speaker 2: I'm most looking forward to seeing in this game is
• 12:00
  Speaker 2: just what the offense looks like, because we're now in
• 12:04
  Speaker 2: week six. And I can't tell you in all honesty
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: that I have an idea of what this offense is,
• 12:09
  Speaker 2: what they're looking to accomplish because they're melding the two
• 12:13
  Speaker 2: different offenses together they've gotten further away from the under
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: center play action the heavy dose that we saw in
• 12:21
  Speaker 2: the spring and the summer and you're now seeing an
• 12:24
  Speaker 2: offense that sort of resembles what a lot of what
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: we saw over the past several seasons here with Nick
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: Sirianni and Jalen Hurts so what will it look like
• 12:33
  Speaker 2: with Tanner McKee I don't know I'm not sure but
• 12:36
  Speaker 2: I'm very intrigued to see I know McKee gets the
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: ball out he did not have a good training camp
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: There's no mistaking that, and there's a reason why they
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: went with Andy Dalton. I think all things being equal,
• 12:48
  Speaker 2: and their play was fairly on the same playing field,
• 12:52
  Speaker 2: on the same level there.
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: You defer to the veteran. He's been in the system.
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: He knows how to play the position.
• 12:59
  Speaker 2: There's probably a trust and a confidence level there. in
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: him McKee has more upside clearly and who knows two
• 13:07
  Speaker 2: months after the final preseason game where it looked like
• 13:10
  Speaker 2: he still had a ways to go in terms of
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: just learning the system maybe Tanner McKee has a better
• 13:15
  Speaker 2: foothold a better grasp on the intricacies of this offense
• 13:20
  Speaker 2: because let's not forget All of the quarterbacks, Sands, Andy
• 13:24
  Speaker 2: Dalton in the summer, had to go through a growing phase.
• 13:27
  Speaker 2: That wasn't just exclusive to Jalen Hurts or rookie Cole Payton.
• 13:31
  Speaker 2: Tanner McKee should be given the same grace and maybe
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: not viewed as a player who's just suddenly regressed.
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: I don't know that.
• 13:38
  Speaker 2: I'm trying to provide some rationale and some context here
• 13:42
  Speaker 2: because it's hard for me to imagine that a player
• 13:44
  Speaker 2: just drops off as drastically as he did. You're looking at, yeah,
• 13:48
  Speaker 2: Week 18 last year wasn't good, but... Tanner McKee did
• 13:51
  Speaker 2: not have a good training camp.
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: He was very uneven. And I thought later in camp he.
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: Pulled away a little bit from Dalton, but it wasn't
• 13:59
  Speaker 2: anything that was really noticeable. It was very incremental, and
• 14:06
  Speaker 2: it wasn't really surprising to me that they ended up
• 14:08
  Speaker 2: going with Dalton. But now they have their three quarterbacks,
• 14:11
  Speaker 2: and they're going to move forward with McKee in the
• 14:14
  Speaker 2: interim here. But I am very intrigued to see what
• 14:17
  Speaker 2: Sean Mannion has cooked up for this game. And if
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: you're able to see more, maybe, of what they were
• 14:24
  Speaker 2: looking to establish in the summer, I don't know. There's
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: going to be a lot of pressure that Carolina is
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: going to bear down. So McKee is really going to
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: have no choice but to get rid of the football quickly.
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: We'll see where things go, but I think you're giving
• 14:39
  Speaker 2: him– you're at least giving him a fighting chance by
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: having Devontae Smith, Dontavion Wicks, Dallas Goddard, maybe Landon Dickerson
• 14:48
  Speaker 2: out there. Maybe you have a little bit more variety
• 14:51
  Speaker 2: in terms of your tight ends to kind of go into.
• 14:54
  Speaker 2: The safety position, though, in this game, as we shift
• 14:57
  Speaker 2: over to the defensive side, the Eagles are light there.
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: Michael Carter is out.
• 15:03
  Speaker 2: And I think Michael Carter, he's probably somebody that in
• 15:05
  Speaker 2: the grand scheme gets overlooked. I liked what I saw
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: from Michael Carter, not just in training camp. I like
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: Michael Carter a lot with the New York Jets as
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: a nickelback. The way that he moves, the way that
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: he played the football, the eye discipline. I like the
• 15:20
  Speaker 2: short area quickness, his ability to match with receivers of
• 15:23
  Speaker 2: different sizes. Just a really good football. I think he's
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: a really good football player. And now, well, at least
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: he was as a nickelback. And now he's seemingly taken
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: to this safety.
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: Role pretty well. And they're not going to have him
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: this week.
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• 17:57
  Speaker 2: And so I would imagine you're looking at Marcus Epps
• 18:00
  Speaker 2: and Drew McCuba. You also have Kenny Moore who can
• 18:03
  Speaker 2: do it. But make no mistake about it. Say what
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: you will about the Carolina Panthers. They do have two
• 18:10
  Speaker 2: good wide receivers. Tommy Tremble is a nice tight end
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: who I like. I think he's kind of underutilized in
• 18:15
  Speaker 2: their system. But you have Ted McMillan, who is really
• 18:19
  Speaker 2: coming into his own and becoming much more of a
• 18:22
  Speaker 2: household name this year. And you have Jalen Coker, who
• 18:26
  Speaker 2: those of you who have been following my work for
• 18:28
  Speaker 2: a while may remember that when I did the draft dreams,
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: maybe three, four years ago now, I picked Jalen Coker
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: as someone to interview.
• 18:36
  Speaker 1: He didn't get drafted, I don't think.
• 18:39
  Speaker 2: But he went to Holy Cross, really good story development,
• 18:43
  Speaker 2: and he's a nice player to have opposite Ted McMillan.
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: They're going to have him there.
• 18:48
  Speaker 2: Their offensive line is pretty susceptible to pressure, and this
• 18:51
  Speaker 2: is where I'm expecting the Eagles up front to build
• 18:53
  Speaker 2: off of what you saw from Jalen Carter. And maybe
• 18:56
  Speaker 2: you get Mauro Jomo and Jordan Davis into the mix,
• 18:59
  Speaker 2: and they're able.
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: To kind of put quarterback Bryce Young under siege.
• 19:03
  Speaker 2: Now, Bryce Young, you want to talk about someone who's
• 19:06
  Speaker 2: emerged– It may have taken a little bit longer than
• 19:09
  Speaker 2: the Panthers would have liked. But, man, he's a really
• 19:14
  Speaker 2: up-and-coming quarterback. And I think he does a lot of
• 19:17
  Speaker 2: things well. And we'll see what the defensive plan is.
• 19:23
  Speaker 2: But I certainly like the way that things are trending defensively.
• 19:28
  Speaker 1: They are starting to hit their stride.
• 19:31
  Speaker 2: That's kind of been a common trend with the Vic
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: Fangio defense where you kind of see them catch fire.
• 19:37
  Speaker 2: It takes a little bit of time, but when they do, man,
• 19:41
  Speaker 2: that's going to be something to watch.
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: And I look at what J.
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: Wayne Carter did, what Cooper DeGene did, what Zach Bond did,
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: what Quinion Mitchell continues to do. And it's not hard
• 19:51
  Speaker 2: to be intrigued with what they could provide. And we
• 19:58
  Speaker 2: talked about the edge rusher. I should also mention, and
• 20:00
  Speaker 2: I did mention, but to reiterate, no J.
• 20:02
  Speaker 1: Lux Hunt whatsoever. And with A.J.
• 20:04
  Speaker 2: Epinesa doubtful, yeah, you need another player there, and Jonathan
• 20:09
  Speaker 2: Grenard being sort of a game-time decision. But I think
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: Keyshawn James Newby would be the logical one.
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: I felt that it would regardless earlier in the week.
• 20:18
  Speaker 2: And, man, if he does get elevated, I'm telling you,
• 20:22
  Speaker 2: I don't know how much he would play on defense,
• 20:25
  Speaker 2: but he's a player that I– I wanted to see
• 20:30
  Speaker 2: more of in the preseason. I understand that he had
• 20:32
  Speaker 2: the injury, but I like what I saw from him
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: in a limited sample size. And I think they might
• 20:36
  Speaker 2: have something there as a developmental prospect. Looking at the
• 20:41
  Speaker 2: Panthers from a special teams perspective, I was told that
• 20:45
  Speaker 2: they have a kicker who kicks a knuckleball. So that
• 20:50
  Speaker 2: makes things a little bit difficult or tricky, I should say.
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: On those kickoffs.
• 20:57
  Speaker 2: Remember, the Eagles faced Joshua Cardy with the Rams the
• 21:00
  Speaker 2: year prior, and they're going to have to really be
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: detailed and hone in on that, be able to play
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: the ball well. I don't know that there's going to
• 21:09
  Speaker 2: be any explosive returns in this game. I could be wrong,
• 21:11
  Speaker 2: but Carolina has a pretty sound group, and I was
• 21:16
  Speaker 2: kind of told that the kicker, he kicks a knuckleball
• 21:19
  Speaker 2: and And there probably isn't going to be the explosive
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: returns that we've seen from the Eagles in recent weeks,
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: especially on punt return. They're a pretty sound unit. And,
• 21:35
  Speaker 2: you know, special teams has been the Eagles' driving force
• 21:40
  Speaker 2: through really the first five games. That's what they've been
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: able to hang their hat on. Defensively, that's going to
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: change because they're coming on. And I think if they
• 21:50
  Speaker 2: continue to play like they did against Jacksonville, they are
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: going to be recognized among the elite as they should
• 21:57
  Speaker 2: after overcoming some of those growing pains. And they are
• 22:00
  Speaker 2: dealing with some injuries in key spots, namely the edge position.
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: But I like what I've seen from them.
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: And I think they're going to continue to take steps
• 22:10
  Speaker 2: forward in the right direction and But special teams has been,
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: you know, you talk about Braden Mann, Jake Elliott. Aside
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: from last week, I think their kick return game, their coverage.
• 22:23
  Speaker 1: Has been great. I think their punt coverage has been excellent.
• 22:27
  Speaker 2: I think Britton Covey, who is second in the NFL
• 22:29
  Speaker 2: in punt return yards, has been fantastic and deserves league-wide
• 22:34
  Speaker 2: recognition for what he's doing. And, yeah, I mean, Michael Clay,
• 22:39
  Speaker 2: I think, is doing a really good job. I think
• 22:41
  Speaker 2: Michael Clay is doing a really good job. I think
• 22:43
  Speaker 2: he's one of those coaches that kind of gets lost
• 22:45
  Speaker 2: in the mix a little bit, and I do what
• 22:47
  Speaker 2: I can when I can to make sure that I'm
• 22:50
  Speaker 2: mentioning what he's doing. You know, a lot of teams,
• 22:54
  Speaker 2: and this isn't just exclusive to Philadelphia. League-wide, you tend
• 22:57
  Speaker 2: to lose sight of the special teams coordinator, but I
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: think Michael Clay has a very bright future ahead of him,
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: and they play hard for him.
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: If you watch.
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: how they attack, and how you can get starters to
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: jump in. You can get players who really haven't played
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: much special teams in their careers to step in there
• 23:18
  Speaker 2: and buy in and essentially run through a wall for them.
• 23:22
  Speaker 2: I think that speaks to Michael Clay's ability to reach
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: his players. Everyone speaks so glowingly about him, all the
• 23:30
  Speaker 2: players that I've talked to, to be specific, that they
• 23:33
  Speaker 2: just have a lot of positive things to say about
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: him and how he goes about his business and how
• 23:39
  Speaker 2: he's really able to command the room and elicit that buy-in.
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: So that's kind of where things are going into Sunday.
• 23:46
  Speaker 2: And I'll tell you right now, I'm going to have
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: the Eagles winning this game by a score of 20-13.
• 23:51
  Speaker 2: I think they rally around Jalen Hurts. And the news
• 23:57
  Speaker 2: that the superficial blood clot, the the the vibes in
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: the locker room, I would say on Thursday were pretty upbeat.
• 24:05
  Speaker 3: Fall is the season where everyone gets busier, more calls,
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• 24:52
  Speaker 1: Hey, Philly fans game day is stressful enough.
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  Speaker 3: Parking traffic, long lines. We've all been there, but when
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  Speaker 3: it comes to your cannabis, Camden Apothecary makes it easy.
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• 25:52
  Speaker 1: And this is where... I feel the need to.
• 25:57
  Speaker 2: Give Jordan Milato a mention here because his ability as
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: a leader, I don't want that to get lost. Because
• 26:05
  Speaker 2: think about what has transpired and how his world has
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: been turned upside down from a job perspective. You lose
• 26:14
  Speaker 2: Lane Johnson to retirement. You lose Cam Juergens. You might
• 26:18
  Speaker 2: get Landon Dickerson back, but now you lose Jalen Hurts.
• 26:21
  Speaker 2: All of these pieces around him that he's worked with
• 26:24
  Speaker 2: for years are no longer there. And he is now
• 26:28
  Speaker 2: being that stabilizing presence, the voice that resonates. He's pouring
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: into the young players. He's guiding everyone along. He's focused
• 26:39
  Speaker 2: on his emotions and his direction and how he leads
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: the team. Those are two things that he said. And
• 26:44
  Speaker 2: I think that he just epitomizes what it means to
• 26:47
  Speaker 2: be a leader. And I can't express how much respect
• 26:50
  Speaker 2: I have for how he's approached it because this is
• 26:54
  Speaker 2: the most challenging time that I can remember that he's
• 26:59
  Speaker 2: had to lead this team.
• 27:00
  Speaker 1: And now a lot of those familiar.
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: Faces that have done it with him Reed Blankenship, the
• 27:06
  Speaker 2: Kobe Dean, and, you know, there's others.
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: Lane Johnson.
• 27:10
  Speaker 2: They're no longer there. So this is, I think Jordan
• 27:13
  Speaker 2: has really answered the bell here. And he's been keeping
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: everything together. And when I say that the locker room's upbeat,
• 27:20
  Speaker 2: it is. But it starts with Jordan. It starts with
• 27:23
  Speaker 2: Nick Sirianni and the messaging throughout the week and the consistency.
• 27:27
  Speaker 2: And not having a woe is me mentality going out
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: there and saying, this is where we are. This is
• 27:32
  Speaker 2: who we're working with. And in Jordan's case, I need
• 27:36
  Speaker 2: to bring these guys along. I need to instill confidence
• 27:38
  Speaker 2: in them. And talking to some of those younger linemen,
• 27:42
  Speaker 2: that has exactly been the case. So I think that's
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: important to mention here as we wrap things up. And
• 27:47
  Speaker 2: with that, that's going to do it for this episode
• 27:50
  Speaker 2: of DiCecco Daily.
• 27:51
  Speaker 1: I'm Andrew DiCecco, and I'll catch you all on the
• 27:54
  Speaker 1: next one.