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The DiCecco Daily: Previewing Significant Eagles On Offense Headed Into Training Camp · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Hey, what's going on? Everybody?
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: Welcome into another episode of the check O'dei. It's Andrew Dichecko,
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: Eagles beat reporter for insidethebirds dot Com, and today I
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: want to take a look at which players I'll be
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: looking at, specifically on the offensive side, and then tomorrow
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: will do the defensive side. But we're going to start
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: at quarterback, and who better to start with than Jalen Hurts.
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: And we've talked so much this offseason about the newness
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: of this offense and what that's going to ultimately demand
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: of Jalen Hurts. And I think it's fair to point
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: out that Jalen has responded favorably to every challenge that's
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: been thrown his direction. He's someone who is going to
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: embrace this challenge, I would imagine, But it's also important
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: to point out that it's going to be a drastically
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: different system than the one that he's been functioning in
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: since being the starting quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles. We
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: talked about the differences with Sean Mannion and what he's
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: expected to bring in, but I want to see how
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: he takes to the coaching embraces the changes that are
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: going to be enacted, and that's going to be more
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: play action, more middle of the field utilization, but most
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: of all, it's a timing based offense. So the ball
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: has got to come out, and it's got to.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: Come out on time.
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: And while I am expecting not just for Jalen the
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: offense in general, to exhibit some signs of growing pains
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: early on, that should be expected and not cause for
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: any sort of a panic. It is something that I'm
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: going to be watching because he's the most important player
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: at the most important position for the Eagles, and the
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: offense is going to go as he will go. And
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: while I will say that the spring practices offered a glimpse,
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: training camp is really where you're able to better determine
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: where he is in terms of his grasp of the offense.
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: And I think that that should lead to a lot
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: of excitement and anticipation, but it also is going to
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: for some cause a little bit of apprehension, because why
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: depart from an offense that had been so successful. The
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: Eagles are going to undertake a system that's going to
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: draw some similarities to Sean McVay, Kyle Shanahan, and Matt Lafleur.
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: But the Eagles have fared quite well against those coaches,
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: so you can also, if you're playing Devil's Advocate, ask yourself,
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: why change and sort of implement a system of coaches
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: that you've really dominated. Nevertheless, this is a system that
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: the Eagles Jeffrey Lourie, Howie Roseman, that they organizationally, they
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: believe in.
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: And I don't think that there will be any half measures.
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: But Jalen Hurts will be the first player that I'll
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: be king in on on the offensive side because he's
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: the most important player. He touches the ball on every
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: play and his acclamation to this offense.
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: Will be crucial.
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: Needless to say to the Eagles early season success at
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: running back. I'm gonna name Tank Bigsby here because Tank
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: is someone that he liked the juice that he brings.
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: He has a really good.
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: A really good physicality to his game, good balance, he
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: navigates through contact very well, and I love the fact
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: that he never quits on a play.
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: He will fight for every yard.
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: And remember he's on this list because we never had
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: a chance to see Tank Bigsby in training camp, because
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: he arrived in Philadelphia in September, and so he stands
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: to take on a larger workload this year, not at
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: the expense of Saquon Barkley. The Eagles are going to
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: lean heavily on Saquon, but Tank is someone that I
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: think presents an ideal compliment to Barkley. We saw that
• 4:05
  Speaker 2: last season, but now I think you'll get to see
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: the creativity and the unorthodox approach of Bigsby as a runner,
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: and you'll get a better idea of how the Eagles
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: plan on using him, how he transitions to the new
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: run scheme, which I think he will take to it
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: pretty well. And I want to see where he is
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: in terms of the receiving element of his game. He's
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: a good runner, he's physical, he does a lot of
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: things well. Where is he from a pass blocking and
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: receiving prowess perspective here?
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: But I think he's going to be a really fun
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: player to watch.
• 4:43
  Speaker 2: There's likely to be some splash plays, some fireworks, if
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: you will. And I'm naming him here because I am
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: expecting him to open some eyes and emerge from training
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: camp as one of the true standouts of the summer
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: wide receiver. For me, that's going to be Dntavian Wicks.
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: The Eagles traded for him in April. They signed him
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: to a one year, twelve million dollar extension, and he's
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: kind of the X factor here. I've talked about Dontavian
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: Wicks at length in different podcasts this offseason, and as
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: a bigger body guy at six foot one, two hundred
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: and six pounds, he's going to fit a certain role
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: where you want to deliver him the football and contested
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: cats situations. You want to tap into his ability to
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: create separation at the top of his routes in the
• 5:29
  Speaker 2: shorts intermediate levels of the field. Now he has to
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: catch the ball with better consistency. But he is going
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: to be someone that the Eagles are going to lean
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: heavily on this year.
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: As a prominent piece of the passing game.
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: And there's not a lot that's really known about Dntavian
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: Wicks because well, I should say, and when I say that,
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: I mean there's nothing definitive that you can you can
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: tell one way or the other because he's been a
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: complimentary piece to the passing game. He's never had more
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: than thirty nine catches in a season or over seventy
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: targets in a season. This is his first opportunity as
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: in an expanded role. Now he's coming in with prior
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: knowledge of the offense, so one would presume that he's
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: going to enter training camp with a leg up over
• 6:14
  Speaker 2: some of the other players. But I'm curious to see
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: how exactly he fits. Is he able to establish a
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: rapport with Jaywin Hurts, and will his experience in the
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: offense sort of manifest in just being an early contributor
• 6:31
  Speaker 2: in training camp opening some eyes. I don't think that
• 6:34
  Speaker 2: he's going to be utilized as a downfield threat. That's
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: not really his skill set. He's a four to six
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: I think speed guy, but what he does very well
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: is work the middle of the field. He should be
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: a really popular mid range target, and I think he
• 6:49
  Speaker 2: does a nice job of shielding his body, using his
• 6:52
  Speaker 2: frame to his advantage to keep defensive backs at bay.
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: At tight end.
• 6:59
  Speaker 2: For me, it's going to be Eli Stowers the rookie,
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: and Eli Stowers is a player that Yeah, he didn't
• 7:05
  Speaker 2: necessarily pop too much in spring practices. I didn't notice
• 7:11
  Speaker 2: him all that much aside from a handful of receptions,
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: but again that shouldn't be cause for concern. He's now
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: had six weeks to absorb the offense. He went to
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: tight end University, where you're able to kind of pick
• 7:24
  Speaker 2: the brain of other players around the league. He got
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: some throwing in with jaywhen hurts. There were other players there,
• 7:30
  Speaker 2: but that counts for something. So I'm expecting Eli Stowers
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: to get into training camp and be a more effective
• 7:38
  Speaker 2: presence than what we saw during the force spring practices
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: that were available to us that we got to see,
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: and he's someone that I really am curious to learn
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: more about how the Eagles envisioned him this season. I
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: don't think he's going to have a large role, but
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: he certainly will have a role as a second round
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: pick and more to take this stead further, how do
• 8:01
  Speaker 2: they line him up? What he does present alignment versatility?
• 8:04
  Speaker 2: Could they use him as an X in certain situations?
• 8:08
  Speaker 2: I think his skill set translates into what I'm expecting
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: to be a training camp success. And he's still work
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: in progress as a blocker, so I think that that
• 8:17
  Speaker 2: might limit his opportunities ultimately this season, but he does
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: represent the future. I am looking to see where he
• 8:24
  Speaker 2: is in terms of his progress and knowledge of this offense.
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: So he is the logical choice for me at tight end.
• 8:32
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• 8:33
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• 9:32
  Speaker 1: Then we get to the offensive line. I'll give you
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: two players at tackle.
• 9:37
  Speaker 2: It's Markel Bell, the Eagles' third round pick. So Markel
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: Bell is a mountainous offensive lineman. The Eagles repped him
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: at left and right tackle during the spring, and I
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: still view him as a player that's a little bit unpolished,
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: might be a year away.
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: But what if he isn't? What is that? What could
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: that mean for Fred Johnson for example? Yet? Of course,
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: but I think MARKL.
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: Bell with his athleticism, his length, his physicality, and a
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: new offensive line coach and Chris Cooper, who, let's face it,
• 10:11
  Speaker 2: he's going to have different methods in getting his his
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: tutor and getting his teaching points across relative to Jeff Stoutland.
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: But how does he respond to the coaching?
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: How is he?
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: Is he able to take notable strides from the first
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: practice to the midway point in training camp? And I
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: just really liked what I saw from him on tape
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: at Miami, and I'm curious to see where he's able
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: to take his game this summer. And if he does
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: progress pretty steadily, can he all of a sudden become
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: someone that the Eagles can lean on and dress on
• 10:47
  Speaker 2: game day?
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: Is would he be? And this is all hypothetical?
• 10:52
  Speaker 2: Would he be a playable tackle option if injuries mount
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: at that position? So, Markel Bell the rookie who towers
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: over everyone, including Yea. He doesn't tower over my lotta,
• 11:07
  Speaker 2: but he's certainly a little bit taller than Jordan Is.
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: So Mark kel Bell will be my pick there at tackle,
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: and then from an interior lineman perspective, I'll say Drew Kendall,
• 11:19
  Speaker 2: and Drew Kendall to me is someone that I am
• 11:23
  Speaker 2: particularly high on. I thought very highly of the player
• 11:27
  Speaker 2: coming out of Boston College. I remember that of the
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: Eagles Day three picks, I was particularly bullish on Kendall
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: and I mentioned that that was my favorite pick for.
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: The Eagles on Day three.
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: He started a lot of games at a high level
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: program at Boston College. At center, he's a center by trade.
• 11:44
  Speaker 2: It looked like he's added some strength and some mass
• 11:47
  Speaker 2: to his size. Will be the immediate backup to Cam Jurgens.
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: But I also envisioned Drew taking on the Brett Toat
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: type of role where you're then asked to play both
• 11:57
  Speaker 2: guard spots, so you're really mastering all interior positions and
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: that is going to be.
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: Especially critical on game day.
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: And Withdrew last summer, there were opportunities where I thought
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: that he could have been better, and there were signs
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: that remind you that he was a Day three pick
• 12:17
  Speaker 2: and that he still needed some seasoning.
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: But I wonder where he is now after having a year.
• 12:28
  Speaker 2: Of learning from Jeff's out In a year in meetings,
• 12:31
  Speaker 2: he was learning a lot from Brett Toath that was
• 12:34
  Speaker 2: sort of his mentor of sorts. I always saw them
• 12:37
  Speaker 2: conversing outside the locker in that little walkway space, but
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: they lockered a couple apart from one another. So he
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: seems to be someone who is very coachable, has an
• 12:50
  Speaker 2: eagerness to refine certain areas to attain knowledge, and that
• 12:55
  Speaker 2: really shouldn't be a surprise. His father played in the NFL,
• 12:58
  Speaker 2: so he has some pedigree there. And Drew Kendall is
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: primed to step into a very very critical role for
• 13:06
  Speaker 2: the Eagles this year.
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: So he will be.
• 13:09
  Speaker 2: The interior lineman that I will most be keeping an
• 13:13
  Speaker 2: eye on when training camp rolls around. We'll take a
• 13:16
  Speaker 2: look at the defensive side tomorrow, but for now, those
• 13:19
  Speaker 2: are the players that I have on the offensive side.
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: That's going to do it for this episode of The
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: check O Daily
• 13:25
  Speaker 2: Andrew de Checko and we'll catch you all on the
• 13:28
  Speaker 2: next one.