Eagles Training Camp Overreactions Day 11: Corner Battles, More Patrick Johnson

Next up for the Eagles is a trip to New England for a joint practice agaist the Patriots, but first, here are five overreactions to Day 11 of training camp.

Eagles defense goe through some pre-practice warmups during training camp. / Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles returned to the practice field 48 hours after winning their preseason opener against the Baltimore Ravens, 16-13, on Friday night. Next up is a joint practice on Tuesday against the New England Patriots, who they will play Thursday night.

Before going there, let's overreact to Sunday's practice:

CORNER BATTLE. Josh Jobe, and Zech McPhearson seemed to get more reps on second team during Sunday’s practice, which means there could be a fight to win a job as the Eagles begin to narrow their 53-man focus on the cornerback position. Both have special team prowess, so they could both end up on the roster, though it is hard to find a spot for them.

There are five CB locks – Darius Slay, Kelee Ringo, Isaiah Rodgers, Quinyon Mitchell, and Avonte Maddox. Cooper DeJean could classify as a safety, but likely will be viewed as a cornerback, so that’s six. Eli Ricks and Shon Stephens are also in the mix.

 It’s worth noting that McPhearson didn’t get any defensive snaps against the Ravens, though he played 13 special team reps. Jobe was in for 22 on defense and 12 on special teams.

On Sunday, McPhearson also bit on a stop-and-go route from Jacob Harris for a big gain down the left sideline after Kenny Pickett found him wide open, while Jobe was beaten cleanly off the line of scrimmage by John Ross.

Eagles outside linebacker/edge rusher Nolan Smith takes a water break during Eagles training camp. / Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

E.J. JENKINS. He should be the third tight end behind Dallas Goedert and Grant Calcaterra. There’s no question that Jenkins can get open and catch the ball in practice, proving it again on Sunday.

Against the Ravens, he was targeted twice and had one catch for four yards. It would be nice to see his reps grow in the final two preseason games to see if he can do it in games. His blocking hasn’t been on display much, either.

Albert Okwuegbunam missed Sunday’s practice with an abdomen injury but hasn’t shown much in camp and struggled to catch the ball on Friday. Veteran C.J. Uzomah has been OK but hasn’t really stood out, except on Sunday when he moved before the ball was snapped after the defensive line made a late shift to their right.

PATRICK JOHNSON. The fourth-year outside linebacker/edge rusher wasn’t resting on his Friday night heroics. HE would have had a sack on play. Vic Fangio liked what he saw of the play Johnson made on Friday night to help set up the game-winning field goal by forcing a fumble with a sack and then recovering it in the final seconds of a 16-13 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

“That was a hell of a play by Patrick at the end of the game there to cause that fumble and recover it,” said the defensive coordinator on Sunday.

QUINYON MITCHELL VS. DEVONTA SMITH. There were a pair of one-on-one matchups between the rookie corner and the shifty receiver. Mitchell won both reps with sticky coverage. On the first rep, Smith drove hard like it was going up the field then stopped on a dime and came back toward the line of scrimmage, but Mitchell stopped and went with him to break up Kenny Pickett’s throw. On the second rep, Mitchell stayed stride for stride with Smith on a crossing pattern and a throw sailed high.

It was good to see Mitchell follow up his preseason debut, when he played both inside and out, with a strong practice, though Dallas Goedert was able to get open against him, if only slightly, on a sideline completion from Jalen Hurts who was flushed right and had to throw on the run.

“I thought he did well,” said Fangio of Mitchell’s game, which included 24 snaps and six on special teams, against the Ravens.

“He played both nickel and outside corner. He's a good player and he's going to be a good player. We just have to be careful not to overload his plate too much because nickel is a full-time position as well as corner is, and he's having to learn both right now and they are two drastically different positions. So, we have to constantly monitor that to make sure he's capable of doing that.”

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS

Not so much an overreaction, but on-field interactions:

A.J. Brown left Isaiah Rodgers in his wake on a quick slant that was an easy pitch-and-catch from Hurts. Brown said, “Hell, nah,” after making the catch.

Bryce Huff made a nice play in coverage against Smith, forcing a wide throw from Hurts. C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who watched practice with Sydney Brown near the goal line, yelled, “Bryce, I see you, Bryce.”

On the final play of practice, after Johnny Wilson and Mitchell went one-on-one and got real handsy doing it, Wilson had just enough of a window against tight coverage to snare a TD pass from Hurts. Darius Slay was yelling, “OPI, OPI,” wanting offensive pass interference called against Wilson. It was a good no-call.

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