Jalen Carter Among 10 Eagles to Watch in Preseason vs. Ravens

Philadelphia Eagles rookie defensive tackle Jalen Carter should see plenty of snaps against the Baltimore Ravens in his first pro game, but there are nine others who will be closely watched as well.

PHILADELPHIA – Here are 10 players I’ll be watching closely when the Philadelphia Eagles travel to the Baltimore Ravens for the preseason opener on Saturday night…

Jalen Carter, No. 98: He was the ninth overall pick in the draft, so why wouldn’t anyone watch him? While most of the first team is expected to sit, he should see some snaps just so he can get a feel for his first action as a professional. The same thing could be said about all the rookies.

Nolan Smith, No. 3: The edge/outside linebacker, who was the team’s second first-round pick, coming at No. 30 overall, should see plenty of time and he could line up off the ball at linebacker and on the edge. Going against somebody other than Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata should be a fun watch.

“I learn a lot from Lane all the way to Mailata,” he said. “They beat me on a rep, but they still come up and tell me, ‘You could’ve done this or that.’ They’re the real reason that my game has improved so much. That instant feedback from an offensive tackle, when he says stuff like that, it just helps you a lot.”

Sydney Brown, No. 21: Yes, another rookie. Brown plays way too fast at times and that leads to mistakes. He needs to learn how to harness his game, and this will be the first step in learning how to do that.

Josh Jobe, No. 28: The second-year cornerback has taken a big step in his development from one of last year’s undrafted free agents who made the team and played primarily special teams. He has been the top backup at his position during camp.

Greedy Williams, No. 38: The free agent hasn’t done much to stand out, so it’s time for that to happen before he runs out of time to make the team.

Britain Covey, No. 18: There are no guarantees last year’s punt returner makes the team, but he should. If he does, he may do more than return punts this year. 

He looks much quicker than a season ago, perhaps more comfortable in the playbook and in knowing that he can play in the league. That quickness has manifested itself in the slot, where he has proven to be a tough cover. We’ll see if he can get open against the Ravens.

Joseph Ngata, No. 86: The undrafted receiver from Clemson has put himself in a position to potentially win a job. On Thursday, he took reps with the first team, so expect him to be on the field a ton on Saturday night.

Janarius Robinson, No. 59: The defensive end certainly looks the part at 6-5, 258, and he has had some good moments in camp, but there are plenty of numbers on the outside of this defense, so he will need to up his game to win a job. He was on the roster all last season before hitting injured reserve after the Eagles claimed him after the Minnesota Vikings made him one of their final cuts out of last summer’s camp.

Christian Elliss, No. 53: You could list any linebacker here since it’s a position that got deeper with the additions of Myles Jack and Zach Cunningham. Elliss gets the nod because he’s had a strong camp and now needs to translate that into a game situation.

Mekhi Garner, No. 43: Rookie Kelee Ringo could be in this spot as well, but as a draft pick, one who the Eagles moved up in the fourth round to grab, he has a spot locked up as one of the cornerbacks. 

As an undrafted free agent out of LSU, Garner doesn’t. He has flashed during camp and, at 6-2, 210, has good size. He’s also very physical at the line of scrimmage.

Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.

Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.

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