Eagles High on Nakobe Dean; Early Challenges for Nicholas Morrow?

Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman is confident in Dean while Davion Taylor and Christian Ellis stand out on the first day of training camp

PHILADELPHIA – It was widely assumed that Nicholas Morrow would be inserted into the starting lineup Day 1 and there for the entire season.

Well, Day 1 came and went on Wednesday when the Philadelphia Eagles opened training camp, and it wasn’t Morrow who stood out. Instead, it was a pair of backups who had interceptions – Christian Ellis and Davion Taylor.

Ellis was in the spotlight during the spring with some plays made during OTAs, but Taylor, you remember him, right, the raw, surprise third-round pick (No. 103 overall) from 2020?

Taylor, who turns 25 on Aug. 5, seemed to be playing his way into the Eagles’ plans two seasons ago but got injured after six starts. Last year, he spent the season on the practice squad.

His first-day pick came during a first-team rep against backup quarterback Marcus Mariota. Perhaps it was a coincidence that he got that that rep with the ones because, a play earlier, Morrow had trouble keeping up with D’Andre Swift in coverage.

The Eagles are looking to replace starters T.J. Edwards, who made 43 starts over the past three seasons after earning a spot on the roster as an undrafted free agent in 2019, and Kyzir White, a sturdy performer in his only season in Philly.

“Whoever it’s going to be, just connecting,” said defensive tackle Fletcher Cox. “Connect with those guys and get used to hearing their voice behind you. That’s the biggest thing, get used to hearing their voice, the new voice. 

"Obviously, I heard T.J.’s voice for years, so get used to hearing Nakobe (Dean). He’s a little more soft-spoken so you have to pay attention to get used to it.”

Dean will certainly be one of them.

Morrow, well, perhaps not so fast.

“We've got a lot of young players at that position,” said general manager Howie Roseman on Wednesday. “We're excited to see those guys, evaluate them on a daily basis, and again, like anything, we'll keep our options open. 

"We're never going to close the door on an opportunity to improve our team, so we'll constantly be looking at that position and every position.”

Roseman also commented on Dean, speaking toward the comfort level they have with the second-year player from Georgia who saw just 34 defensive reps in his rookie year.

“I think what we learned from Nakobe was the same thing that we saw in college, the same reason that made him such a highly recruited guy coming out of high school,” said the GM. “The guy has tremendous passion, tremendous love for the game, tremendous work ethic. He was around the ball in every opportunity he had."

“...we have high expectations for Nakobe, but no higher than the expectations he has for himself.”

As for Morrow, he still has his work cut out for him while Taylor and Ellis continue to build their case that maybe it could be one of them who starts alongside Dean.

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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