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Philadelphia Eagles Roundup: One expert’s opinion on corner and wideout

By Geoffrey Knox

LANDOVER, MD - DECEMBER 30: Nelson Agholor #13 of the Philadelphia Eagles runs for a touchdown in front of Deshazor Everett #22 of the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on December 30, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - DECEMBER 30: Nelson Agholor #13 of the Philadelphia Eagles runs for a touchdown in front of Deshazor Everett #22 of the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on December 30, 2018 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /
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One NFL expert recently gave his opinion on a few things as the Philadelphia Eagles near closer to another training camp. A lot of good things came out of this one.

Here we are guys. We’re right around that two-week mark. Another training camp for the Philadelphia Eagles is on the horizon, and everybody has their theory on the upcoming schedule, what the rookies might do, and what we might see in position battles.

Speaking of that, whatever happened to those Nelson Agholor trade rumors? Will the drafting of a highly-touted rookie, JJ Arcega-Whiteside, give the Eagles the courage to move on from their former first-round selection? Are we to believe that Agholor stays and Mack Hollins and Shelton Gibson are on the chopping block?

Here’s another question. What about all of those bodies at corner? Currently,
Ronald Darby, Rasul Douglas, Josh Hawkins, Sidney Jones, Godwin Igwebuike, Jalen Mills, Jeremiah McKinnon, Avonte Maddox, Jay Liggins, and Cre’Von LeBlanc all sit on the depth chart.

Conventional wisdom tells us Darby, Mills, Jones, Douglas, LeBlanc and Maddox are the favorites. None of us know if that’s the case though.

Recently, NFL.com’s Around the NFL writer, Jeremy Bergman, dropped a few random thoughts on the NFC East. Here’s some of what his thoughts were, as it relates to the Eagles’ situation at corner. He feels this will be the most important battle at camp.

"Philly’s roster is arguably the best and deepest in football. It’s hard to find a blemish, let alone a competition. So I’m tempted to leave this entire section blank. Alas, I’m in too deep already. Let’s go with the Eagles cornerbacks, a deep unit that was ravaged by injuries last season. Ronald Darby and Jalen Mills should still start, but where does that leave Sidney Jones (who has yet to complete a full season), Avonte Maddox, Rasul Douglas and Cre’von LeBlanc? Philly has a bevy of solid (if fragile) options to fill out the depth chart, and hopefully not the injury report, this season."

The wide receiver grouping wasn’t left out. Bergman shared a few random thoughts on the 13 guys that will battle it out from the end of July until ‘The Birds’ make final roster cuts in September. What did he come up with? We’re glad you asked:

"The Eagles, as I’ve said before, boast an embarrassment of riches… Usually, you can’t have too much of a good thing, but Philadelphia might have just that in the receiver room. The Eagles return Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor and Mack Hollins from last year’s roster. They also scooped up DeSean Jackson and Braxton Miller in free agency, as well as J.J. Arcega-Whiteside in the draft… Carson Wentz has his pick of the litter behind a typically-clean pocket."

Bergman continued and, eventually, weighed in on that Agholor issue that we all seemed to have forgotten about.

"As things stand, Philly could choose to play more often with either 11 personnel (3 WRs) or 12 personnel (2 TEs, 2 WRs), with Agholor as a potential odd man out… Agholor was available for a trade ahead of the draft, and the acquisition of Arcega-Whiteside portended to some that Agholor’s departure was imminent. That has yet to come to fruition, but the former first-round (wide receiver) did miss minicamp with a lower-body injury, which doesn’t do him any favors on the trade block. If a younger receiver or two stand out to Doug Pederson and his staff this summer, could Agholor finally be dealt?"

To make long stories short, it appears that we all have more questions than answers, but that’s what training camp is for, right? Buckle up ladies and gents. We’re one step closer to football that counts.

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