Philadelphia Eagles: Ranking 13 sophomores on their roster
By Hunter Doyle
Who are the best second-year players for the Philadelphia Eagles?
It’s hard to know what we should expect from the 2020 NFL season. At the moment, we are still expecting to see a football season, and that’s what Philadelphia Eagles fans are hoping, even if they won’t be at Lincoln Financial Field anytime soon. Training camp is also right around the corner and NFL fans are itching for some football.
In a summer where practices could be limited and preseason games might be canceled, the importance of players who are familiar with the scheme and playbook can’t be stressed enough. The veterans in the building are going to play a major role, but some of the younger guys who have been around for some time will need to do the same. That’s not to say the offseason additions aren’t talented and can’t contribute in year one but it’s going to take time to integrate some of them into the gameplan.
For the 2019 Eagles’ rookies, 2020’s season is significant. A memorable rookie season isn’t promised to everyone, but players perform in their sophomore campaign is often a tell-tale sign of what type of player they are. Will they fall victim to the dreaded ‘sophomore slump’ or will they have a big season?
Carson Wentz had a respectable rookie season considering what was around him but then he followed it up with an MVP-caliber season in 2017. Zach Ertz also contributed during his rookie year but he became a much more trusted weapon by putting up 22 more receptions and 233 more yards receiving. 58 total catches and 702 receiving yards was the result.
This year’s group of sophomores isn’t anything to write home about, outside of a few names, but that isn’t surprising seeing as how Philly only had five draft picks in 2019, one of them being a quarterback they landed in the fifth-round, Clayton Thorson (and he didn’t even make the roster). With that said, let’s take a look at how the guys in this year’s sophomore class rank. We’re not including Greg Ward Jr. in the bunch. It feels like he’s been around forever.