Philadelphia Eagles 2020 training camp preview: QB Kyle Lauletta

So, why did the Philadelphia Eagles acquire Kyle Lauletta again?

The Philadelphia Eagles have a clear idea of how their quarterback position will look in 2020. Currently, they have Carson Wentz, rookie Jalen Hurts, Nate Sudfeld, and… Kyle Lauletta? Yes, the Richmond product and former New York Giant figures to play a role for the “Birds” in 2020, during training camp anyway.

Then again, the only reason he’s on this team could be because each team is required to carry four quarterbacks during camp. Let’s do some digging anyway.

There’s no player on the football field who can change the outcome of a game more than the quarterback. The Eagles have one of those in Wentz. Last year, he played exceptionally well in spite of the team lacking a game-changing receiver for most of the campaign. He’s the team’s franchise signal-caller, and he won’t cede the starting job unless he goes down with an injury.

The backup quarterback is arguably the second most important position on any roster. If your starter goes down, the team needs someone to manage the team. Leading into camp, the “Birds” have a few. They re-signed Sudfeld earlier this year and selected Hurst in the second round of 2019’s draft. The former has been a darling among the Eagles brass, and this team expects the latter to become Wentz’s backup as soon as possible.

NFL teams don’t carry more than three quarterbacks on their active roster. Some only activate two on game days. We’ve seen the Eagles carry three, so are we to assume that Lauletta will be relegated to their practice squad?

What can Kyle Lauletta provide for the Philadelphia Eagles?

The Eagles division rivals, the New York Giants, drafted Lauletta out of Richmond in the fourth round of 2018’s draft. The former Spiders quarterback has never had elite physical attributes so he’s been the grinder type that outworks everyone else. At the collegiate level, he threw for 10,465 yards and 73 touchdowns, both school records. Also, he was named 2018 Senior Bowl MVP after throwing for 198 yards and three touchdowns.

Greg Gattuso, who lost twice to Richmond twice while Lauletta was at the helm, also praised the Richmond product after the Giants drafted him stating that he didn’t think he’s “going to embarrass himself by any means by going to the Giants.”

At the time of his addition, Eli Manning was the starter. There was no chance of Lauletta supplanting him (and since then, the Giants have drafted Daniel Jones). At this point in his career, his shining moment was Week 13 of the 2018 season. Lauletta handed mop-up duty in a 40-16 win over Washington.

All Lauletta had to do was get out of that one without embarrassing himself. You can almost guess where this is headed. Lauletta wasted no time in throwing five incompletions and an interception, a good enough performance to earn him an imperfect 0.0 quarterback rating.

Unfortunately, that performance is all we have to go on in reference to Lauletta in a regular-season game. After 2019’s preseason, the Giants cut him on August 31st. Again, they had Jones. The Eagles claimed him the following day off of waivers, and he remained a member of the practice squad for the remainder of the season. Philly signed Lauletta to a reserve future contract on January 6th, but again, with Hurts and Sudfeld on the roster, he’ll likely be part of their practice squad.

Kyle Lauletta does hold some value for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Football is coming, but the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t relented. As much NFL teams are trying to make football as risk-free as possible, players will need to be careful as the dangers of playing are evident. Positive tests are going to happen. There will also be players that opt out of playing. Simply put, rosters could be decimated in the blink of an eye, so every team will need to try to hold on to as many talented players as possible.

Lauletta is currently the fourth quarterback on the Eagles depth chart. Injuries or illnesses could change that quickly. Philly had better make sure that he gets as much experience as possible while making the most out of any reps he can get ahead of the season. The “Birds” should err on the side of caution on this one. This is a unique situation that definitely calls for it.