Philadelphia Eagles initial 53-man roster projection after preseason finale
Philadelphia Eagles defensive, special teams, and practice squad
Most of the question marks are on the defensive side of the ball at the second level and in the secondary. Here’s an attempt to answer those questions.
Seven guys at edge rusher/defensive end/SAM (strongside linebackers): Josh Sweat, Brandon Graham, Tarron Jackson, Derek Barnett, Haason Reddick, Patrick Johnson, and Kyron Johnson
Philly’s five defensive tackles: Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, Jordan Davis, Milton Williams, and Marlon Tuipulotu
Five MIKE (middle) and WILL (weakside) linebackers: T.J. Edwards, Nakobe Dean, Shaun Bradley, Kyzir White, and Davion Taylor
Random notes: At the risk of sounding disrespectful, we wouldn’t have any issue seeing the Eagles decide to leave Davion Taylor off the 53-man roster. He doesn’t look any less confused about what he’s doing than he did during his rookie season.
It’s doubtful that he’ll be released, so for now, we’ll leave him on the roster.
The secondary
Again, this is tough to gauge, but in the end, we figure the guys with existing NFL tape and experience make the roster (along with an undrafted rookie).
Five cornerbacks: Darius Slay, James Bradberry, Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson, and Josh Jobe
Five safeties: Anthony Harris, Marcus Epps, Reed Blankenship, K’Von Wallace, and Josiah Scott (fan-favorite Reed Blankenship is a difficult cut, but he earns a spot on the practice squad).
The specialists (we’ve known this for a while): Jake Elliott – kicker, Arryn Siposs – punter, and Rick Lovato – long snapper
Trending. Second-year Eagles that should contribute. light
The practice squad (16)
Reid Sinnett (QB), Le’Raven Clark (OL), Kayode Awosika (OL), Josh Sills (OL), Jason Huntley (RB), Kennedy Brooks (RB), Deon Cain (WR), Devon Allen (WR), Britain Covey (WR), Noah Togiai (TE), JaCoby Stevens (LB), Marvin Wilson (DT), Mac McCain (CB), Tay Gowan (CB), Mario Goodrich (CB), Andre Chachere (safety)
One more nugget: Defensive end Matt Leo can return to the practice squad as a special roster exemption as he joined the team in 2020 through the NFL International Player Pathway program.