We roll on! We're a month into the new league year. Business is booming in the NFL. No fan base is happier right now than that of the Philadelphia Eagles. Winning the Super Bowl will do that for you.
We've never been shy about saying this. As thankful as we are, we're also relieved thanks to the result. Philly steamrolled the mighty Kansas City Chiefs on football's biggest stage, but can you imagine if they hadn't? Think about how we would have felt seeing so many free agents leave after another loss to Andy Reid and company.
That line between pleasure and pain (or euphoria and anguish) seemingly gets slimmer by the season. Now, comes the tougher part, the title defense. Typically, Eagles aren't the hunted, but they will be in this case. Amon-Ra St. Brown has already asked for some Week 1 smoke on national television.
Philly will get every team's best shot next season, but that's the nature of the beast. Here's our way-too-early prediction. We expect another deep playoff run.
Ranking the Eagles' offseason pre-draft acquisitions
Philly lost several valuable members of the roster, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. We'll see what happens with Dallas Goedert.
The Birds have actively shopped their starting tight end and are expected to release him if there are no takers. So far, there hasn't been any.
They've replaced valuable role players and starters with several low-risk signing. We'll have to wait and see how they perform, but how good are these guys really? These types of evaluations are always subjective, but we've taken our shot at ranking them.
1. A.J. Dillon, running back
The tough part about ranking A.J. Dillon is he didn't play in 2024 after suffering a preseason injury, so all of our theories are based on his performance from 2020-23. As far as we're concerned, if Philly's doctors have cleared him, that's good enough for us to move forward.
He's a six-foot-tall, 247-pounder. It's going to be good knowing that Saquon Barkley gets a breather, and if Dillon racks up some tough yards to keep Saquon's wear and tear minimal, this will be a successful signing, which we expect it to be.
2. Charley Hughlett, long snapper
Nothing demonstrates the value of a long snapper like seeing the guy on your roster miss the mark (pun intended). Rick Lovato was beginning to look like a liability at times.
Philly pushed their way through the adversity and added Charley Hughlett after deciding to let Lovato walk. Voila! It looks like we may have an upgrade here.
3. Kendall Lamm, offensive tackle
This may be one of the underrated signings of the offseason. Yeah, Philly is going to draft an offensive tackle. They've spoken to a ton of them (again, pun intended). They may even draft one as early as Round 1.
Still, Fred Johnson, Le'Raven Clark, and Jack Driscoll's departures meant the Eagles had to add someone. Kendall Lamm probably grades as the backup swing tackle.
4. Matt Pryor
Matt Pryor is back after playing over 1,000 snaps last season. One was played at left tackle. 49 snaps were played at left guard. Most of his work came on the right side of the Chicago Bears offensive line.
895 snaps were played at right guard while another 59 were played at right tackle. He even played one snap lined up as a tight end. He's a slightly better pass protector than run blocker, but he's good enough to make this Eagles roster as currently constructed.
5. Azeez Ojulari, EDGE
Azeez Ojulari is interesting. Honestly, we don't know if he's better or worse than Josh Sweat by simply using the eyeball test. He notched seven sacks last season per Pro Football Focus, but four of those sacks came vs. the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals, so more study is needed.
The good news is he does come with some breakout potential.
6. Adoree' Jackson, cornerback
Some say Adoree' Jackson's best years may be behind him. We believe he played some uninspired football towards the end of his run in Gotham with the Giants.
Come on... What is there to be excited about there?
Our prediction for Adoree' is the change of scenery does some good as it did for Saquon Barkley and James Bradberry before him. Don't expect an All-Pro season, but expect a solid campaign. This is potentially another of Philly's underrated signings.
7. Avery Williams, RB/CB/RET
Seemingly Britain Covey's replacement on special teams as Philly's returner, Avery Williams is also listed as a running back and cornerback. Rest assured, he won't be asked to do all three jobs in Philadelphia. He isn't a burner but posses balance and can make moves in tight places.
8. Joshua Uche, EDGE
Honestly, we didn't like what we saw from Josh Uche last season with the New England Patriots or the Kansas City Chiefs. PFF gives him low marks for the overall picture but grades him highly as a pass rusher. We've seen him frustrate Lane Johnson at times. See the regular-season opener in 2023. Who knows... maybe Vic Fangio is the sparkplug here?
9. Harrison Bryant, tight end
Harrison Bryant's inclusion on this Eagles roster is more about what he brings to the table as a blocker than what he contributes as a receiver. Even with that being said, he's a slightly better pass protector than run blocker.
Over the past two regular seasons, he's only been targeted 32 times. That has resulted in 22 receptions, 167 yards receiving, and three TDs.
All of those TDs were scored in 2023 as the Raiders didn't rely on him much. Don't worry. If he makes the Eagles' roster, Philly won't rely on him much either.
10. Patrick Johnson, EDGE/special teams
Depending on the day, you might see Patrick Johnson higher on this list. We've never had much to complain about with what we remember about his Eagles tenure.
He's good on special teams. Philly never asked him to contribute much to the rotation of pass rushers. They just always had guys at the position they ranked higher, and if Johnson makes the roster this season, that will again be the case.
11. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB3
Acquired by trade, Dorian Thompson-Robinson gives Philly their third-string QB after two underwhelming seasons in Cleveland with the Browns. He's crafted a 1-4 record in five career starts, but come on. He played for the Browns. How fair is it to hold anything we've seen so far against him?
12. Kenyon Green, guard
The Birds shipped C.J. Gardner-Johnson off via trade and acquired guard Kenyon Green as a result. Philly and the Houston Texans also swapped picks in the deal.
Green has started 23 of his 27 in-game appearances during the 2022 and 2024 seasons (a shoulder injury kept him out of action in 2023).
We aren't expecting a Mekhi Becton-level showing here. 582 snaps at left guard last season led to some low grades from PFF.
13. Kylen Granson, tight end
At the risk of sounding disrespectful, we weren't overjoyed by Kylen Granson's acquisition when it was announced. We still haven't experienced an adrenaline rush several weeks later.
While Granson might be a better receiver than Harrison Bryant, the latter might still have the higher upside. Training camp will assist us in making a better evaluation, but if we had to guess right now, we'd say both are in danger of being left off the 53-man roster.
14. Terrace Marshall, wide receiver
We've thought about this. At the time of this story's release, we've been made aware of Terrace Marshall's acquisition by Philadelphia, but the Eagles still have yet officially announce his recent signing. This feels like one of those signings to add a camp body because the more we think about this we can't move past the thought that we see no scenario where he's on this team at the beginning of the regular season.