Phil Sheridan, ESPN Staff Writer 10y

Philadelphia Eagles' projected roster

With training camp now under way, here's a look at how the Eagles' final 53-man roster could pan out:

QUARTERBACKS (3)

  • Nick Foles

  • Mark Sanchez

  • Matt Barkley

A year ago, Foles competed for the starting job with Michael Vick. Now the competition is between Sanchez and Barkley for the No. 2 spot. Put your money on Sanchez. The Eagles wouldn’t have signed him to be the third quarterback.

RUNNING BACKS (4)

  • LeSean McCoy

  • Darren Sproles

  • Chris Polk

  • Matthew Tucker

It won’t be surprising if the Eagles go with only three backs here, as Chip Kelly has been talking Sproles up as a running back since signing him. But if Sproles slides around the field as Kelly finds interesting matchups for him as a receiver, the Eagles may need depth behind McCoy. Rookie Henry Josey belongs in the picture, too.

WIDE RECEIVERS (5)

  • Jeremy Maclin

  • Riley Cooper

  • Jordan Matthews

  • Josh Huff

  • Brad Smith

This is a confusing position because of all the offseason churn. DeSean Jackson and Jason Avant are gone. Cooper is more established. Maclin is returning from injury. Matthews could develop into the best of the bunch. Ifeanyi Momah and Jeff Maehl are in the mix, too.

TIGHT ENDS (3)

  • Brent Celek

  • Zach Ertz

  • James Casey

Ertz should continue his ascent to the No. 1 slot here, but Celek’s completeness as a blocker and receiver make him tough to write off. It wouldn’t be shocking if somebody (Emil Igwenagu?) persuaded Kelly to move on from Casey, who probably wonders why he signed in Philadelphia last year.

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (10)

  • Jason Peters

  • Evan Mathis

  • Jason Kelce

  • Todd Herremans

  • Andrew Gardner

  • Allen Barbre

  • Matt Tobin

  • Michael Bamiro

  • Dennis Kelly

  • Julian Vandervelde

Lane Johnson will be on the Eagles' roster this year, just not for the first four weeks due to his PED suspension. Pencil in Andrew Gardner, a free agent formerly with the Texans, instead. Gardner opened camp as the second-team left tackle.

DEFENSIVE LINE (6)

  • Fletcher Cox

  • Bennie Logan

  • Beau Allen

  • Cedric Thornton

  • Taylor Hart

  • Joe Kruger

This is actually a tough group to project. Kruger spent his rookie year on IR, so he’s kind of a wild card. The coaches seemed high on Hart, who played for Kelly and line coach Jerry Azzinaro at Oregon. Allen is a draft pick. All three could make the team, but then, so could Damion Square.

LINEBACKERS (8)

  • Connor Barwin

  • DeMeco Ryans

  • Mychal Kendricks

  • Trent Cole

  • Marcus Smith

  • Jason Phillips

  • Bryan Braman

  • Najee Goode

The big issue here is how long it takes first-round pick Smith to progress to a point where he could start ahead of Cole. It might take the whole season. And then there is the idea of giving Ryans some downtime, which could get Goode on the field quite a bit. Phillips and Braman are mostly special-teams guys.

SAFETIES (6)

  • Nate Allen

  • Malcolm Jenkins

  • Earl Wolff

  • Keelan Johnson

  • Chris Maragos

  • Ed Reynolds

That seems like a lot of safeties, but Maragos was signed for special teams, and the coaches like Reynolds enough to carry the fifth-round pick as he develops. Johnson could be the odd man out.

CORNERBACKS (5)

  • Cary Williams

  • Bradley Fletcher

  • Nolan Carroll

  • Brandon Boykin

  • Jaylen Watkins

In Year 2 of a total redo at this position, the Eagles will let merit sort things out with this group. Williams and Fletcher were adequate last year but now have Carroll pushing them both. Boykin established himself as a solid nickel corner. The coaches are high on Watkins, a rookie from Florida. Roc Carmichael could force his way onto the roster, as well.

SPECIALISTS (3)

  • Alex Henery

  • Donnie Jones

  • Jon Dorenbos

These three mainstays all figure to be back. Henery is working on kickoffs, which would help the coverage unit immensely. Jones had a solid season punting the ball, and Dorenbos remains automatic at long-snapping.

^ Back to Top ^