Training camp always brings a fresh round of hope in Philadelphia, but the Eagles have had no shortage of headline-grabbing summers long before the first whistle at the Jefferson Health Training Complex. Some years were about optimism. Others were about roster upheaval, contract drama, or the kind of camp chatter that turns into a full-blown season-long storyline.
One of the most recent examples came after the Eagles’ dominant Super Bowl victory, when the mood around the team was upbeat even with a new offensive coordinator needed. Kellen Moore left for the head coaching job in New Orleans, and Sirianni’s staff promoted Kevin Patullo, who had served as passing game coordinator since 2021.
There was plenty of confidence that Patullo could handle the play-calling duties and help revive a passing game that ranked 29th in that Super Bowl-winning season. Instead, the offense became predictable, stagnant and struggled to move the ba
That same offseason also came with a shorter recovery window after the title run, which raised concerns about whether injured players such as Nakobe Dean, Nolan Smith, Cam Jurgens and Landon Dickerson had enough time to heal. The offensive line then took another hit from the injury bug last season, adding more trouble on that side of the ball.
The 2022 offseason was a different kind of buzz entirely, with Howie Roseman working the phones and reshaping the roster in a big way. The Eagles landed A.J.
Brown in a surprise trade, signed cornerback James Bradberry in mid-May to line him up with Darius Slay, brought in pass rusher Haason Reddick and drafted Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and Cam Jurgens. Those moves paid off in a big way.
Philadelphia finished 14-3, opened 7-0 and didn’t lose until Week 10. They rolled past the Giants and 49ers in the playoffs by a combined 69-14 before falling to the Chiefs in a back-and-forth Super Bowl LVII loss.
The offseason that set up Jalen Hurts’ rise began in 2021, when the Eagles traded Carson Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts in February for a 2021 third-round pick and a conditional 2022 second-rounder. That move cleared the runway for Hurts to become the starting quarterback.
It also kept paying dividends. The third-round pick was used to move up for DeVonta Smith at No. 10, while the conditional pick became a first-rounder at No. 16 if Wentz played 75% of the snaps that season, which he did at 98%.
That pick was then dealt to New Orleans for the Saints’ No. 18 selection, which became part of the package to acquire Brown. The Wentz trade eventually fed into a chain of deals that also helped the Eagles add Matt Pryor, Jalen Carter and Cooper DeJean.
There was also the Chip Kelly era, when the coach went from turnaround artist to full control and then watched things unravel. Kelly had already gone 10-6 and won the NFC East in 2013 after the Eagles had fallen to 4-12 in Andy Reid’s final season, then followed that with another 10-6 year in 2014 that still ended without a playoff berth.
By 2016, Jeffrey Lurie had given Kelly control of the 90-man roster, including the draft and free agency. Kelly responded by trading LeSean McCoy and Nick Foles for Kiko Alonso and Sam Bradford, releasing veterans Trent Cole, Evan Mathis, Todd Herremans and Cary Williams, and watching Jeremy Maclin leave in free agency.
Tim Tebow was on the roster, and the Eagles passed on Justin Jefferson with the 20th pick to take Nelson Agholor instead. The team went 6-9 under Kelly before Lurie fired him before the final week of the season, with Pat Shurmer serving as interim coach and closing the year with a Week 17 win to finish 7-9.
Even before the Eagles got to Lehigh University for camp in 2011, the offseason had already been packed with change. Sean McDermott was fired as defensive coordinator and replaced by Juan Castillo, who had been the team’s offensive line coach since 1998.
Howard Mudd came in as the new offensive line coach. On the roster side, the Eagles made a string of splashy additions: Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Nnamdi Asomugha, Ronnie Brown, Jason Babin and Vince Young.
Young’s famous “Dream Team” line came during a training camp interview, not before, but it took on a life of its own from there. The season never matched the hype.
Philadelphia started 1-4, sat at 4-8 by Week 13, then finished with four straight wins to end at .500.
And then there was Terrell Owens in 2004, who delivered one of the most explosive individual seasons in franchise history before the relationship with the Eagles broke down. He scored 14 touchdowns that year, still a team record, and caught nine passes for 122 yards in the Super Bowl loss to the Patriots seven weeks after breaking his leg and tearing a ligament in his right ankle.
A few months later, Owens walked out of training camp and staged what remains one of the most memorable and infamous press conferences in team history, making his displeasure known over the contract talks, or lack of them. With local media gathered around him in his driveway and helicopters overhead, Owens did sit-ups on a work bench and answered questions about the walkout and whether he was upset about the negotiations.
That moment marked the start of the end of his time in Philadelphia.
In Other News...
Eagles Offense Is Already Hinting At A Major Shift For Hurts
The first day of Eagles training camp offered an early look at how much Sean Mannions offense could change the feel of this group. Lane Johnson said the new setup is designed to make life harder on defenses while keeping things cleaner for the offense, and the early returns leaned into that idea with under-center work, play-action, wide-zone runs, motion and misdirection all showing up in practice. There were some first-day growing pains, but the overall structure looked built to suit the line and give Jalen Hurts a different kind of framework to work from.
Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley both sounded encouraged by what they saw, and Barkleys fit may be one of the more interesting parts of this shift. The scheme appears to give him a chance to do more as both a runner and a receiver, which matters for an offense trying to stay multiple without becoming complicated for its own players. If the Eagles keep stacking clean execution on top of those early concepts, this could become one of the more important adjustments of camp. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Defense Has 3 Lingering Flaws Fangio Must Fix In 2026
Vic Fangios third season in Philadelphia arrives with the defense in a much better place than it was when he first took over, but not quite where the Eagles want it to be. The unit has taken clear steps forward over the past two years, and the front office has kept working to support that progress, including a move to bolster the pass rush and a new deal that keeps Jalen Carter in place for the long haul.
Still, the Eagles know the defense has a few stubborn issues that can show up in the biggest moments. Run defense and third-down stops remain the most obvious pressure points, and Fangios challenge now is turning a good defense into one that can hold up against the leagues best offenses when the games get tight. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Day 1 Put Jalen Hurts And The Edge Depth Under Pressure
The Eagles opened training camp with the usual first-day mix of optimism and evaluation, but Jalen Hurts immediately drew attention for the kind of throws Philadelphia has wanted to see more often. Between the hashmarks, he looked comfortable and decisive, a promising sign as the offense begins sorting out timing and rhythm after a long offseason.
On the other side of the ball, the edge group already has a different feel because of Jonathan Greenard's absence, and that has pushed Josh Hunt into work on the right side of the line for now. Boogie Epenesa also stood out with a busy day and should keep seeing more chances as camp unfolds, giving the Eagles an early look at how much depth they really have when the rotations start to matter. [Read more 🡒]