FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The Eagles wrapped up their second joint practice with the New England Patriots on Thursday afternoon, and the defense supplied most of the loudest moments.
With the offensive field blocked from view for much of the day, NJ.com watched the first-team defense closely before the offense eventually came over for a better look at the end of the session. That put the spotlight on a few defenders who made the most of the setting, especially cornerback Riq Woolen and edge rusher Jalyx Hunt.
Woolen answered a rough first practice with a far sharper showing Thursday. He looked like the version of himself the Eagles were hoping to see, winning a bunch of his reps and bringing real juice to Philadelphia’s defense.
Early on, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye tried a fade to Romeo Doubs, but Woolen stayed glued to him and got his arm into Doubs’ chest to knock the ball away. He celebrated with a finger wag and a seatbelt motion.
Woolen wasn’t done there. Later, he jumped an out route from Maye to A.J.
Brown, picked it off and raced down the sideline. His best play came in the situational period, when he locked Brown up on a slant and ripped the ball free, leaving Jalyx Hunt to finish the job with an interception.
Woolen’s 34-inch arms and speed gave Brown, Doubs and the other Patriots receivers problems all afternoon.
He did get beat by Doubs on two touchdowns, though one of them wasn’t really on him. Woolen had the coverage right, but Maye dropped in a strong throw over his head in the back corner of the end zone. The Eagles still need more consistency from Woolen, but if he can sustain this level, the secondary has a chance to be elite.
Hunt kept right up with him. The edge rusher turned in a standout practice of his own, highlighted by a diving interception that showed off the kind of body control and hands you don’t usually expect from a pass rusher.
That isn’t an accident for Hunt, who played safety in college and already has the ball skills to match. He finished the 2025 season with a team-high 3 interceptions, and he looks capable of adding more.
Hunt also forced a fumble by ripping the ball away from Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson, a play that stood out even more because Stevenson is such a powerful runner. Hunt made it look simple.
His pass-rushing growth this summer has only added to the case for him as Philadelphia’s top breakout candidate. With Jonathan Greenard out of training camp because of an injury, Hunt has been operating as the No. 1 pass rusher and could be the team’s top option there going forward.
The offense had its uneven stretches, but it closed well. In the situational period, Jalen Hurts fired a tight-window touchdown to Hollywood Brown, who beat Kindle Vildor in the back of the end zone.
Brown has become one of Hurts’ favorite targets lately, and he has looked cleaner as a route runner. After struggling through the first three weeks of training camp, he may simply have needed more time to build that connection with Hurts.
On the next play, Hurts rolled right and lofted the ball over Patriots safety Dell Pettus to Darius Cooper for a two-point conversion.
The day also got chippy. Nolan Smith got shoved by a Patriots player on defense, which sparked more pushing and smack talk. On offense, Saquon Barkley, Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata were all caught up in a few scrums.
Barkley summed up the mood afterward: “I hate joint practice.” He said the fighting with Patriots players was getting in the way of both teams improving. Mailata added that the offensive line was worse than it had been the day before because it was trying to get revenge instead of focusing on the assignments.
A few other notes stood out. Rookie tight end Eli Stowers had a rough time in one-on-ones against the Patriots linebackers and safeties.
He got a step on Kevin Byard, but Tanner McKee’s throw sailed out of bounds. Quinyon Mitchell gave up touchdowns to A.J.
Brown and Mack Hollins and was more uneven than usual, though there was no real reason for alarm. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. also had a strong rep in coverage, staying attached to Treveyon Henderson on a wheel route and forcing an incompletion.
In Other News...
Cooper DeJean Practice Clip Has Eagles Fans Talking For The Wrong Reason
Joint practices usually provide the cleanest snapshot of where a roster stands before the games start counting, and one of the most watched matchups on the field Thursday in New England came with Cooper DeJean lined up across from DeMario Douglas. The Eagles defensive back entered the offseason with plenty of momentum after earning first-team All-Pro honors as a slot defender last season, so every rep against a quick, elusive receiver was going to draw attention from fans looking for clues about how Philadelphias secondary is coming together.
Douglas made the most of the spotlight, winning all three of their 1-on-1 reps by snapping off sharp cuts and exploding into separation, and the clip moved quickly through social media as Eagles followers reacted to what they saw. It is still only a practice setting, of course, but when a player with DeJeans reputation looks out of sync in a widely shared drill, it is the kind of thing that tends to linger until the pads come on and the matchup gets another chance to play out. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Bubble Players Suddenly Feel Like Real Trade Candidates
With roster cutdown day looming on Aug. 30, the Eagles are at the point in camp where the back end of the roster starts to matter as much as the headline names. The usual churn of preseason competition has turned into a real evaluation of who can help Philadelphia now, who has a future here, and who might bring back something useful if the front office decides to move a player instead of simply waive him.
That is why a few bubble cases suddenly carry more trade intrigue than they did a week ago. Andy Dalton, Smael Mondon Jr., Hollywood Brown, Jakorian Bennett and Fred Johnson all sit in different spots on the depth chart, but each comes with a mix of team need, contract situation and performance questions that could make them attractive to another club before the deadline. Nothing is settled yet, but this is the part of camp when a player can go from fighting for a roster spot to being discussed as a legitimate trade chip. [Read more 🡒]
Former Penn State Standout Sees Strong Eagles Camp Cut Short
Tariq Castro-Fields had been one of the more intriguing names in Eagles camp, trying to turn a strong summer into a legitimate push for a 53-man roster spot while working back from a heel injury. The former Penn State standout brought enough familiarity and upside to make him worth watching in a secondary that always seems to have room for another corner to force the issue.
Instead, Philadelphia moved Castro-Fields to injured reserve, which ends his training camp and likely his season before the real evaluation could even finish. The Eagles also waived/injured wide receiver Johnny Wilson while adding center Zeke Correll and wide receiver Brandon Hayes, a reminder of how quickly roster opportunities can shift at this stage of camp, especially for players trying to survive on the margins. [Read more 🡒]