The Eagles may be settled for Week 1 in theory, but the way this roster came together still has people talking. Whether by design or accident, Philadelphia ended up setting a tone others followed. Howie Roseman does it again.
One of the biggest flashpoints has been the league-wide chatter around teams keeping four quarterbacks on the initial 53-man roster. The Eagles were one of five clubs to do it, along with the Steelers, Falcons, Vikings and Browns. Since then, the Browns put Dillon Gabriel on IR, and the Vikings cut Max Brosmer and re-signed him to the practice squad.
That’s not some roster crisis waiting to happen. Teams have always used the back end of their rosters on rare body types, and quarterbacks fit that bucket just fine.
The same logic applies to big, raw athletes - usually linemen, sometimes wideouts or tight ends. It’s a self-fulfilling cycle: teams keep stocking those spots, and those are the players who keep getting stored there.
Brady Cook got claimed. And if you want a reminder that this is hardly new, Tom Brady was the fourth quarterback on a 5-11 team in his rookie season.
There are more than 500 players sitting on practice squads and more than 600 who were in camps and are now free agents, or on LSU’s roster. If a team needs a backup running back, slot receiver, slot corner or off-ball linebacker, there’s plenty out there.
The real issue for Philadelphia isn’t the number of quarterbacks. It’s that the second guy on the depth chart is a washed up Andy Dalton.
What does stand out with this Eagles roster is that four players were claimed by other teams, which was the most of any club. That raises the obvious question: is this a sign of depth, or a sign that they let some useful players go?
Last year, the Chargers, Rams and Ravens each had three players claimed by other teams. The Chargers were hit with injuries and still won 11 games.
The Rams won 12. The Ravens dealt with injury trouble too and finished 8-9.
In 2024, the 49ers and Packers also had three claims. Green Bay won 11 games, while San Francisco was crushed by injuries and went 6-11, which is still a pretty strong record for a team that started three different quarterbacks and had half its starters miss at least three games.
The Eagles still have some obvious problems at quarterback, wide receiver and tight end, but the rest of the roster looks pretty good.
There’s also a college football slate worth keeping an eye on.
At noon, Boise State visits Oregon. Oregon is loaded, and with Moro Ojomo scheduled to hit free agency in March, the defensive tackles are worth a look. A’Mauri Washington is a run stuffer who needs to show more as a pass rusher, while Bear Alexander has completely turned his career around with the Ducks.
At 7:30, Clemson takes on LSU in the only game Saturday matching a ranked team against a Power 4 opponent. It might be over by halftime.
LSU has two edge rushers worth tracking. Princewill Umanmielen, Princely’s brother, broke out at Ole Miss last year and followed Lane Kiffin to LSU.
He still needs to expand his game, but the size, length and motor are all there. Jordan Ross has also drawn buzz in scouting circles.
He came in as one of the top EDGE recruits in 2024, spent two years in a situational role at Tennessee, and now should see regular snaps at LSU as long as Jack Pyburn is on the Chiefs.
Clemson’s Will Heldt is one of the top senior prospects. In September, he looks like a day-two pick, though that may still be too rich.
On Sunday at 7:30, Louisville travels to Ole Miss. Trinidad Chambliss is drawing too much hype off two very good games last year.
His draft stock probably won’t be higher than it was this offseason, when he decided a paycheck at Ole Miss made more sense, and he was right. He’s a day-three pick, and he feels like a Howie Roseman pick.
Notre Dame has defensive talent all over the field and might have the best secondary in 2026. Leonard Moore is a top corner prospect, and DJ McKinney, Christian Grey, Tae Johnson and Adon Shuler are all highly rated too.
Wisconsin, for its part, is just trying to keep anybody from getting fired this year.
And at Florida State, 6-foot-7 receiver Johnny Wilson was a worthwhile sixth-round gamble even though it didn’t work out. That’s how gambles go. Maybe 6-foot-6 FSU wideout Duce Robinson is worth a shot.
In Other News...
Howie Roseman May Have A Tough Eagles Deadline Call Ahead
The Eagles are already being sized up for how they might use the next trade deadline, and four names keep coming up as possible chips if Howie Roseman decides the roster needs another jolt. Kelee Ringo, Hollywood Brown, Dameon Bigsby, and Josh Smith each fit into a different part of the conversation, whether it is about current production, future role, or what another team might be willing to pay to get a look at them.
For Philadelphia, the appeal is familiar: turn a player with some market value into help elsewhere on the roster or a pick that can be cashed in later. None of that means a deal is imminent, and there have been no confirmed trades or official signals, but the speculation around those four players underscores the kind of deadline decision Roseman could face if the Eagles decide to be aggressive again. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Defense May Have Found Another Fangio Difference Maker
Joe Kasper has spent enough time around Vic Fangio to understand what makes the Eagles defensive operation feel different. As Philadelphias defensive passing game coordinator, Kasper talked about the value of staying locked into the job in front of him instead of spending energy plotting the next step, a mindset that fits neatly with the way Fangio runs a staff. He also pointed to Fangios willingness to keep evolving on defense, along with the day-to-day influence the veteran coach has had on his own development.
Kaspers comments offered another reminder that the Eagles are not just leaning on Fangio for scheme, but for the culture around it. His relationship with Fangio has given him a closer look at how the coach works, how he communicates, and how his approach filters through the staff. For a defense trying to keep sharpening its edge, that kind of mentorship can matter just as much as any diagram on a call sheet. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Are Still Waiting On Their Biggest Edge Rush Addition
The Eagles edge-rush plans were supposed to get a major lift this offseason when they brought in veteran Jonathan Greenard from Minnesota and locked him into a four-year contract. Instead, the new arrival has spent the spring and summer working his way back from injuries, first recovering from shoulder surgery and then dealing with a pec strain, leaving Philadelphia to wait on the player it envisioned as a difference-maker off the edge.
For now, the Eagles have kept their focus on the rest of the pass-rush group and have shown patience with Greenards timeline, knowing there is no point forcing the issue before he is ready. The expectation remains that once he gets fully healthy, he will become a key piece of the rotation, but until then Philadelphia is still operating without the biggest addition it made to that part of the defense. [Read more 🡒]