The Eagles have their first full depth chart of 2026 in hand, but a couple of the biggest decisions still aren’t settled as Week 1 approaches.
Philadelphia is less than a few days from facing the Washington Commanders, and the picture is clear in some spots while still fuzzy in others. The top line is easy enough to read.
The rest? Not so much.
At quarterback, Jalen Hurts is locked in as the starter, but the backup job remains unresolved. Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee are still battling for QB2, and that decision has dragged all the way to the start of the regular season. Cole Payton is listed behind them.
Running back brings a more intriguing setup. Saquon Barkley sits at the top, with Tank Bigsby next and Will Shipley third.
The big question there is how much Bigsby will actually matter in the offense after being underused last season. If Barkley and Bigsby end up sharing the workload close to evenly, Philadelphia could have one of the league’s most dangerous backfields.
Receiver also comes with some uncertainty. The Eagles are putting their trust in Lemon to open as the slot starter, and the bigger issue is how the team plans to divide snaps among its talented wideouts - or whether it really plans to rotate them at all.
Tight end is more straightforward. Dallas Goedert leads the group, Johnny Mundt is clearly the backup, and Eli Stowers will not be stashed away as a redshirt.
E.J. Jenkins is also on the chart, though his role may end up leaning more toward special teams.
Up front, the Eagles seem ready to let Bell sit and learn behind Mailata this year before possibly stepping into Lane Johnson’s right tackle spot next season. For now, Fred Johnson is the backup on the right side.
Defensive tackle doesn’t carry much mystery. Jalen Carter is the headliner, with Byron Young, Jordan Davis, Ty Robinson and Moro Ojomo all part of the mix. The real thing to watch is whether Young or Robinson gets time with the starters after Robinson turned heads in the preseason with three sacks in three games.
The edge group is another spot with moving pieces. Jonathan Greenard’s status is still unclear, and nobody knows yet whether he’ll play.
Once he’s fully healthy, the bigger question becomes whether Jalyx Hunt or Nolan Smith gets the first nod off the edge. Either way, the Eagles are likely to rotate those guys heavily.
Arnold Ebiketie and A.J. Epenesa are also in the picture.
Linebacker is mostly stable, with Zack Baun and Smael Mondon listed up top, followed by Jihaad Campbell and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. The expectation is that Trotter’s defensive role grows in 2026, so the real question is just how much he ends up on the field.
The secondary has its own set of concerns. At cornerback, Quinyon Mitchell and Kelee Ringo are listed first, with Riq Woolen and Jonathan Jones behind them.
Cooper DeJean is the nickel corner, with Mac McWilliams next in line. Depth is the issue here, especially after rough preseasons from Ringo and McWilliams.
Jones also missed most of camp with an injury. Another lingering question is how often DeJean will actually line up at safety this season.
Safety is the one spot where the Eagles finally got some clarity. Marcus Epps and Michael Carter II are listed as the starters, with Andrew Mukuba behind them. That matches what many expected, though Carter still looks likely to get work on the field there.
One last wrinkle sits in the return game. The punt return job could fall to one of the slot receivers, and Lemon is a name to watch there after muffing his only punt return in the preseason loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
In Other News...
Eagles Head Into Week 1 With Clear Offseason Winners And Losers
The Eagles head into Week 1 against Washington after an offseason that reshaped parts of the roster and the coaching staff, with the kind of changes that tend to leave a few clear beneficiaries. Sean Mannions promotion to offensive coordinator stands out as one of the more notable internal moves, while contract extensions for defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter gave the front of the defense a firmer long-term foundation. The 2025 draft class also appears to have moved the needle, adding another layer to a spring and summer that was anything but quiet in Philadelphia.
Not every part of the picture looks settled, though. Injuries have already complicated the outlook for players such as Jonathan Greenard and Makai Lemon, and the cornerback spot remains a concern as the team moves into the season opener. For a roster with playoff expectations, the offseason winners are easy enough to identify, but the unresolved questions are the ones that will matter once the Commanders arrive and the early September pressure starts to feel real. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Still Have One Unsettled Decision Behind Jalen Hurts
The Eagles have a small but notable question lingering behind Jalen Hurts as the 2026 regular season approaches: who is the No. 2 quarterback? On the unofficial depth chart, Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee are listed side by side, while rookie Cole Payton gives Philadelphia four passers on the 53-man roster and another layer of insurance if the room is ever tested.
Nick Sirianni has said the backup job is still a competition between Dalton and McKee, which keeps the situation very much alive even with the opener drawing closer. For a team built around Hurts, it is the kind of behind-the-scenes decision that can fade into the background until it suddenly matters, and Philadelphia still appears to be sorting out which veteran or developmental option it trusts most if the starter ever has to miss time. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Just Got A Brutal Warning About Paying Their Young Corners
Christian Gonzalezs new deal with New England has changed the top of the cornerback market in a way the Eagles cant ignore. The Patriots locked up their young star on a four-year, $135 million extension, and with that, the price of elite coverage talent just jumped again at exactly the kind of position Philadelphia has invested in heavily over the last two seasons.
For the Eagles, the timing matters almost as much as the dollar figure. Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean are both trending toward major contracts of their own in the not-too-distant future, and the front office now has a fresh reminder of how expensive it can be to keep young corners together once they start stacking strong seasons. Managing those decisions while keeping the rest of the roster intact is going to be one of the tougher cap balancing acts ahead. [Read more 🡒]