Philadelphia Eagles fans will have to wait just two more weeks to find out which players are ready to take a real step forward in 2026. After a disappointing 2025 season that ended with a Wild Card Round loss, the Eagles spent the offseason making sweeping changes to the coaching staff and a handful of smaller moves aimed at turning the roster into something bigger this year.
With training camp approaching, five names stand out as players who could deliver breakout seasons.
Dontayvion Wicks is first on the list, and the pressure on him is obvious. After the Eagles traded A.J.
Brown away, Wicks is expected to slide into Brown’s role on the outside and become a major part of the offense. He arrives with only a limited role over the last few years with the Green Bay Packers, but the upside has always been there.
Now he gets the chance to show he can be a starter in the NFL.
Riq Woolen is another player worth watching closely. OTAs already gave Eagles fans a preview of what 2026 might look like, and Woolen put together three strong weeks of work.
That early showing mattered after an up-and-down season with the Seattle Seahawks last year, a year that helped them win the Super Bowl. With All-Pros Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean drawing most of the attention, Woolen could end up being the one who surprises people most.
Jalyx Hunt may already feel like a breakout story, but there may still be more coming. He led the Eagles in sacks with 6.5 and also finished with three interceptions, which made last season look like a real step forward.
Even so, the belief here is that he still has another level to reach. The young pass rusher has the kind of talent that could make him an elite defender, and 2026 could unlock a version of Hunt the fan base has never seen from a defensive player in franchise history.
Tyler Steen also deserves a spot in the conversation. In his first season as a starter, he played every game and handled himself well enough to keep his job.
He wasn’t flawless, but he did enough to earn another year in the lineup. There’s already talk about Mekhi Becton coming back to replace him, so Steen has clear motivation to prove he can be the next great Eagles offensive lineman.
Then there’s Moro Ojomo, who made the most of his chance when Jalen Carter was hurt last year. Ojomo showed he can start in the NFL, and this season could be especially important for him because he is about to become a free agent and may be setting himself up for a massive contract next offseason. For now, he’s a player to keep an eye on as he pushes for more snaps behind Carter and Jordan Davis.
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Zach Berman of The Athletic sees Barkleys floor next season landing around 1,252 rushing yards, which would still qualify as a strong year and one of the better marks of his career. The catch is that the number depends on a few moving parts, from how much the scheme shifts toward wide-zone and under-center runs to how much work backup Tank Bigsby takes on, so the range of outcomes may be wider than the projection suggests. [Read more 🡒]