Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

Excited to See

Posted September 4th, 2026 | 1 Comment »

The start of the 2026 season is just around the corner. We spent much of the summer talking about the roster and player development. Let’s now focus on the guys who are going to be the key players. Here is what I’m excited to see this season.

Jalen Hurts will be in the new offense. He was up and down this summer, as I expected. While there will be ups and downs in the regular season as well, I expect him to be better. He’ll have a true gameplan to work with instead of installing plays or running them for the second or third time. He’ll have a full complement of starters around him. Throwing to DeVonta Smith with Lane Johnson blocking for you is better than throwing to Hollywood Brown with Fred Johnson at RT. Hurts feels like a man on a mission. I’m excited to see how he does.

Saquon Barkley had a great summer. He was disappointing last year, for a variety of reasons. Like Hurts, Barkley seems really locked in. I think we could see a monster season from him.

DeVonta Smith gets a chance to be WR1 after the departure of AJ Brown. Smitty isn’t physically dominant, but he is a top talent. Don’t forget that he was a Top 10 pick and won the Heisman Trophy in college. He’s not exactly chopped liver. Smitty could have a big year.

This may seem a bit crazy, but I’m excited to see Johnny Mundt blocking. The Eagles TEs were bad blockers last year. Mundt is a proven veteran who will help the run game. He could be a big help when the Eagles are trying to protect a lead late in games. The defense knows you’re going to run. You have to be able to block them and win with toughness.

Speaking of blocking, it will be good to see a healthy Eagles OL in action. Landon Dickerson is the only guy with issues right now. We’re still curious to see him in game action. Will that bring out the best in him? If he struggles, Drew Kendall will be ready to step in. Kendall had a strong showing this summer, in practice and games.

Jalen Carter was a difference-maker in 2024. Injuries hurt him last season, leading to a more erratic performance. Carter is healthy, wealthy and in great shape this year. I’m excited to see him get back to being a full-time wrecking ball.

I think we’re all excited to see Jalyx Hunt this season. He was good last year and then had a great summer. Hunt was the star of the defense in camp and practices. Now we finally get to see him in action.

Jihaad Campbell is the Eagles second best LB. I know a lot of people are excited about Jeremiah Trotter Jr, but he’s not nearly as good in space/coverage and that’s a critical part of the modern game. Campbell played the run well in the preseason opener and was also good in coverage. He had a good overall summer and should be ready for a breakout season.

People spent much of the offseason trying to figure out what the Eagles would do at safety. The team stuck with Drew Mukuba and Marcus Epps as the projected starters. Both guys looked good at times last season. I’m excited to see how they do going into a full season with starting experience in the scheme. Mukuba is the playmaker and Epps is the hitter/tackler.

The Eagles knew they needed an upgrade at CB2 so they signed Riq Woolen back in March. He was great in the spring and then a bit more up and down in the summer. He finished well, making some big plays in the joint practices with NE. I’m excited to see how Woolen plays this year and how he can impact the overall defense. Fangio has a loaded defense that could be special.

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Patience Needed

Posted September 3rd, 2026 | 1 Comment »

The offseason is over. So is Training Camp. And the preseason as well. It feels like the end of a journey. It isn’t, though. This is just the beginning of the season, part marathon and part war of attrition. Players aren’t finished products. They can be constantly evolving. This requires patience when truly evaluating them.

Last summer QB Kyle McCord struggled with his transition to the NFL. The Eagles put him on the practice squad. McCord eventually signed with the Packers. He was their #3 QB this summer and played well. He got traded to Miami and will be their #2 QB this season. No one saw that coming with how he looked a year ago. It took time for things to click for him.

Cooper DeJean had a rough beginning to his career. Injuries got him off to a slow start. He missed a lot of time in the summer and then was a role player for the first four weeks of his rookie season. He started nine games after that and became a key part of the defense. He’s now arguably the best nickel in the league.

Obviously things don’t always work out like that. Andre Dillard was with the Eagles for four years and never panned out as hoped. Still, you would rather stick with a player too long and have him not pan out than to give up on someone too early. This isn’t a perfect science. Teams are taking calculated risks. You look at the player’s background. You consider his potential. You also think about the raw numbers (age, salary, etc.) Then you decide how much of a leash the player will get. Some guys get years, others just months.

The Eagles are being patient with Makai Lemon and Eli Stowers. Both guys had limited summers. Lemon was hurt and Stowers struggled before getting hurt. The Eagles spent Top 60 picks on both players so they will get plenty of time as long as the players are making a good faith effort to improve. And both are doing that.

The QB situation is trickier. The team says all the right things about Tanner McKee and Andy Dalton. The tape says all the wrong things. But tape can be tricky.

We’ve seen players struggle before and then improve, going on to play key roles. Getting an accurate evaluation from practice or preseason games is tough, especially with QBs. That position requires others doing their job well for it to look right. I’m not excusing the erratic play by McKee and Dalton from this summer, but it does need a bit of context. These guys have played well in real games.

It is confusing to think about their good play in the past and then their struggles from this summer. I don’t think the Eagles did them any favors with the competition. That kept either guy from getting into a comfort zone. I still think one of them needs to go for the situation to really improve. We’ll see if that happens in the near future or if the Eagles stubbornly hold onto both guys for an extended time.

I do think they would look better if put into a real game, especially if they knew ahead of time and had a chance to prepare. These guys aren’t physically gifted. They need little things to help them out. Playing behind the starting OL and with the best skill players would be huge. Working with Sean Mannion on the gameplan would help. Neither guy would suddenly turn into Joe Montana, but I think they would be better. Hopefully Jalen Hurts will stay healthy and all this QB talk will be much ado about nothing.

The Eagles were patient with Ty Robinson and Kelee Ringo this summer and both players responded well. This is Year 4 for Ringo and Year 2 for Robinson. Each player works at a unique pace. there is no definitive schedule. A couple of yeas ago Howie was asked about Nakobe Dean, who hadn’t done much at that point. Howie staunchly defended Dean. We weren’t seeing good results on the field, but the team was seeing all the right things behind the scenes. Dean got healthy and turned into a key player.

Those of us on the outside only see part of the picture. Jake Majors got ripped throughout the summer. He really struggled in practice. Then we got to see him in games and he looked completely different. The coaches liked his potential for a reason. They turned out to be right. The negative TC reports from the media weren’t wrong, but they only told part of the story.

Understanding why a player is having success or struggling is important. That will help you to know how a player is really doing and what the future might hold for them.

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I don’t think the Eagles will have to be too patient with Jihaad Campbell. He had a good summer and could take a big step forward this year. His athleticism will help the middle of the defense.

I’m excited to see what he does this year.

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