The Christian Elliss hype train is running at full speed this spring. He was a key STer and became a good role player last year. He now has a chance to compete for a starting LB spot this year. At the least, he could be the top backup.
Elliss picked off multiple Jalen Hurts passes in the OTAs. He did a good job of playing the passing lanes and showed good cover skills. There was no hitting or tackling so we can’t get too excited about a LB, but Elliss made the plays that were there to be made. That’s what you want to see.
If Ellis becomes a key backup or even starter this year, who would he remind you of?
Most people instantly say TJ Edwards. I’m going to disagree with that. Edwards was signed by the Eagles as a UDFA and started 4 games as a rookie. He started 43 of 45 games after that. The Eagles could see right away that Edwards was a talented player with a good future.
Kamu Grugier-Hill might be a better example. He was signed by the Patriots as a UDFA in 2016. They cut him and the Eagles claimed him. He played in 12 games and became a core STer. He then played all 16 games for the Super Bowl team in 2017 and was a role player/STer. KGH then started 10 games in 2018. He’s bounced around since then, starting 28 games.
If Elliss were to become a solid starter, you could go old school for a comparison. Quintin Mikell was signed as a UDFA in 2003. He was a STer as a rookie. He got mixed in on defense the next couple of years, but was primarily a STer. He played more on defense in 2006 and even started a game. Mikell then started for the Eagles for the next 4 years.
Elliss was signed by the Vikings as a UDFA in 2021. They cut him and the Eagles signed him. He bounced on and off the practice squad for most of the year. Elliss played in one game. He really struggled in the 2022 preseason and got cut. He was signed to the practice squad for most of the year, but did get elevated for multiple games. The Eagles finally added him to the roster in December. Elliss played in 6 games and really made an impact on STs.
Now Elliss is pushing for more than just a roster spot. He wants playing time. He wants a chance to start.
I don’t want to put words in Jimmy’s mouth, but the summary is basically that Elliss is a cross between Ray Lewis and Joe Mays, with a dash of Andy Studebaker thrown in.
The Eagles don’t need Cook. They have veterans in Rashaad Penny and D’Andre Swift. They have a young guy in Kenny Gainwell. They have Boston Scott for depth. And Nick Sirianni continues to talk up Trey Sermon.
I do not see Cook being of interest at this point. If someone gets hurt and he’s on the market, that could change. No for now.
*****
There is a lot of hype with Nolan Smith right now. People are excited by how fired up Smith has been about learning the playbook and doing everything he can to get ready for the season. There is no doubt that Smith is an easy player to like.
You want LBs/pass rushers to be a bit crazy. You want them to be aggressive. Mean, might be a better description. It sounds like Smith has the right mentality.
It has been fun to watch clips of him from the OTAs. You can see what a powerful, explosive athlete Smith is.
Everyone is excited to see what Smith can do. He’ll be a backup behind Haason Reddick, Josh Sweat and Brandon Graham, but if Smith is good enough, the coaches will find a way to get him on the field. It is good that the Eagles don’t have to count on him. All signs are pointing in the right direction now, but real football is very different from spring football. We’ll have to wait and see just how ready Smith is for the real thing.
*****
Vic Fangio was asked if heād be the Eagles defensive coordinator if it wasnāt for the Jonathon Gannon situation: pic.twitter.com/IPmuWHAz5Q
It will be really interesting to see what happens with the Eagles defense in the coming years. If Sean Desai does a great job, we might be thankful that Vic Fangio ended up in Miami. If Desai struggles and Fangio is great for the Dolphins, we’ll be saying “What if” for a while.
Andy Reid wanted to hire Marvin Lewis back in 1999. Lewis turned him down so Reid had to settle for a guy named Jim Johnson. That worked out pretty well. There are other times when you miss out on your primary target and end up paying for it.
Desai vs Fangio will be something to keep an eye on.
The Eagles wrapped up their OTAs on Thursday. That means the team will be off until Training Camp starts. The OTAs were short, non-contact practices so nothing definitive can be taken from them. Still, we got some interesting nuggets.
The biggest revelation was LB Christian Elliss. I’ve written about him a couple of times this offseason. Elliss was a difference-maker on STs last season and played well on defense when he got a chance. The Eagles didn’t talk much about him this offseason so I didn’t know if I was overrating him. You’ll remember that last year they talked up Marcus Epps quite a bit during the offseason. He was much further along than Elliss, but I still thought they might mention Elliss as an in-house candidate to watch.
Elliss picked off Jalen Hurts earlier in the OTAs and then again on Thursday. Both were good plays. This wasn’t a case of picking a tipped ball that hung in the air. These were legit INTs. Here is Brandon Lee Gowton on Ellis from yesterday.
I bring this up because Elliss stood out again on Thursday. The 24-year-old took first team reps next to Nakobe Dean (not sure if Nicholas Morrow was around) and did his part to flash. Elliss broke up a short Hurts target intended for Jack Stoll and then intercepted Hurts in the middle of the field for a pick six. Elliss displaying athleticism to hang in coverage and instinctual play-making ability is certainly a positive development for the team.
If Elliss can continue to make plays and look good, that would be important for the defense. It would give the Eagles a legit challenger at LB. You don’t want Nakobe Dean and Nick Morrow getting their positions without anyone pushing them. Could Elliss beat out Morrow for a starting role? Morrow has been a solid starter at times so he’s not as bad as some people make him out to be, but Elliss is bigger at 6-3, 231 and has played as part of this unit. The scheme will change, but there will be some parts that are very similar to last year.
At the very least, Elliss could be good depth at LB. You don’t want to go into the season with Dean, Morrow and question marks. Shaun Bradley hasn’t shown much on defense in his time with the Eagles. Davion Taylor is a major question mark. UDFA Ben VanSumeren is a gifted athlete, but very raw.
*****
A quick side note on LB…we heard from DJ Eliot, the new LBs coach. He spoke to the media on Wednesday. He didn’t say anything too compelling, but did talk about focusing on fundamentals. He said the most important thing for a LB is tackling. I agree with that. VanSumeren was an inconsistent tackler at Michigan State so this is exactly the kind of coach he needs. Eliot coached Taylor at Colorado and said their relationship could be helpful. Maybe Eliot will be able to bring out the best in Taylor. He’s got talent, but has been wildly inconsistent since coming to the NFL.
The highlight of practice was a touchdown fromĀ Jalen HurtsĀ toĀ DeVonta SmithĀ on a double move. It was a beautiful route by Smith, who ran past rookie cornerbackĀ Eli RicksĀ and safetyĀ Reed BlankenshipĀ couldnāt make up ground in time. Hurts delivered the ball exactly where it needed to be. You can count onĀ seeing that connection often this season.
How lucky are the Eagles to have Smith and AJ Brown? The team that struggled at WR for most of the last decade has a pair of studs.
*****
Nick Sirianni went out of his way to praise Quez Watkins.
āI love his attitude, and Iāve said this to him,ā said Sirianni. āWe have a ton of confidence inĀ Quez Watkins, but I kind of sense from him ā heās never said this, but, āOh, some people think I stink? Wait. Wait.ā Thatās how heās attacked every day. Thatās how heās attacked practices, and I think that he looks really good. We know he has a lot of talent, and Iām excited about that. I really like the way heās gone about his business because he canāt control anything but what he can control, and he canāt control what other people think about him. ā¦ Canāt control things that may have happened to him last year, the opportunities that he got last year or did not get. All he can control is how he works, and Iāve really been excited about how heās gone about his business.ā
Is Watkins really that focused and driven? Is Sirianni just trying to hype up his guy to the media?
If you think back to last offseason, Sirianni sure didn’t say anything this strong about Jalen Reagor. That was a player he didn’t believe in (for good reason). Watkins has played well for Sirianni. For some reason, Watkins fell apart late last year. If you can clean that up, he can be the perfect #3 receiver for this offense. Watkins is in a contract year so he’s got other reasons to be motivated.
Deep waters. Like last week, Sirianni kept competitive periods to just seven-on-seven drills. That made it pointless to compile a full depth chart, as did the absence of so many starters. But Reed Blankenship and Terrell Edmunds were again paired as the first-team safeties. With Slay, Bradberry, and Maddox missing, Greedy Williams and Josh Jobe started at outside cornerback with Zech McPhearson in the slot. Of the rookie defensive backs, safety Sydney Brown has the best chance to compete for a starting spot. While he continued to impress with his spatial awareness in deep zones, Brown is likely to make more hay once the pads come out for training camp.
Berman wrote about Edmunds as well.
Safety Terrell EdmundsĀ made an impressive play in coverage in seven-on-seven when he broke up a deep pass to Zaccheaus, and heās someone Iām curious to watch this summer. Heās a 2018 first-round pick who started 75 games in Pittsburgh and was signed to start in Philadelphia. Edmunds fits the profile of a solid, unspectacular veteran with impressive size and athletic traits. Heās someone who might benefit from a change of scenery, and he has considerable opportunity to be an every-down player with the Eagles. Blankenship and rookieĀ Sydney BrownĀ will push for roles, too. And thereās always the chance Roseman adds to the position.
The Eagles would love to have an experienced player in the deep patrol. They are going to give Edmunds every chance to win the starting spot. So far he’s looked good and is trending in the right direction.
With no Kelce, Cam Jurgens was the first-team center and rookie third-round pick Tyler Steen was at right guard. That’s something interesting to keep an eye on at training back because at 35, Kelce gets quite a few maintenance days and the Eagles may want to keep Jurgens at right guard to get him as much work as possible. Brett Toth continued to work at center and Cameron Tom also has experience there.
Kelce will get a lot of days off this summer. What do you do in that situation? Are you trying to get Jurgens as many reps as possible at RG? I bet the Eagles would love Steen to win that starting role so that Jurgens could be the top backup at C/G. The key is to have the best player starting at RG. Whether it is Jurgens or Steen, someone is going to have to win that job.