Eagles coaches saw two of their most skilled players escorted to the locker room during practice this morning.
First, left tackle Jason Peters was slow getting up and walked gingerly to the sidelines after sustaining a quad injury. Later, Malcolm Jenkins suffered a hamstring injury while going against Jordan Matthews in team drills.
The Philadelphia Eagles are in the midst of their most physical week of training camp, including five out of six days in full pads. With the first preseason game against Tampa Bay just a week away, running backs coach Duce Staley is making sure that players are focused on the task at hand.
Duce Staley walks over to Eagles WRs free styling called Rueben Randle an R&B singer. "You guys can't rap, go over there and catch punts."
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) August 4, 2016
Running backs Ryan Mathews (ankle) and Wendell Smallwood (quad), along with guard Brandon Brooks (hamstring) were held out of practice once again this morning.
Third-year tight end Zach Ertz made the catch of the day on Thursday, a one-handed grab in the corner of the end zone which looked effortless during install. The pass was thrown by quarterback Sam Bradford, whose receivers dropped 7.8 percent of his passes last season, the highest rate in the NFL.
While quite a few defensive backs have played well through the first week of camp, the most stellar showing thus far belongs to safety Rodney McLeod.
After delivering a bone-crushing hit to Brent Celek on Wednesday, McLeod batted away a deep pass from Bradford intended for Jordan Matthews this morning. Later, the veteran safety from Virginia jumped in front of Nelson Agholor to pick off Carson Wentz in the end zone. McLeod will be a more natural fit at the safety position than converted cornerback Walter Thurmond was last fall. Remarkably, McLeod now has an interception in five consecutive practices.
Rodney McLeod with another pass breakup. He's having a tremendous first camp with the #Eagles.
— Matt Lombardo (@MattLombardo975) August 4, 2016
Wentz has shown dramatic improvement in his second week of training camp, beginning with his precise passing on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. Today, the rookie quarterback unfurled a beautiful pass to Jordan Matthews on a corner route, allowing the receiver to go up and catch the ball with enough room to get both feet down in bounds.
The corner route requires great anticipation from the quarterback, and that trait appears to be one of Wentz’s strong suits. He threw two additional well timed corner routes to Cayleb Jones and Josh Huff this morning, using his powerful arm to give only his receiver a chance to snatch the ball inside the sideline.
Former CFL star Aaron Grymes continued to prove he belongs on an NFL practice field today. After Rueben Randle caught a slant from Chase Daniel, Grymes immediately ripped the ball away from the former New York Giant to create a forced fumble-like interception.
Rookie Jalen Mills hasn’t looked much like a seventh-round pick during training camp. This morning, the cornerback picked off Chase Daniel on a hitch route intended for Rueben Randle. If he continues to improve, the four-year starter from LSU will see plenty of playing time in nickel and dime packages during the regular season.
The Eagles will practice in full pads again tomorrow morning at the NovaCare Complex.
Patrick Del Gaone is a staff writer for Sports Talk Philly. Follow him on Twitter @Del_Gaone.
