Five Eagles to Watch This Summer

Philadelphia Eagles fans will get their first glimpse of the team this season Sunday when they hold an open Training Camp practice for the first time.

Here are the five players I’m most looking forward to seeing this summer.

1. Carson Wentz- Who else would be number one?  The summer will belong to Wentz before Sam Bradford sees the field as the full-time starter during the fall. I can’t wait to see that rocket arm and how the ball comes out of his hands on the deep ball, posts and out patterns. I want to see the accuracy and the ball come out on time as well. Head coach Doug Pederson has been impressed with what he’s seen out of the No. 2 pick so far, saying the only issues he’s seeing are small and deal with his mechanics.
2. Jalen Mills- The “Green Goblin” turned heads in the spring and is doing the same so far in Training Camp, but that was without pads. Can the seventh-round rookie continue that success when they come on? Mills is really good in man coverage, has fluid hips and quick feet and that’s shown so far, but his weaknesses may be exposed when he’s in full gear. Mills isn’t a consistent tackler and doesn’t always take the proper angle to ball carriers from what I’ve seen on tape. We’ll see how he does when the preseason begins.
3. Wendell Smallwood- Ryan Mathews is already getting hurt, if he goes down for an extended period of time Smallwood could be the guy who emerges behind him. Like Mills, he got a lot of hype during the spring. He excels as a one-cut runner and catching the ball out of the backfield. Darren Sproles isn’t a guy you can rely on getting a bulk of the carries and Kenjon Barner has just 18 career carries in the NFL, Smallwood is the x-factor.
4. Vinny Curry- Curry’s initial get-off is very impressive. He’s got quick feet and hands and his lateral agility is superb, which is key because that’s when it’s tough for an opposing tackle to initiate clean contact with the pass rusher. His problem and why he saw limited snaps in the past was his struggles in run defense. He’s improved since his rookie year, but he got paid like one of the top defensive ends in the game. I’ll be keeping an eye on how he sets the edge and takes down ball carriers.
5. The Guards- The Eagles bolstered the line this offseason with the acquisitions of Brandon Brooks, Stefen Wisniewski and drafting Isaac Seumalo. Brooks will be the starter at right guard, but who emerges on the other side? Allen Barbre, Andrew Gardner, Seumalo and Wisniewski will all battle to start at left guard.