Philadelphia Eagles news and links for 7/17/23.

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Execs, coaches, scouts rank NFL’s top 10 quarterbacks for 2023 - ESPN+
6. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles. Highest ranking: 3 | Lowest ranking: 10. Age: 24 | Last year’s ranking: Unranked. Hurts’ total package elevated him to top-six status. He’s known as a tireless worker and strong leader. He has grown as a passer every year: After posting a 33.8 QBR as a rookie in 2020, he had 54.6 and 66.4 ratings over the following two years. And his savvy as a runner helps him break off timely rushes based on his reads of the defense. His 18 rushing touchdowns represent the most by a quarterback in a single season in NFL history. “He’s one of those guys who has progressively added to his game,” an NFL personnel director said. “Not really flappable, similar to Burrow in that sense. He remains calm. He can do all the things you need to from the pocket. I don’t see why he can’t be [a] precision passer. Look at all the games where he’s had to dial it up from the pocket. He has that in his game.” To understand Hurts’ growth as a thrower, look no further than the end of games. His fourth-quarter QBR of 84.3 ranked first in the league by a wide margin (Jared Goff was No. 2 at 76.1). His 73.0 adjusted completion percentage (weighted by air yards, no throwaways/drops) ranked second. Hurts also led the NFL in completion percentage from inside the pocket (72.0) and threw for 10 touchdowns on passes of 25 yards or more. To be sure, he has a ton of help. Philly’s offense is loaded. But that doesn’t discount his impressive progress on the way to a Super Bowl berth. “What I like about him is he knows he’s got great receivers, so when he has a one-on-one, he throws it and doesn’t hesitate,” a veteran NFL offensive coach said. “He might never be the kind of pinpoint accurate passer that Aaron Rodgers or Kirk Cousins is, but he’s improving in that area. And he’s made of all the right stuff. He’s everything you want from a quarterback as far as how he carries himself.”

The Eagles’ entire 2023 NFL Draft class is now officially under contract - BGN
With the Philadelphia Eagles officially signing Kelee Ringo on Monday morning, all seven picks from the team’s 2023 NFL Draft class are now under contract. As previously noted, the process of a team signing their rookies is usually a pretty straightforward formality. There are some very rare exceptions where players hold out (see: Joey Bosa in 2016 and Michael Crabtee in 2009) and miss training camp practices/regular season games. But now we know for certain that the Eagles won’t have to worry about any rookie drama in this regard.

Reviewing Howie Roseman’s 17 training camp trades since he reassumed GM duties in 2016 - PhillyVoice
The Eagles traded WR Jalen Reagor to the Vikings for a 2023 seventh-round pick and a 2024 conditional fifth-round pick in 2024. The Eagles traded the seventh-round pick along with a 2025 fourth-round pick to the Lions for RB D’Andre Swift and a 2023 seventh-round pick, which became DT Moro Ojomo. The 2024 conditional fifth-round pick will become a fourth-round pick if Reagor achieves any of the following benchmarks either in 2022 or 2023: 40 receptions, 500 receiving yards, 5 touchdowns.

Roob’s Eagles Observations: Why A.J. Brown was even better than you thought in 2022 - NBCSP
1. Looking at some of the analytics from last year, I feel like A.J. Brown was actually even better than we all realized. A few of the numbers that stand out: Brown had a receiver passer rating of 112.3, which was 5th-highest in the NFL (among WRs with 100 targets). That means when Jalen Hurts or Gardner Minshew targeted Brown, their passer rating was 112.3. More impressive was his yards-per-target of 10.3 per target. That was 2nd-highest in the league (behind Jaylen Waddle’s 11.6) and 2nd-highest in the 31 years Stathead has been tracking yards per target - behind only DeSean Jackson’s 10.6 in 2013. And get this: Brown’s 17.0 yards per catch was 2nd-highest in NFL history by a receiver with 88 or more catches – Calvin Johnson had 17.5 yards per catch on 96 catches with the Lions in 2011. And this: Brown’s drop percentage was 3.4 percent, 8th-best in the NFL and best on record by far (since 2018) by a receiver averaging 17 yards per catch. Finally, Brown was 3rd in the NFL among wide receivers with 948 yards before the catch and 2nd with 548 yards after the catch. The only other NFL player last year with at least 900 yards before the catch and 500 yards after the catch? Justin Jefferson. The eye test said Brown was one of the best wide receivers we’ve ever seen around these parts. But the more you really break it down, the more you realize just how remarkable his first season as an Eagle really was.

PFF50: The 50 best players in the NFL right now - PFF
46. C Jason Kelce, Philadelphia Eagles. Kelce is still as good a run-blocker as any center in football, as he posted a 90.0 PFF grade in that area last season in his run to the Super Bowl. He allowed just 11 total pressures in 20 games in pass protection but didn’t give up a single sack or hit over the year.

Eagles QB Marcus Mariota explains why he left the Falcons after getting benched - Inquirer
“Ultimately — it’s a long story, really,” Mariota tells the interviewer. “So, during the bye week, my daughter was born, Makaia. When she was born, Art brought me in the following day and was, like, talking about the future and kind of what he wanted to do, and they told me that they were going to play Des for the last four games. Initially he said something like, ‘At this point in time of the year, you know, the playoffs are a long shot, and we just kind of want to see what Des can do.’” Smith, however, said he was surprised by Mariota’s decision to get the surgery, as that was not something that had previously been discussed, according to the Atlanta coach. “When he and I had that conversation, that’s not what we talked about,” Smith said. “Those are private conversations, but it was more about where we were as a team, and as a player, and what the future might hold.” The series features several clips, both audio and video, of commentators questioning why he had the surgery instead of “being ready to go in case Ridder goes down.” But Mariota insists he was doing what he thought was in the best interests of everyone involved.

For Assistant GM Jon Ferrari, it’s about putting the players first - PE.com
Within the structure of the Philadelphia Eagles’ football operations is a labyrinth of departments that includes the football IT staff that runs the video operations, the athletic training room, the equipment department, the strength and conditioning staff, the player engagement program, and the grounds department. It is a complex operation that is coordinated in conjunction with the vision of Executive Vice President/General Manager Howie Roseman and Head Coach Nick Sirianni with the guidance of Assistant General Manager Jon Ferrari as the “glue” to make sure everyone is on board and in lockstep every day. “I’m just lucky enough that I get to help fulfill what Howie and Nick’s vision is as to how those departments are going to be coordinated,” Ferrari said, “what the priorities are, making sure everyone is on the same page, letting them be tunnel-visioned and single-minded about running the best training room or equipment room or football IT department, and I can be the one to kind of bridge the gap and make sure everyone has what they need to operate smoothly and succinctly.”

Welcome to Trieste: Former NFL star buys into Italian basketball club with starstruck history - The Athletic
“I think playing in Philadelphia might have been the best thing to prepare me for this opportunity,” said Barwin, who grew up in Detroit as the son of a city manager. “You realize how connected you are with the fan base and the community, and you understand your role and you really understand this magical thing only works when you all sort of work together and complement each other. “I can’t speak to any other American who’s invested in European soccer or basketball, but I think if you ever go into it thinking this is a great business opportunity and it’s all going to be done on spreadsheets and you’re just gonna hire somebody to go over there being an operator, it’s really hard to be successful.”

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott confident he won’t repeat season with double-digit INTs: ‘I know who I am’ - NFL.com
“We are a talking point,” the Cowboys QB said at his youth football camp earlier in July, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “As you find something to talk about, that’s the first thing to go to.” But he also allows himself some leeway when considering the turnover party he threw in 2023. “I know who I am, and you can go back and take away half of those off drops,” Prescott said. “I’m not saying it’s on the receiver, but if you cut that in half then we start talking about those, nobody is talking about it.” [BLG Note: It’s not on the receiver, it’s just that the drops happened somehow.]

Cowboys news: Long-term deal with Tony Pollard seems very unlikely - Blogging The Boys
The deadline is almost here and a long-term deal with Tony Pollard seems very unlikely.

Saquon Barkley contract: Deadline day for Barkley, Giants is here - Big Blue View
Per Art Stapleton of The Record, the Giants have raised the amount of guaranteed money they are offering to Barkley. Stapleton wrote that “an individual familiar with the situation told NorthJersey.com late Saturday night that it’s believed the guarantees in the offer were increased to $22 million and “a smidge above that.” Valentine’s View: What “a smidge” is we don’t know. What I do know is this is how the game is played, and what I have been expecting. The Giants were holding the line at $19.5 million in guarantees to give themselves wiggle room to raise their offer at the deadline without going well beyond a number they are comfortable with.

Joel Embiid hinted he could be next NBA superstar to request trade with cryptic comments - SB Nation
Joel Embiid is firmly in the prime of his career. The superstar center finally won NBA MVP this past season after consecutive second place finishes. He will turn 30 years old in March. There’s only one thing missing on Embiid’s resume at this point: an NBA championship. Embiid’s lack of success in the NBA Playoffs is hard to ignore. He’s never even reached the conference finals since the Philadelphia 76ers drafted him in 2014. The Sixers have attempted so many different plans to build a championship team around Embiid, from pairing him with Ben Simmons, trading up to the No. 1 pick for Markelle Fultz, signing Al Horford, trading for Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris, and completing a massive trade for James Harden. None of it has worked. Embiid is starting to feel the pressure after he watched his primary rival, Nikola Jokic, win his first NBA championship with the Denver Nuggets this past season. With Harden’s future hanging in the balance after a trade request this summer that he’s reportedly not backing down from, Embiid’s future has become a point of speculation. He added more fuel to fire with his comments during a public appearance this weekend.

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