Eagles Mailbag: Which Players Have Impacted Their Stock the Most?
The Philadelphia Eagles have officially wrapped up both of their joint practices with the New England Patriots. The Eagles bounced back and reportedly “won” the second day of practice in Foxborough, yet which players have impacted their stock the most this summer? I’ll answer that question and more in my latest Eagles mailbag.
It feels like no Eagles player has raised their stock more in Philadelphia this summer than third-year edge rusher Jalyx Hunt. The 25-year-old has reportedly been a menace both against his own team and against the Patriots during the joint practices. It’s clear that Hunt is becoming a foundational piece of Philadelphia’s defense and could be the top edge defender for the Eagles in 2026, regardless of if Jonathan Greenard is on the field or not.
A less obvious answer to that question would be second-year interior defensive lineman Ty Robinson. The 25-year-old had a rough start to training camp and was stuck working with Philadelphia’s third-team defense. Yet as Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio pointed out earlier this week, Robinson has come to life after being on “life support” since he arrived in the City of Brotherly Love. Robinson’s stock definitely seems to be trending upwards.
One player who appears to be on the decline is third-year cornerback Kelee Ringo. The 24-year-old had a rough outing in Philadelphia’s preseason opener and he appears to be trailing behind several other cornerbacks on the team’s depth chart. Fangio called Ringo “everyone’s piñata doll” and said that the team’s two practices against the Patriots were going to be big for him. Ringo struggled in 1-on-1 drills and he has to show some life over the next two weeks to prove that he’s more than just a special teams player.
I would be shocked if Eagles rookie wide receiver Makai Lemon played during the preseason. Under head coach Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia has rarely let any starting offensive players take the field during the preseason. But especially given Lemon’s hamstring injury that he’s seemingly dealt with since May, I highly doubt that they’ll put him at risk in what the team considers an uncontrolled environment. My guess is they’ll continue to take things slow with Lemon to ensure that he’s ready to go for Week 1.
Meanwhile, Eagles third-year wide receiver Johnny Wilson can’t exactly afford to have the same patience. Wilson missed all of last season due to a knee and ankle injury suffered during training camp. Fast forward to 2026 and now he’s missed a decent amount of time due to a knee injury. Given all of the additions that the Eagles have made at wide receiver this offseason, Wilson needs to get back on the field during the preseason to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.
Eagles rookie tight end Eli Stowers has essentially been doubted since he arrived in Philadelphia. Many were critical of the pick at the time due to his issues as a blocker and rawness at the position. While it’s fair to admit that Stowers has had a slow start with the Eagles, I still believe that it’s entirely too early to panic about him. In fact, I wrote an entire article about the criticism of Stowers and how his underwhelming start compares to some of the best tight ends in the NFL (which you can read here: https://www.thephillyspecialshow.com/blog-posts/stop-panicking-about-eli-stowers).
When the Eagles selected Stowers in the second round of the 2026 NFL Draft, it was a long-term move. Philadelphia understands that Dallas Goedert and Johnny Mundt are going to be the team’s top two tight ends this upcoming season. Stowers is going to develop behind that duo and continue to learn the position, as it is only his third year playing tight end full-time. If we’re still having these same conversations one year from now, then I’ll be worried. Yet I truly believe that it’s too early to judge Stowers.
Eagles wide receiver and returner Britain Covey is such a fascinating player. Covey is heading into his fifth season in the NFL and seems to have a weird relationship with the Eagles. Despite always showing promise as a returner, Philadelphia rarely has him on the team’s initial 53-man roster but eventually finds a spot for the 29-year-old. In 2026, it once again feels like Covey will be on the outside looking in during final cuts, yet it wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up being Philadelphia’s primary returner and carves out a unique role on the offense while being utilized on motions, screen passes, etc.
Tank Bigsby reportedly had a hot start to training camp as it seemed like he was going to have a huge role in Sean Mannion’s new-look offense. Yet as training camp has progressed, Bigsby has been banged up and it’s opened the door for Will Shipley to shine in his own role. While both players will likely contribute at times in Philadelphia’s backfield, it still feels like it’ll mostly be the Saquon Barkley show on the ground. Bigsby could have a slightly bigger role but maybe not the one that many were hoping for after last season.
Prior to the start of training camp, I was very worried about Philadelphia’s depth along the interior of the offensive line. Yet after the team’s preseason opener and following all of the reports from training camp, I’m very confident in both Drew Kendall and Willie Lampkin as primary backups in that area. Both players have shown a ton of long-term potential, while also flashing the ability to win right now. This is especially important given the health of both Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens following last season.
Dickerson has reportedly struggled during practice this year and looks hobbled at times. While the 27-year-old could just be going through the motions to make it to the regular season healthy, it’s still a bit concerning to see him lumbering around. Either way, my guess is that Kendall would be the first one up to replace Dickerson at left guard and that he’s shown enough to make Philadelphia’s front office feel comfortable moving forward with their current depth.
Unlike many other teams around the NFL, the Eagles have the luxury of addressing future needs a year or two ahead of time. They’ve done that in recent years when they drafted Cam Jurgens to replace Jason Kelce, Jalyx Hunt to replace Josh Sweat, Moro Ojomo to replace Milton Williams and more. The Eagles also did the same with finding replacements for Lane Johnson and Dallas Goedert this year.
Here’s how I would rank my concern level regarding replacement for the players that you mentioned. First is most concerning and last is least concerning.
Landon Dickerson (2027) - There is no player that I’m more concerned about long-term than Landon Dickerson. As previously mentioned, he has reportedly already struggled during training camp and joint practices, while also lumbering around. If the Eagles are confident in Drew Kendall or Willie Lampkin as his replacement, that’d be great. But I could also see the Eagles addressing guard early in the 2027 NFL Draft to replace him.
Riq Woolen (2027) - This feels like a situation where the Eagles will extract all of the value that they can from Riq Woolen in 2026 before letting him walk in free agency for a compensatory pick. Woolen likely won’t break the cornerback market but he’ll get paid enough to where it’ll make it difficult to keep him around while also paying both Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean. The Eagles can address cornerback early in the 2027 NFL Draft to lock-in a cost-effective starter alongside Mitchell and DeJean moving forward.
Tyler Steen (2027) - I still believe that there’s a strong chance that Philadelphia will sign Tyler Steen to a contract extension prior to Week 1. The Eagles likely want to avoid having to find two new starting guards in 2027 and given Dickerson’s uncertain future, it would be wise to lock-up Steen. Yet if he does walk in free agency, they’ll have to address that spot next year.
Cam Jurgens (2028) - It’s fair to be concerned about Cam Jurgens after last season, yet he seems to be moving well in training camp and looks much healthier than Dickerson. Jurgens is under contract for four more seasons but I could see the Eagles adding his eventual replacement in 2028 and allowing him to teach his successor as he approaches 30-years old.
Saquon Barkley (2028) - After a down year last season, I expect Saquon Barkley to bounce back in a big way in 2026. Yet he still plays a position that declines quickly and is under contract for three more seasons. My guess is that Barkley will play at least two more seasons in Philadelphia before the team eventually adds his successor in 2028, which is the final year of Barkley’s deal.
Jordan Mailata (2029) - I’m not concerned about Jordan Mailata at all. He’s entering his age 29 season and is under contract for three more years. Mailata is set to hit free agency in 2029 and it wouldn’t surprise me if the Eagles tried to sign him to another contract extension before then. If Mailata walks in 2029, they could address the position then but he’ll still be young enough to likely be a top tier starter for several more years.