Welcome to The Linc, the daily links roundup at Bleeding Green Nation!
I’m sure no one would disagree that the ceiling for Philadelphia’s defense is the league’s best. It was a top 10 unit last year and they arguably got better.
Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles news and links …
2026 NFL bold predictions: Potential surprises for 32 teams – ESPN
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES — Don’t be surprised if … they have the best defense in the NFL this season. What I’m hearing: The questions on offense in Philadelphia
are myriad and totally legitimate. The new coordinator, Sean Mannion, is a first-time playcaller and in just his third year as a coach at any level. Longtime offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland’s departure leaves a void, too. The Eagles also traded their best receiver to the Patriots in A.J. Brown. And on and on. Regardless, the Vic Fangio defense should be an absolute monster. Sure, the Jonathan Greenard pec strain is a blow to the pass rush, but he shouldn’t be out too long, and the Eagles expect guys such as Moro Ojomo to contribute there in the meantime. Jihaad Campbell should make an impact in his second season at linebacker, too. The secondary, fortified by the free agent addition of Riq Woolen, is ascending and already Super Bowl-tested. The interior defensive line duo of Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis is a strength. And the continuity under Fangio is a big reason to believe this unit will only be better. The Eagles look like the kind of defense that can carry a transitioning offense through early-season growing pains.
NFL’s top 10 defenses in 2026? Texans, Seahawks, Rams headline ranking; don’t sleep on Jags, Bucs – NFL.com
Defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis can wreck games with raw power right up the gut. Defensive backs Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean were just named first-team All-Pro in Year 2. And at linebacker, Philadelphia has a Pro Bowler with veteran savvy (Zack Baun) and a versatile sophomore with immense upside (Jihaad Campbell). What’s missing from Vic Fangio’s arsenal? An established edge rush. The Eagles have ranked in the bottom half of the league in pressure rate for three seasons running. Midseason trade acquisition Jaelan Phillips routinely heated up quarterbacks in the back half of last year, but then he signed a megadeal with Carolina in free agency. The Eagles attempted to mitigate that loss by trading for (and immediately extending) Jonathan Greenard, but the 29-year-old has been plagued this summer by a nagging pectoral injury. On the plus side, Greenard was taken off the PUP list and included in the initial 53-man roster, meaning he could be nearing a return to action. With an edge group that’s longer on promise than production (SEE: 25-year-olds Jalyx Hunt and Nolan Smith), Philly needs Greenard to provide the kind of steady disruption we saw in 2023 and ‘24.
Who Will Have the NFL’s Best Defense in 2026? – The Ringer
4) EAGLES. Philadelphia actually improved its pressure rate last year, but holes emerged in the secondary and opposing quarterbacks picked at them. In particular, the outside corner spot opposite All-Pro Quinyon Mitchell was a revolving door of mediocrity, and the Eagles are hoping that enigmatic Riq Woolen—whom they acquired in free agency—can plug that leak this season. It’s never a great sign when a defensive coach as highly regarded as Macdonald is in Seattle finds no need for a player in his defense, but Woolen is clearly more talented than the Eagles’ options last year. Philadelphia also added linebacker Jonathan Greenard to give them a stronger outside pass rush. Camp hype is peaking for a potential breakout season from Jalyx Hunt as a difference-making edge rusher. The Eagles also have a ton of excellent space defenders over the middle and an All-Pro nickel in Cooper DeJean, and they’re optimistic about Jalen Carter, who flashed dominant interior line play in 2025 but was inconsistent and battled injury.
Philadelphia Eagles live chat: Ask me anything – BGN
Enjoyed answering your questions. I’ll try to get to any you still have for me if you leave them in the linked article.
Leave your questions in the comment section (sign up for a free account if you haven’t already) and I’ll do my best to answer whatever you throw at me. Whether it’s about Darius Cooper (The GOAT), Jalen Hurts, Sean Mannion, training camp takeaways, recent roster cuts, the upcoming season, the best places for food if you’re visiting Philly for a game this year, the new SB Nation app (which you should download!), the return of The NFC East Mixtape podcast, my new role working with the PHLY Eagles crew for Eagles gameday coverage, the Phillies’ postseason outlook, or anything else, let’s get into it!
NFC East Mixtape Vol. 186: Things That Are Sneaky Important – NFC East Mixtape
Second episode of the Mixtape since the re-launch earlier this week! Please subscribe on YouTube and hit that like button.
There is officially less than a week to go until the 2026 NFL season starts and when it does we will have two games between all four NFC East teams. What are some important things about each squad as we get ready to dive in? More specifically, what are some sneaky important things? RJ Ochoa and Brandon Gowton discuss on the latest edition of the NFC East Mixtape. You can see that we have a BRAND NEW NFC East Mixtape YouTube Channel so make sure to subscribe as the show will live here exclusively in video format. BUT you can also listen to the show! On Blogging The Boys and/or Bleeding Green Nation podcast feeds as well as the SB Nation NFL Show feed!
Handing out 10 awards from Eagles 2026 training camp – PhillyVoice
1) The ‘I Dunno’ Award 🤷♂️: The Eagles’ offense. The Eagles’ offensive line is heading into this season healthier than it was last season. Lane Johnson is good to go, Cam Jurgens’ back seems fine, and a bunch of depth guys showed during training camp that they’re ready to contribute, if needed. I feel good about the line heading into this season. They could be a top three type of line again. I also feel good about DeVonta Smith. He is built mentally to be an alpha receiver, and he has the physical skills to pull it off. The rest? Ehhhhhh, we’ll see. Can the rest of the Eagles receivers at least keep opposing defenses from giving Smith excessive extra attention? Are the tight ends good enough? Will the run game flourish in an entirely new scheme? Will the timing of the passing offense and intricacies of the play action game gel quickly? Or will that be a season-long struggle? And finally, will Jalen Hurts bounce back from a shaky season in 2025? I don’t know. All of the above can go either way. We’ll see!
Excited to See – Iggles Blitz
Jalen Hurts will be in the new offense. He was up and down this summer, as I expected. While there will be ups and downs in the regular season as well, I expect him to be better. He’ll have a true gameplan to work with instead of installing plays or running them for the second or third time. He’ll have a full complement of starters around him. Throwing to DeVonta Smith with Lane Johnson blocking for you is better than throwing to Hollywood Brown with Fred Johnson at RT. Hurts feels like a man on a mission. I’m excited to see how he does. Saquon Barkley had a great summer. He was disappointing last year, for a variety of reasons. Like Hurts, Barkley seems really locked in. I think we could see a monster season from him. DeVonta Smith gets a chance to be WR1 after the departure of AJ Brown. Smitty isn’t physically dominant, but he is a top talent. Don’t forget that he was a Top 10 pick and won the Heisman Trophy in college. He’s not exactly chopped liver. Smitty could have a big year.
Eagles mailbag: Optimism and pessimism for 2026, Makai Lemon and Eli Stowers projections – The Athletic
For Lemon, how would you feel about Matthew Golden’s rookie year in Green Bay last season: 29 catches for 361 in 14 games? I’d be underwhelmed by that, honestly. But that’s a first-round pick in this system with players ahead of him. A more optimistic comp could be Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s rookie season in 2023: 17 games, 63 catches for 628 yards. If you split the difference, that’s 46 catches for 494.5 yards. I’m going around there. For Stowers, the track record of rookie tight ends is not promising. His most realistic chance to even reach the field on offense is if something were to happen to Dallas Goedert. I’ll give you Elijah Arroyo’s rookie season: 15 catches, 171 yards. Maybe it’s closer to Terrence Ferguson last season: 11 catches for 231 yards with some big gains mixed in there. Unless Goedert misses significant time or Stowers demonstrates significant improvement, expectations should be modest for Stowers.
Jalen Hurts’ play is again under the microscope. His latest effort to evolve could determine his future. – Inquirer
In this case, it was as much the answers he gave as it was the questions he asked. Hurts is making an effort. He’s trying to let his guard down. It’s been evident in his pressers this summer, in the recent profile he did with GQ, and most importantly, inside the Jefferson Health Training Complex. The Eagles seemingly never have to worry about Hurts’ work ethic or his behavior off the field. But as the franchise quarterback, there are interpersonal parts of the job that are almost requirements. Hurts isn’t naturally outgoing. “Overall, he’s been better,” a team source said, “when it comes to communication and being around.” It may be just a simple hello in the hallway, or hanging in the locker room longer, or talking about himself more openly. Hurts has organized summer workouts with skill position players before, but he had almost full attendance in the session he ran in Orlando this July. No one desires for him to be inauthentically extroverted. Like his goatee that was shaved into a mustache for most of this offseason, Hurts has made outward tweaks. But he remains a figure mostly shrouded in mystery, and seems to relish it. Asked to reveal more about a recent anecdote he’d relayed about his wife, Hurts said, “Maybe … if you’re nice to me.”
Eagles’ West Coast Offense experts weigh in on Sean Mannion’s verison – NBCSP
Eagles running backs coach Jemal Singleton has seen a lot of versions of the West Coast Offense in his coaching career. He coached at Air Force in Colorado Springs in the early 2000s alongside Troy Calhoun, who had coached with Mike Shanahan in Denver. He coached with the Raiders under Jon Gruden, who first began developing a West Coast system as Ray Rhodes’ offensive coordinator with the Eagles in the 1990s with future NFL head coaches and West Coast practitioners Bill Callahan and Sean Payton also on the staff. He coached with the Bengals under Zac Taylor, who had coached under Sean McVay with the Rams. Now he’s part of a group of offensive coaches helping develop Sean Mannion’s own version of an offense that emphasizes wide-zone running schemes, lots of under-center and play-action looks and pure-progression reads from the quarterback as opposed to a coverage-read scheme. “There’s a West Coast Offense, and there’s these different schools of thought,” Singleton said. “I think what has happened with everybody is it takes a little bit of what the the owner of it is, the guy that’s calling it is like twisted just a little bit or takes it in a little different direction. “I’ve been around this system for a lot of years. I mean, it’s really cool to see the morphs and twists and adjustments that different people have made with it.”
Five reasons the explosive NFL passing game has plummeted over the past decade and will it ever return? – CBS Sports
“There are a lot of reasons,” Coen said. “Teams aren’t letting you just drop back and get the big plays. Look at the Super Bowl teams that have won it the last two years, both Philly and Seattle. Those two teams play the highest amount of shell coverage, but what can they do? They can rush the passer, right? So they can rush with four and play soft zone coverage. They play deep to short and don’t let anything get over their heads. They limit the big plays.” That is spreading throughout the league. Make offenses be patient and make them drive the field. Fans love the big plays. Offensive coaches and players do, too, but getting them now almost means yards after catch rather than the ball in the air. There are reasons for it. Lots of them. In this story, I will explore five reasons why the beloved passing game isn’t what it used to be. The five reasons are: The Vic Fangio impact, the offensive lines regressing compared to the defensive lines improving, the exotic looks on defense, the quarterback intellect and coaches playing it safe or, as I like to say, playing scared. Let’s take a look at each of these reasons.
Rising Eagles’ DB Coach Doesn’t Appear Set To Be Leaving Philadelphia Any Time Soon – SI
Joe Kasper does not spend much time thinking about his next job. The Eagles’ newly minted defensive passing game coordinator says is too consumed with where his feet are. Asked Wednesday how he prepares for a long-term trajectory the way some coaches do after being named to The Athletic’s 40-under-40 list of rising coaches in the NFL, the emerging assistant revealed a blemish. “I’m not gonna answer this well,” he said. “I don’t do much to prepare for a long-term trajectory. I know that’s probably not the best answer, but I really actively, like I’m consumed by what we’re doing right now. So, for me, I don’t really look at that.”
Jalen Hurts and Jordan Davis Mic’d Up at Public Practice – PhiladelphiaEagles.com
Any moments from this video stand out to you?
Watch quarterback Jalen Hurts and defensive tackle Jordan Davis Mic’d Up at the 2026 Public Practice. Live the moments from their eyes and ears as they practice in front of over 45,000 fans!
Eagles Fans Showed Up for a Uar Bernard Surprise Party in Delco – Crossing Broad
A surprise party to congratulate a guy on becoming a Philadelphia Eagle. On the practice squad, no less. What other NFL fan base is organizing something like this? The backdrop, of course, is that Bernard is from Nigeria and only recently came over to the United States. He got his first football snaps in the preseason and is just learning how to play the game. It’s a huge adjustment for the guy in a lot of ways, so it’s nice for the Dolan’s people and the fans who showed up to throw some support behind a guy who is trying to figure out a new sport and a new country at the same time.
Raiders make practice squad additions – Silver And Black Pride
Former Eagles edge rusher Azeez Ojulari joined the Raiders’ practice squad after recently being cut by the Atlanta Falcons.
Las Vegas signed 3 players from the earlier workouts to the practice squad. Will be interesting who gets waived to make room.
Cowboys have complete confidence in Tyler Guyton at left tackle – Blogging The Boys
Sure they do.
When Dallas traded for Broderick Jones from the Pittsburgh Steelers, it was made clear to Guyton that he wouldn’t be competing with him for the starting job on the left side. Jones would be competing with Steele at right tackle. That just shows how much faith the coaches and front office have in their left tackle and his development.
Commanders roster: Jayden Daniels, pass rush among Washington strengths – Hogs Haven
Daniels will have to do a lot of heavy lifting for this team.
Expectations for Jayden Daniels’ third NFL season are varied. Some expect him to return to 2024 production and remind everyone why he was named offensive rookie of the year. Others have somehow forgotten that season ever existed. Others panic about the lack of a supporting cast (more on that later). Those who watched Commanders practice all summer have a different take on Daniels. He has been super accurate and throwing receivers open while having no trouble acclimating to David Blough’s new offensive system despite it’s increased under-center requirements. Daniels has taken the steps required to be a force in 2026 and, if you’re going to discuss any position among a roster’s strengths, quarterback is what you want. Daniels can be an upper-tier starter and Marcus Mariota’s returning from an MCL sprain to be a quality backup. You don’t want Athan Kaliakmanis playing in a game right now, but there’s hope he develops into someone who can down the line.
6 defensive linemen the NY Giants should consider signing – Big Blue View
Blay spent time with the Eagles in training camp.
Schoen mentioned that New York is interested in signing another veteran defensive tackle next week. The Giants had three defensive tackles and a big defensive end in for a workout on Wednesday: Benito Jones, David Blay, Aaron Graves, and Dawuane Smoot. Blay and Graves are both undrafted rookies this season, so they’re not veterans, but the Giants are certainly interested. Let’s explore Jones and Smoot, plus other available veteran defensive linemen that could help the Giants’ depth.
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