Fantasy football drafts have been set. The preseason games are almost over. Training camp is done.
Yep, the 2026 NFL season is nearly here, and your Philadelphia Eagles are once again a contender.
Are they the favorites to get back to the Super Bowl and/or win it? Nope. But that’s OK. It’s always better to fly under the radar. We do know that this Eagles roster is stacked with really good players, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, featuring a potential top-five unit.
Offensively, there
are questions, and there will be struggles. But it was time for this scheme to evolve, so it’s fun anticipating what it all may look like once the regular season begins.
Still, there are a number of questions as yet unanswered as training camp winds down. Here are 10 of the more fascinating ones.
1) Who is the backup QB?
Or perhaps an even more fascinating question… “Is the Eagles’ backup QB for 2026 currently on the roster?”
The “battle” between incumbent No. 2 Tanner McKee and veteran ginger Andy Dalton has not been a scintillating one. Dalton appeared to be getting more run as Jalen Hurts’ backup this summer, but McKee appeared to outplay him during his more limited action. Neither QB bathed themselves in glory though, and given the fact Dalton appeared to be the front-runner for most of training camp, it’s fair to wonder how much faith the organization has lost in McKee following his lackluster performance in Week 18 last season.
In an ideal scenario, one of these players will be traded after the team’s final preseason game. I would keep McKee over Dalton. There’s more upside there. But if Howie Roseman doesn’t feel good about either player, perhaps a long-rumored trade for Minnesota’s J.J. McCarthy or Indianapolis’ Anthony Richardson will come to fruition.
2) Can Saquon Barkley lead your fantasy team’s RBs?
Last year, I picked Barkley No. 2 overall in my fantasy draft. I finished in 11th place in a 12-team league.
The two were related.
No one expected Barkley to repeat his 2,005 yard performance from 2024, but a drop from 125.3 yards per game to 71.3 wasn’t on anyone’s bingo card. The offensive line was banged up all year and the playcalling and scheme did no one any favors, either.
So we’re all curious to see how Barkley will do in a Sean Mannion offense with a healthy offensive line. If you draft Barkley as your RB1, are you doomed to failure like I was a year ago?
3) Which receiver finishes with the 2nd-most yards?
Barring a disaster (or a breakout performance, I suppose), DeVonta Smith is going to be this team’s leader in receiving yards. But who will be No. 2?
The Ringer’s Philly Special spent the last couple of podcasts asking this question and it made me want to weigh in, too. Based on the preseason, it would appear Dontayvion Wicks is the most likely answer. He looked elusive and quick and is familiar with Mannion and what he’s likely to do. He’s also likely to get a lot of snaps, probably as the team’s slot receiver to start.
Makai Lemon will enter the season as the No. 2, but he missed most of the summer with a hamstring injury. Will he be able to ramp it up and develop enough chemistry with Hurts in a short amount of time to emerge as the team’s second-leading receiver? Rookie receivers rarely have that kind of immediate immpact. And what about camp superstar Darius Cooper? Is he capable of making a “leap?”
And don’t forget tight end Dallas Goedert, who made 15 starts for the first time in his NFL career a season ago, finishing with 591 yards and a career-high 11 TDs. How will Mannion’s offense affect his productivity? Health will be a major factor.
My money is on Wicks.
4) How many starts does Markel Bell make?
The rookie third-round pick has been one of the most impressive new players in camp this year and it sure does look like the team has found its eventual Lane Johnson replacement. For 2026, he’ll enter the season as the team’s swing tackle, and while I’m optimistic about the health of Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata, I say that every year. And every year, one of the tackles misses time.
I think we have to pencil Bell in for at least two starts at one of the tackle spots, and if Johnson or Mailata is out for longer, he’s going to be the guy to get those reps, not veteran Fred Johnson. I’m excited to see more of Bell, but hopefully it doesn’t come this year at the expense of either of the team’s Pro Bowl offensive tackles.
5) Is the Eagles’ No. 2 TE currently on the roster?
Goedert will be the starter, but he’s also an injury-prone, 31-year-old tight end. The team drafted Eli Stowers in the second round of the draft hoping he’d be TE2, but his well-documented summer struggles have torpedoed those chances. Right now, run-blocking specialist Johnny Mundt is the No. 2, and if Goedert were to go down, there would be absolutely zero pass-catching options at the tight end position.
In a recent Philly Voice post, Jimmy Kempski noted the Rams appear to have a few too many tight ends on the roster and that one of them could be had in a trade, with Davis Allen mentioned as the most obvious candidate. Earlier in the off-season, former Eagle-turned-Cardinal-turned-Commander Zach Ertz expressed a desire to return to Philadelphia. He has recovered from a devastating knee injury at the end of 2024 and believes he can still play. Other names in the ether, more likely to be dealt at the trade deadline, are Carolina’s Ja’Tavion Sanders, Denver’s Evan Engram and Atlanta’s Kyle Pitts.
6) When will Jonathan Greenard be back?
The Eagles’ biggest off-season acquisition has missed the entire summer with a pec injury that landed him on the PUP list, and NFL insider Adam Schefter said this week he’s unlikely to play in Week 1.
Thankfully, the Eagles are pretty deep on the defensive line, but edge rusher was an area of uncertainty as the off-season began and, without Greenard, they’re lacking one big pass rusher. Also, how long will it take Greenard to get into game shape and perform at his normal levels of production when he does return?
Greenard should not return until he’s fully healthy, even if he misses the first month. No one wants him to come back too soon and play at a sub-optimal level, like we saw with Cam Jurgens and Landon Dickerson a year ago.
7) Who will lead the Eagles in sacks?
Jalyx Hunt had perhaps the best training camp of anyone on the roster and, with Greenard hurting, he could be the guy. But he’s not the only candidate.
Nolan Smith is finally healthy to start the season and is looking to have a big campaign in the final year of his rookie deal. And on the inside, Jalen Carter, with a big-money contract extension tucked under his very large arms, looks exceedingly good right now, too. It’s harder for tackles to pile up as many sacks as edge rushers, but Carter’s immense talent automatically makes him a possible exception to that rule.
My money is on Hunt, with Greenard piling up some sacks late in the season once he returns.
8) Are we sleeping on Jihaad Campbell?
The talk this summer has been centered on the emergence of Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. as a starting-caliber linebacker in the NFL. That’s a wonderful development and a fantastic legacy story, but are we sleeping on Campbell?
Remember, Campbell was a first round pick and had all the hype in the world at this time last year. Opposing players were cursing that the Eagles had landed a player with the kind of potential impact Campbell has. He understandably moved to the bench last season when Nakobe Dean was ready to play, but with all the attention everyone else on the defense is getting, Campbell has the potential to be a sneaky impact player on this roster.
And, if he isn’t, Trotter, Jr. is there ready for his time in the sun.
9) Are the Eagles suddenly deep at safety?
I had the safety position as the second-weakest area of the team heading into training camp (after wide receiver), but I am changing my tune on this unit. Andrew Mukuba is a second-year player who has, by all accounts, improved and appears destined to snag one of the two starting spots. Veteran Marcus Epps provides a high floor as the other starting safety, but one pleasant surprise has been Michael Carter’s transition from slot corner to safety.
The Eagles suddenly have three safeties who appear capable of starting, something I didn’t foresee when training camp rolled around.
10) Can Jake Elliott get it together for one more season?
The player on the roster I am perhaps the most cynical about is the franchise’s greatest all-time kicker, Jake Elliott.
No one has been a better kicker in the clutch than Jake, and he will one day deservedly enter the team’s Hall of Fame. But Elliott simply can’t do it anymore.
Sure, he’ll knock in 95% of his kicks from inside 45 yards, but in a league where kickers are nailing more 55-65 yard field goals, Elliott’s lack of length is a big problem. It’s confounding that the Eagles didn’t bring in some competition this summer. I don’t get it.
Maybe he has one more good season in him. But for the last two regular seasons, he’s been a well below average NFL kicker. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, they should have tried to do better.
