Eagles: All Eyes On The 53

As I write this post, the Eagles have just released 12 players. Among the notables: Antonio Dixon, Trevard Lindley, Ifeanyi Momah, Adrian Robinson. They placed rookie Joe Kruger on IR. The team’s roster now stands at 62 players. Final cuts are due by 4 p.m. Saturday. With that in mind, let’s take a crack at predicting the 53-man roster.

Quarterbacks (3): Mike Vick, Nick Foles, Matt Barkley

» No surprises here. Vick and Foles are basically 1a and 1b. Barkley has shown flashes — ran a great 2-minute drill Thursday night — and could be the future.

Running backs (3): LeSean McCoy, Bryce Brown, Chris Polk

» There was a thought that Polk had surpassed Brown on the depth chart, but Polk was the one running it in the fourth quarter of the final preseason game. No matter, all three will see action. They can all play in the NFL.

Wide receivers (6): DeSean Jackson, Riley Cooper, Jason Avant, Damaris Johnson, Russell Shepard, Greg Salas

» I still wouldn’t be shocked if the Eagles scan the waiver wire for a big target after Saturday’s final cuts. Jackson, Cooper, Avant, Johnson are locks. Shepard makes it because of his inspiring play on special teams. Salas could be headed for the practice squad, but we’ll leave him on the 53 for now. He was just too good during camp.

Tight ends (4): Brent Celek, Zach Ertz, James Casey, Emil Igwenagu

» Chip Kelly is going to run a lot of two, tight-end sets and basically eliminate the fullback position. While Ertz has had trouble hanging onto receptions in the preseason — and Casey has struggled to stay on the field — all three are too talented to send to the scrap heap. Igwenagu stays because he can actually play fullback, if needed. Clay Harbor is the odd man out.

Offensive line (9): Jason Peters, Evan Mathis, Allen Barbre, Jason Kelce, Julian Vandervelde, Todd Herremans, Lane Johnson, Dennis Kelly, Matt Tobin

» Wow, if the starters go down for any length of time, it’s curtains for whomever is under center. The backups struggled mightily Thursday against the Jets and the unit is even thinner since Kelly will miss the first two games. And yes, the Danny Watkins’ experiment is officially over.

Defensive line (7): Fletcher Cox, Isaac Sopoaga, Cedric Thornton, Vinny Curry, Clifton Geathers, Bennie Logan, Damion Square

» Cox has taken the needed and expected jump in his development. He’s far and away the best of this group, maybe even Pro Bowl. Geathers, Thornton, Curry have all flashed potential — and Logan should be the starting nose tackle.

Linebackers (7): Mychal Kendricks, Trent Cole, Brandon Graham, Connor Barwin, DeMeco Ryans, Chris McCoy, Emmanuel Acho

» Kendricks and McCoy have been flat-out revelations this summer. High ceiling on both. Cole is having trouble adjusting to linebacker because he can’t cover. Same for Graham, but he is such a strong pass-rusher that he can overcome that deficiency. Some of my peers have Casey Matthews sticking around. Not me. He can’t tackle.

Safeties (5): Patrick Chung, Earl Wolff, Nate Allen, Kurt Coleman, Colt Anderson

» Not very awe-inspiring after Chung. They’ll have to make the best of a bad situation with this group. Anderson makes it strictly for his special teams hustle.

Cornerbacks (6): Cary Williams, Bradley Fletcher, Brandon Boykin, Curtis Marsh, Jordan Poyer, Brandon Hughes

» This is just a muddled, muddled mess. Williams and Fletcher will start by default. Marsh and Hughes are hurt — a situation that forced Kurt Coleman into cornerback action Thursday — and Poyer has been unimpressive. You have to think they bring somebody in, either in a trade or from the waiver wire.

Special teams (3): Alex Henery, Donnie Jones, Jon Dorenbos

» You need a kicker, punter, long snapper. No analysis needed, it’s that simple.