Eagles training camp observations: Jalen Reagor responds to early criticism | 6 takeaways from practice 8

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PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles wore shells and shorts on Thursday during their eighth training camp practice at the NovaCare complex.

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Taking a break from the thud of padded practice allowed the Eagles playmakers to shine in the passing game.

PREVIOUS PRACTICAL OBSERVATIONS: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7

Here are six observations from Thursday practice:

Jalen Reagor bounces back

Reagor received a verbal attack from head coach Nick Sirianni on Wednesday. Thursday was another story, as Sirianni celebrated Reagors’ passing successes, in his best training camp training yet.

Reagor faced cornerback Darius Slay in 1-on-1 drills to start training. The specific clashes in the red zone led to Reagor’s winning record of 2-1-1 in their four battles.

In the first rep, Reagor beat Slay on a slant road for an easy win. In the second repetition, Reagor landed an exceptional one-handed catch on Slay during a fade into the end zone. This capture made almost every spectator in the area say whoa. It was probably the takeover so far.

On the next play, Slay broke a pass to Reagor in the middle. In the last 1v1 game, Reagor beat Slay with a double swing to open wide, but dropped the pass. Following the mistake, Reagor shouted a word that rhymes with luck in frustration. While some might think this reaction was poor, Reagor never lowered his head, he just seemed to be frustrated that he couldn’t finish the play, which is understandable.

Reagor then had two impressive moments in the team drills. First, he broke a deep corner on a go route and QB Joe Flacco hit him in stride for a touchdown. Sirianni slapped him on the helmet in celebration after the play. Later, he was tightly covered by cornerback Steve Nelson on the sideline, and he jumped to retrieve the pass from QB Jalen Hurts.

Sirianni received both criticism and praise for how he handled Reagor responsibly in the previous training, but Reagor clearly responded with a much better day in the next training session.

Quez Watkins continues to impress

Reagors’ draft Watkins also had another positive day. Watkins’ speed and road racing were on display all week, and his work in the 1-on-1 drills was a highlight of the camp. Watkins made some nice plays in the individual exercises on Thursday.

The big standout representative in this practice was against the nickel coin Lavert Hill. Watkins began to engage in an inside movement, then retracted as if moving outside, forcing Hill to pause essentially as if he was Robin, frozen by Mr. Freeze. Watkins then made an easy catch in the middle of the end zone.

READ MORE: Eagles new punter Arryn Siposs offers a conscious assessment of his training camp prospects

No flak for Flacco

Thursday was easily Flaccos’ best practice. He took deep shots throughout practice and looked very precise as he worked in midfield. Flacco had the aforementioned deep touchdown pass to Reagor for an impressive climax. He later returned with a great run on the run to Greg Ward for a touchdown. Ward broke free in a burst cover in the middle and Flacco threw a nice ball down the field for the open catcher, who ran to the end zone.

In the first round of training at training camp, Nick Mullens definitely looked better than Flacco. During the second batch, Flacco absolutely escaped any discussion of a No.2 competition.

Miles Sanders’ balloon safety issues are still worth watching

In 11-on-11 drills, LB Eric Wilson stripped RB Miles Sanders on a transfer. While some will probably ignore that some have an echo on the radar, remember Sanders struggled with fumbles and crashes last season. Sanders has had several drops this summer, so this fumble is making up that worries, at least a little.

That said, Sanders, on the other hand, looked pretty good as a runner at camp. His vision is fantastic in traffic and he runs fast and confident. Again, fumble is just a game, but it’s a remarkable game given its history.

A list change has been made

Cornerback Shakial Taylor was sidelined before practice. Taylor missed the entire first week of training with a lower body injury. After taking part in two practice sessions, the Eagles clearly saw it enough. The Eagles still have nine cornerbacks on the roster: Slay, Nelson, Hill, Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson, Craig James, Michael Jacquet, Kevon Seymour and Josiah Scott.

Taylors waiver comes with LB Alex Singleton likely to be removed from the reserve / COVID-19 list this weekend. Singleton has spent the last two days in the field working with coaches. Safety Andrew Adams, who was taken off the roster on Tuesday, worked with coaches on another for two days before being activated.

Defensive end Matt Leo, who is with the Eagles on an international player exemption, also remains on the reserve / COVID-19 list.

Injury Updates

Wide receiver John Hightower walked with a coach to the medical tent halfway through practice and did not return to the field. NJ Advance Media has not seen what happened that caused Hightowers to leave, or what he hurt.

Rookie linebacker JaCoby Stevens – a day after scoring his first interception – has been added to the injury list with a hamstring injury. The team lists it from week to week.

Defensive end Ryan Kerrigan (thumb) worked with a coach on another court during practice.

Wide receivers DeVonta Smith (knee) and Michael Walker (foot), linebacker Davion Taylor (calf), right guard Brandon Brooks (hamstrings), tight end Jason Croom (knee) and left guard Isaac Seumalo ( hamstrings) again missed training due to injuries.

FS Rodney McLeod (knee) and OT LeRaven Clark (Achilles) remained on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, but were seen working on another field during training. Second-round lineman Landon Dickerson remains on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list.

QB ASSESSMENTS: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7

QUICK CUTS

– It looks like the tight experience with Hakeem Butler is over. He was used as a wide catcher throughout the week.

– RT rookie DE Tarron Jackson Jack Driscoll stonewalled in a 1v1 drill. LT Andre Dillard had a solid representation against DE Josh Sweat. LT Jordan Mailata won a bout against DE Derek Barnett.

– CB Zech McPhearson had a nice pass break in the middle in 1v1 practice against WR Andre Patton.

– Once again, LB Eric Wilson and LT Jordan Mailata worked together for several minutes after practice.

– TE Zach Ertz worked his hands with the JUGs machine for about 20 minutes after training.

– The Eagles will be out on Friday but return to training camp training on Saturday at the NovaCare complex. NJ Advance Media will have full live coverage on Eagles Extra (sign up FREE for two weeks now) throughout the day.

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