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The Eagles 2013 draft is over, the free agency period is mostly over, although there may be some veteran activity over the summer. Point is, the Eagles squad right now is largely like the one we'll see coming in and out of training camp. There will be a lot of jobs to won between now and there, so here's my crack at how I think the starting lineup will shape up.
Offense
| Position | Starter |
|---|---|
| QB | Michael Vick |
| RB | LeSean McCoy |
| WR | DeSean Jackson |
| WR | Jeremy Maclin |
| TE | Brent Celek |
| TE | Zach Ertz |
| LT | Jason Peters |
| LG | Evan Mathis |
| C | Jason Kelce |
| RG | Todd Herremans |
| RT | Lane Johnson |
Defense
| Position | Starter |
|---|---|
| CB | Cary Williams |
| CB | Bradley Fletcher |
| S | Kenny Phillips |
| S | Nate Allen |
| OLB | Brandon Graham |
| ILB | DeMeco Ryans |
| ILB | Mychal Kendricks |
| OLB | Connor Barwin |
| DE | Cedric Thornton |
| NT | Isaac Sopoaga |
| DE | Fletcher Cox |
A few notes.
QB is obviously going to be up in the air, but the end I expect Vick to win the job out of camp. I put two TEs in the starting lineup because Chip Kelly won't really use the FB. I'm betting on Ertz getting the nod over James Casey to line up opposte Celek.
I'm also banking on Jason Kelce being healthy. He will likely miss OTAs, but the word is that he should be cleared by camp. I've also moved Todd Herremans to right guard, which is a new position for him. He's played LG and RT, so RG presumably wouldn't be a huge transition. The rookie Lane Johnson is going to be expected to start from day one.
On defense, I'm pretty certain Cary Williams will be one starter, but the other could be a few guys. I see Fletcher as the leader in the clubhouse for now, but maybe Curtis Marsh steps, maybe Brandon Boykin, maybe Jordan Poyer? I think there will be a good competition.
At safety, I think it's a stretch that both Patrick Chung and Kenny Phillips are both healthy and get starting jobs. I'm maybe hoping more than anything that Phillips is healthy because he's the most talented guy in the secondary at this point. For the other spot, I'm betting on Nate Allen. I've pounded the table for him before and he's let me down... but I'm going to come back one more time and say he wins a job. Chip Kelly has said he prefers a right/left safety alignment rather than strong/weak. So the two best players should start.
Connor Barwin, being the only 3-4 experience OLB on the roster, seems like a good bet to start. I'm giving the nod to Brandon Graham over Trent Cole for the other spot, but that will be a battle to watch. Ryans & Kendricks don't have a lot of competition at this point, so they should start for sure.
Fletcher Cox is the most sure thing on the defensive line. Sopoaga will likely be your starter at NT in name, but he may only end up playing 25-30% of the snaps. I gave the nod to Cedric Thornton on the other side, but really that spot could go a lot of ways. Bennie Logan or Vinny Curry could end up winning that job outright, plus we'll likely see a lot of looks where Trent Cole is there.