Eagles News: Isaac Bruce says DeVonta Smith is very similar to Marvin Harrison

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Hall of Fame WR Isaac Bruce sees greatness in Eagles’ DeVonta Smith - ESPN
[Smith] isn’t the most vocal guy, you can start there, which is something I like. He has tremendous confidence when he does open his mouth, and you can see it in his play,” Bruce told ESPN. “He’s very similar to Marvin. I can see a lot of it as far as the separation is concerned, [how he] catches the ball well, strong hands, and his ability to run after the catch, very similar to the way Marvin played.” Bruce can relate to the skepticism Smith is facing, though in Bruce’s case, it came primarily from teammates as opposed to the public domain. He entered draft week in 1994 at 182 pounds but dropped 12 pounds in seven days as a result of stress over when and where he would be selected, weighing in at 170 pounds when selected 33rd overall by the Rams. “My new teammates were kind of shocked just how small I was, or how I like to say, how big I was,” said Bruce, who was also questioned about the level of competition he faced coming out of Memphis. “I think the important thing is how DeVonta sees himself. When I looked in the mirror, I saw a 6-foot-5, 215-pound player. And I think he sees himself that way as well. His game proves that, because he plays big.”

Weapon X Mailbag: Is Ben Simmons the Sixers version of Carson Wentz? - BGN
They’re pretty spot on! Carson Wentz and Ben Simmons were both highly touted top-two picks in 2016. They showcased a ton of promise and success immediately in their careers. Neither improved after their breakout seasons (2017 for Wentz, 2018 for Simmons). Both have been babied and enabled by members of their respective organizations, forming a wall from criticism that differs from the concept of being true team players. Both have had their blind faith defenders among the fanbases who were unwilling to look past what they wanted the players to be and look at them for what they are. Their personalities never seemed to quite fit in Philadelphia. Both of their tenures in the city will go down as successes, but a weird disappointing success that could only exist in the reality-warping hellscape that is Philly sports.

From the Bleachers #65: Is Ben Simmons the Sixers version of Carson Wentz? - BGN Radio
In the latest episode of From the Bleachers, Shamus Clancy compares the trajectory of Ben Simmons and Carson Wentz in Philadelphia and goes over the worst Philly sports losses of his lifetime.

Three-Year salary cap analysis for all 32 NFL teams - PFF
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES – Rank: 29. The Eagles are in a full-scale rebuild, but the good news is they’ve been as aggressive in their rebuild efforts as they were when they attempted to chase a second Super Bowl after 2017. Philadelphia has an extra 2022 first-round pick from the Miami Dolphins in the draft trade for wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and an extra 2022 conditional second-round pick from the Indianapolis Colts that could become a first-round pick for quarterback Carson Wentz. Their cap is frankly a disaster, with more prorated bonus money through 2023 and more total money allocated to void years than any other club, but they’re doing all they can to get through to the other side quickly.

10 reasons the Giants will be a dumpster fire this season - PhillyVoice
If that’s right, it will be one of the youngest offensive lines in the NFL, if not the youngest, with an average age of 24 years old. For a building team, being young up front is nice, but only if the players are, you know, good. It’s worth noting that when the team shed RG Kevin Zeitler’s contract, they lost their best offensive lineman, and their lone tried-and-true veteran starter. Hernandez will likely move from LG to RG, with Lemieux filling in at LG, weakening both positions. More importantly, Dave Gettleman spent the fourth overall pick in 2020 on Thomas, and the early returns aren’t looking so great. Gettleman had his pick of Thomas, Jedrick Wills, Mekhi Becton, and Tristan Wirfs, and there’s little debate that Thomas is distant fourth out of those four players, in terms of their play during their rookie seasons. Gettleman also spent a high pick (34th overall) on Hernandez in 2018, who has been a disappointment overall in his first three NFL seasons. (The two players drafted immediately after Hernandez have a combined 5 Pro Bowls and 3 All-Pro nods, just FYI.) The other three guys along the line are major question marks.

Predicting MVPs for all 32 NFL teams: From Patrick Mahomes and Bradley Chubb to Jimmy Garoppolo and Aaron Rodgers - The Athletic
Best-case scenario? Jalen Hurts emerges as a dynamic dual-threat leader of the offense, rushes for 1,000 yards, improves his accuracy and leads the team to a division championship in the still lowly NFC East. More realistically, one of the Eagles’ two stalwarts on either side of the line of scrimmage will stand out again, whether that’s 33-year-old Jason Kelce holding down the fort at center or Fletcher Cox turning the clock back to his more dominant form of three seasons ago. If you really want to get spicy, don’t count out DeVonta Smith, who has made early impressions before. The Eagles have lacked dynamism on offense for much of the last two years. Maybe Smith delivers that. It’s the time of summer to be optimistic, so let’s just go with the rookie. — Bo Wulf

An unbelievable Hurts stat in Roob’s observations - NBCSP
1. Jalen Hurts is one of only six quarterbacks in NFL history (and the only rookie) to record three straight games with a touchdown pass and 60 rushing yards. He also averaged at least 5.5 yards per rush in each of those games. The only other players in NFL history with three straight games with a TD pass, 60 rushing yards and a 5.5 average at any point in their career are Tobin Rote in 1951, Randall Cunningham in 1990, Michael Vick in 2004 and Lamar Jackson in 2019. Hurts did it in his first three starts. I’m telling you, give this kid a chance.

Will Eagles’ undrafted rookies make 53-man roster? Ranking the chances for Jhamon Ausbon, Jack Stoll, more - NJ.com
1. TE Jack Stoll. Reason for optimism: The Eagles’ No. 3 tight end competition will be wide open if Zach Ertz gets traded before training camp. Wilson and Croom have experience but aren’t exactly must-have contributors. Butler and Jackson are conversion projects. Bottom Line: Stoll not only needs to beat out his competition but also force the Eagles to keep three tight ends. He also needs to hope Ertz gets shipped off soon, which is still likely to happen.

Giants 2021 roster profile: Will QB Daniel Jones make the leap? - Big Blue View
I believe Jones will justify the Giants’ faith. He will never be Patrick Mahomes or Aaron Rodgers, making off-platform plays that leave your jaw on the floor. In my view, though, Jones has every physical skill necessary to play the position at a quality level, and the personality to succeed in New York/New Jersey. It’s a matter of whether his processing speed improves and his turnovers decline. I think we saw signs of improvement in both areas last season. His fumbles went from 18 to 11, with three coming in a game against the Arizona Cardinals when he was on one leg and shouldn’t have been playing. When you look at the pro Football Focus data on turnover-worthy plays, Jones went from near the bottom of the league in 2019 to roughly league average in 2020

Five Dallas Cowboys who need to have a big season in 2021 - Blogging The Boys
Much has been made about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers returning all of their Super Bowl starters in 2021, but the Cowboys are technically returning all of their offensive starters. At least all of their intended offensive starters. Tyron Smith played a bit in 2021 before being put on ice, but La’el Collins missed the season entirely. Their play is so pivotal to what the team’s offense is capable of doing, and given that the organization passed on a future tackle in Rashawn Slater twice in the draft suggests a somewhat legitimate belief in their own tackles’ short-term future. Dak Prescott seemingly agrees with the idea that Smith and Collins need to play well this season. He recently said that they, along with Zack Martin, are the most important Cowboys on the team.

Washington’s defense is littered with players ranked among the best at their positions by PFF - Hogs Haven
Washington’s secondary will also feature another young player — safety Kamren Curl — who, in just his second year in the NFL, is ranked 20th in PFF’s preview of the best safeties of 2021. PFF gushes over 2020 seventh-round draft pick, Kamren Curl, calling him “one of the steals of the draft a year ago,” and adding that he was “one of the standout rookies of the season.” Curl’s overall PFF grade jumped from 53.1 to 74.4 from the first half of his rookie season to the second, and PFF believes Curl could be primed for a big sophomore campaign. They’re not alone in that assessment. Big things are expected from Curl by most fans and analysts. DB Coach Chris Harris said that Curl, in OTAs and minicamp, has been playing with more confidence than he did a year ago as a rookie.

2021 All-Under-25 Team: Lamar Jackson leads NFL’s rising stars - NFL.com
Justin Jefferson. It appeared to be a daunting challenge entering the season, but Jefferson couldn’t have done a better job of replacing Stefon Diggs in 2020. The wideout’s 1,400 receiving yards were the most by a rookie in the Super Bowl era. He’ll need to replicate his production from the 2020 campaign in 2021 to surpass Odell Beckham Jr. for the most receiving yards in a player’s first two seasons in the Super Bowl era. It’s quite a task, but if Jefferson taught us one thing last season (other than how to hit the Griddy), it’s that he won’t shy away from great expectations. DK Metcalf. The 2020 season very quickly became a breakout year for the big-bodied receiver who once broke into tears while asking Pete Carroll why the Seahawks took so long to draft him. Defenders tasked with covering Metcalf were the ones doing the crying in 2020. He racked up 1,303 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns last season, finishing as one of four players with 1,200-plus receiving yards and 10-plus receiving touchdowns. Metcalf’s yardage total topped Pro Football Hall of Famer Steve Largent’s single-season mark of 1,287, breaking Seattle’s franchise record. He’s also one of only three players in the Super Bowl era to post 2,500-plus receiving yards and 20-plus receiving touchdowns through their first two seasons (including playoffs). The other two players in that group: Hall of Famer Randy Moss and superstar Odell Beckham Jr. [BLG Note: No Eagles players on this list.]

NFL Daily Kickoff, Wednesday - TE University is not for Tebow, Seahawks back to full capacity and more - The SB Nation NFL Show
On today’s episode, George Kittle says Tight End University is not for Tim Tebow, the Seahawks are back to full capacity in Seattle, the Panthers will combine with the Colts and Ravens for joint practices, no Olympics for Nate Ebner and in our speed updates, Carl Nassib’s jersey goes No. 1, the Bucs their top draft pick and free-agent WR Golden Tate has him a wishlist.

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