We’re now just two full days from the Eagles reporting to the NovaCare Complex for the 2023 training camp sessions.
Philadelphia has the lightest of load of practices this summer, and it’s been a successful formula with Nick Sirianni’s team among the NFL’s healthiest over his first two seasons.
Jalen Hurts returns with a massive contract extension and as the face of the franchise, while new defensive coordinator will look to replace seven key contributors.
With the first practice set for Wednesday, here are ten key stats to know ahead of training camp.
Jalen Hurts --22 wins
The ultimate winner at Channelview High School, Alabama and Oklahoma, Hurts has a 22-8 record as a starter in the regular season since 2021 (second behind Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes) and has won 17 of his last 18 regular-season starts.
Jalen Hurts--96.3
The pundits make jokes and negative comments, but Hurts may be the best pure passer in the NFL during tight situations.
According to Dave Spadaro, 22 NFL quarterbacks dropped back 250+ times last season, and if you take out the play-action passes, screens, and RPOs, none of those qualifying quarterbacks had a better passer rating than Hurts (96.3).
Rashaad Penny -- 4.2
If Penny can stay healthy, and OC Brian Johnson can outline a proper utilization, the former Seahawks running back could have a breakout season in Philadelphia.
According to Pro Football Focus, Penny has the highest yards after contact per attempt at 4.2, the highest of running backs with at least 150 carries combined over the last three seasons.
That number is higher than Nick Chubb (3.9), Derrick Henry (3.6), and Jonathan Taylor (3.4).
Quez Watkins
The Eagles are high on the former Southern Miss star and his deep threat abilities are the biggest reason why.
If you count all of the wide receivers in the NFL who had more than 50 targets last year, Watkins had the second-highest percentage of targets in the deep portion of the field (defined as 20-plus yards by Pro Football Focus) at 31.6 percent per Fran Duffy.
Dallas Goedert -- 27
The Eagles tight end is a matchup nightmare and prior to his Week 10 shoulder injury, Goedert was among the league leaders in yards per catch and yards after the catch (YAC).
Even while missing five games in 2022, Goedert finish third in the NFL with 27 explosive pass plays (15-plus yards) and accomplished the feat while playing alongside two 1,000-yard receivers.
Lane Johnson -- ZERO
Johnson is an All-World right tackle and one of the top five football players on the planet.
When looking for a stat to describe his dominance, you only have to look at the number zero
Lane Johnson played 1,173 snaps in 2023 … and he didn’t allow a hit or a sack on the quarterback (according to Pro Football Focus).
Johnson has gone almost three full years without allowing a sack.
Josh Sweat -- 28.5
Sweat goes about his business in a very quiet and efficient way and he’s the Eagles top sack artist over the past three seasons.
Sweat has 28.5 sacks over the past three years and is 1.5 sacks away from a 10+ sack average.
Haason Reddick --71
Former Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon referred to Reddick as a “Weapon” after his signing last offseason and he’s among the most disruptive players on the planet.
According to Pro Football Focus, Reddick finished 12th in the NFL last season with 71 quarterback pressures.
Even more impressive, Reddick accomplished the feat with with far less pass rush attempts than some of his peers.
Jordan Davis -- 18
ESPN’s Mina Kimes recently harped on the Eagles run defense being a potential liability in 2023, but she forgot about the biggest Georgia Bulldog of them all.
The Eagles are rightfully NFC East favorites–but I'm curious to see if they can fix their run defense, which I now think was a bigger problem last year than I appreciated at the time.
Full preview pod with @greggrosenthal here: https://t.co/25po4Tj9rF pic.twitter.com/hHRPJxZuVf
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) July 20, 2023
Per Dave Spadaro, Davis was the only player in in the NFL at the position to grade out positively on more than 18 percent of his run defense snaps while grading out negatively in less than 10 percent.
He was a PFWA All-Rookie pick and he’ll be a dominant force.
Nakobe Dean --22.3
Dean will be the man to watch on the Eagles defense this season, and he could be an unique upgrade over T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White.
Dean will shine as a downhill run-stuffer, and he’ll shine as a downhill blitzer as well.
The Butkus Award winner earned a Pass Rush Win Rate of 22.3 in his final season at Georgia according to Pro Football Focus.
That stat would put Dean in the 90th percentile of linebackers drafted in the last ten years.
Again, according to PFF, while in coverage, Dean allowed an opposing passer rating of 70.5 – a number that would once again put him in the 90th percentile of players drafted at his position in the past decade.
Darius Slay -- Elite
Slay is elite, and any doubt about his play declining can be rebuffed by this stat.
The Eagles cornerback was targeted on fewer than 12 percent of his man coverage snaps in 2022, one of the lowest rates in the league, allowing just 10.4 yards per catch in man coverage when targeted.
