3 Eagles training camp battles that will define Philadelphia’s 2026 season
The Philadelphia Eagles open training camp today and these three roster battles will be critical to watch as practice progresses over the next few days.
The Philadelphia Eagles open 2026 training camp on Wednesday with more genuine position battles than they’ve had in years. Safety, offensive line health, and the wide receiver 2 spot opposite DeVonta Smith all remain unresolved heading into camp, and each one carries real implications for how far this roster can go.
Philadelphia built a Super Bowl-caliber defense and revamped its passing attack this offseason, but the margins between contender and pretender live in these three competitions. For the last couple of years, training camp has felt like a formality. We knew who was starting at every position. That is not the case in 2026, and I think that’s a good thing, because competition breeds the best football.
Safety is the biggest question on the Philadelphia Eagles roster
This one is not close. Safety is far and away the position I’ll be watching most closely when camp opens. Andrew Makuba is heading into his second year, but he’s coming off a season-ending ankle fracture, and there’s no guarantee he returns at 100 percent or is ready to flash that second-round potential right away. On top of that, the Eagles let Reed Blankenship walk in free agency. I feel like they should have paid him, but he’s gone now, and they didn’t draft a replacement in the early rounds.
That leaves Marcus Epps as the most experienced option. Epps has been a solid veteran for a long time, but I don’t know if he’s capable of being a full-time starter at this stage of his career. Behind him, the depth chart gets thin fast. Michael Carter has never played safety at the NFL level and is learning the position from scratch. Cole Wisniewski was a seventh-round pick. Andre Sam has spent a few years on the practice squad. JT Gray is not going to be a real factor.
The Eagles are going to let this play out in training camp, but I still think Howie Roseman has unfinished business at the position and may need to explore the safety market if Makuba isn’t ready or Epps can’t hold up. Philadelphia spent the least amount of cash at safety in the entire NFL this offseason. Think about it. They moved on from C.J. Gardner-Johnson. They let Blankenship walk. At some point, you have to invest there. Vic Fangio’s defense was historically great in 2024, and I’m thrilled he’s back, but even Vic needs capable safeties to run his scheme.
The Eagles’ offensive line has to prove it can stay healthy
The second battle isn’t really a competition between players. It’s more internal. Can this offensive line get back into form? Lane Johnson, Cam Jurgens, and Landon Dickerson have all dealt with significant health concerns over the past year or two. Jurgens couldn’t even stand up straight at one point. Dickerson was weighing retirement. These guys are making serious money and are being paid to be the pillars of Howie Roseman’s trench-first roster construction.
Tyler Steen enters camp with a chance to firmly lock down the right guard spot in the final year of his contract. Fred Johnson is back as a swing tackle, and I think he’ll be a quality piece. The backup center job should be a legitimate battle. But the real story is whether the starters can stay on the field together. If they’re healthy, this group has the talent to be one of the best offensive lines in the NFL. If they’re not, it could honestly derail the season.
Everything else on offense flows through those five guys up front. They need to protect Jalen Hurts and keep him upright. They need to open holes for Saquon Barkley to find and rip off those 50-yard touchdown runs like he did in 2024. A new offensive line coach adds another layer of uncertainty, but also a fresh start.
WR2 is wide open after the A.J. Brown trade
The Eagles traded A.J. Brown this offseason, and DeVonta Smith steps into the clear No. 1 role. But who lines up opposite him? That’s the third battle, and it has genuine intrigue. Dontayvion Wicks came over from Green Bay and has already said he’s motivated after feeling like the Packers gave up on him. He also has a built-in connection with new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion. Rookie Mekhi Lemon could be ready from Day 1 to seize the job. Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore are veterans who could carve out roles if they step up.
I think Sean Mannion is going to run a more distributed passing attack, where every receiver has a defined role. That’s how it should have been last year. Jahan Dotson was never used enough, and the offense became too predictable. Now, with Smith as the undisputed No. 1, one of these other guys really has to emerge and take ownership of that second spot.
If I had to lean one way, I think Wicks or Lemon are the most likely candidates to win it. But we’ll see how camp plays out. The Eagles have built a roster with enough depth to survive some uncertainty, and these three battles will tell us a lot about where Philadelphia is headed in 2026.