Eagles stock up, stock down after preseason game vs. Vikings

Eagles stock up, stock down after preseason game vs. Vikings originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The next time the Eagles play a football game, it’ll count.

But the Birds wrapped up their 2024 preseason on Saturday afternoon at the Linc with a 26-3 loss to the Vikings. They finished 2-1 this preseason.

Final cuts are due by 4 p.m. on Tuesday and the regular season opener against the Packers is on Sept. 6.

Here’s a stock watch from the third preseason game:

Stock up

WR Britain Covey: The Eagles brought in Jahan Dotson in a trade but Covey very clearly has the team made. He got to sit out the third and final preseason game against the Vikings.

OT Fred Johnson: There probably shouldn’t have been any question about Johnson’s status but he got the day off too. With Mekhi Becton taking over as the starting right guard, Johnson’s job became much more important as a backup offensive tackle.

WR Ainias Smith: After an awful start to his rookie training camp, Smith began to turn a corner the last couple of days and then had a solid third preseason game. The fifth-round pick had 6 catches for 36 yards and might have done enough to earn a roster spot.

OLB Julian Okwara: The veteran edge rusher had a sack around the edge on third down early in the second quarter to force a Vikings field goal and later had a big QB hit. Okwara is a longshot for the Eagles’ roster but maybe he’ll land somewhere else.

S Tristin McCollum: James Bradberry did not play in this game, which can be interpreted in a couple different ways. But McCollum did play and played well, just as he has all summer. He was flying all over the field. He played the whole game, which usually isn’t a good sign in the last preseason game but McCollum made the most of it.

LB Ben VanSumeren: The second-year linebacker just shows up in the preseason. He made some really nice plays on Saturday, including a sack on a blitz. He has a great shot to make the team as a special teamer but is showing good signs of development as a linebacker.

LB Oren Burks: In the second quarter, Burks had a nice blitz for a sack and was able to shed a block to stop a screen pass earlier in the half. He nearly had an interception too on a tipped ball.

LeSean McCoy: The Eagles announced at halftime that Shady is going into the Eagles Hall of Fame on Nov. 3. McCoy is very deserving of the honor as the Eagles’ all-time leading rusher with 6,792 yards. He was a three-time Pro Bowler with the Eagles before he was traded away to Buffalo.

Stock down

WR Parris Campbell: No one was hurt more by the trade for Jahan Dotson than Campbell. While Covey didn’t suit up on Saturday, the veteran Campbell had to play deep into the third preseason game.

WR Jacob Harris: It was a shame to see the 27-year-old suffer a concussion on the opening kickoff. Harris has flashed some during camp but missed a valuable game to put out solid tape.

CB Zech McPhearson: The fourth-year cornerback was flagged for defensive pass interference playing outside cornerback against Lucky Jackson on a second-quarter touchdown drive. He also gave up a 20-yard pass and missed a tackle at the end of the play.

OLB Nolan Smith: Sure, the Eagles don’t have a ton of edge rushers on the roster but Smith was playing pretty deep into the third preseason game. Smith is a first-round pick from last year and he’s playing a lot in this preseason.

WR Joseph Ngata: Ngata had a chance to catch a pass on 4th-and-4 in the red zone but it bounced off his hands in into the hands of a Vikings’ defensive back. He also had another drop earlier in the game. After a tremendous second preseason game in New England, Ngata wasn’t able to duplicate that performance.

DB Cooper DeJean: Take this one with a grain of salt. DeJean hasn’t played in a game since November and missed most of training camp with a hamstring injury. It was a shaky NFL debut for DeJean, who took a bad illegal contact penalty on third down to help the Vikings move the sticks. DeJean also got beat in coverage a couple times but was lucky that Lucky Jackson wasn’t able to keep both feet in bounds. But at least DeJean was able to get his feet went and make a couple tackles.