8:34 a.m. — In an offensive drill, Donovan McNabb pitches to DeSean Jackson and then leads the wide receiver around left end, “blocking” 30 yards down field.
McNabb, hootin’ and hollerin’ the whole way down the field, yells out to Reid, “Like big number 77 at BYU, baby!” Reid, a lineman for the Cougars in the late 70’s and early 80’s, even manages a smile.
8:38 a.m. — LeSean McCoy catches a swing pass from Kevin Kolb. It’s one thing to have nice hands, but McCoy has soft hands. He just looks effortless catching balls away from his body. He’s been very impressive in every sense.
8:43 a.m. — McNabb hits Jeremy Maclin on a double move down the right sideline. The crowd, led by dozens of military members, loves to see the rookie wideout get involved.
8:45 a.m. — McCoy drops a pass across the middle, followed by the always predictable and increasingly annoying “Cut him!” from someone in the crowd. Anyone who yells “Cut him!” after a player drops a pass always thinks they’re the first one to come up with that joke. Trust me, they’re not.
8:48 a.m. — Omar Gaither gets some reps with the first-team defense in blitz drills. Joe Mays has taken most of the reps with the first-teamers and has looked pretty good. Gaither, for what it’s worth, does seem a little more comfortable out there, but it’s so hard to tell in non-contact drills in early August.
8:59 a.m. — Maclin torches Jack Ikegwuonu down the right sideline and A.J. Feeley hits him for a touchdown. Ikegwuonu missed his entire rookie season while rehabbing a knee injury, but his spot on this year’s team is far from guaranteed. And, quite frankly, he’s going to have to pick it up if he wants to see his name on the final 53-man roster.
9:03 a.m. — In 1-on-1 drills, there’s lots of slipping going on, as the field is wet from recent rain storms. Ikegwuonu can’t seem to stay on his feet and even Asante Samuel, who is having a great practice, has hit the turf a couple of times.
9:06 a.m. — Reggie Brown gets a step on Macho Harris only to have the deep ball go off his shoulder pads. Last year, Brown had a poor training camp, which translated into a poor season. Things aren’t looking a whole lot better so far in 2009.
9:08 a.m. —Not to be negative, but Harris needs a lot of work as well. It’s easy to watch training camp and say everyone looks good, but it’s also not hard to pinpoint the players who aren’t ready for prime time. One of those is Harris, who might play cornerback in the NFL one day, but it won’t be this season.
9:12 a.m. — The Eagles are doing a drill where the offense is pinned inside its own 5-yard line. On this play, Lorenzo Booker tries to avoid a tackler only to get pinned for a safety. Quintin Mikell dances around with the palms of his hands slapped together on top of his head.
9:18 a.m. — From the backup tight end department, Matt Schobel is nursing a calf injury, leaving rookies Cornelius Ingram and Eugene Bright behind starter Brent Celek. Ingram looks much more natural than Bright, but we’ll learn a lot more about these two in preseason games, when tight ends are required to block. If he can block at the NFL level, Bright has a good chance to nab a roster spot.
9:24 a.m. — The Birds have two Brandons in their receiving corps —Brandon Gibson, a sixth-round pick out of Washington State, and Brandon Robinson, an undrafted player out of Boston College. To this point in practice, the edge would have to go to Robinson, who just looks a little sharper and a little smoother.
9:30 a.m. — Today’s little-known player to keep an eye on: LB Moise Fokou. This kid can hit!
