Eagles bring back Kyle McCord, cut Tristin McCollum and Trevor Keegan
New deals follow 53-man roster cuts. Landon Dickerson returns to practice.
From The Reporter/MediaNews Group: https://tinyurl.com/8jb5z7bv
PHILADELPHIA — A day after general manager Howie Roseman promised more moves, he and the Eagles delivered in some notable ways.
On Wednesday, they waived safety Tristin McCollum and offensive lineman Trevor Keegan, who had both landed spots on the 53-man roster less than 24 hours earlier.
The Birds re-signed long snapper Charley Hughlett to the active roster after releasing him. They also claimed offensive lineman Willie Lampkin (5-11, 279), an undrafted rookie out of North Carolina, off waivers from the Los Angeles Rams with an injury designation (knee/ankle).
Rookie quarterback Kyle McCord, a St. Joseph’s Prep alum waived by the Eagles the previous day, cleared waivers and they signed him to their practice squad.
“I think he did some good things and promising things through camp,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “Obviously, we liked him enough to draft him onto this football team. I always battle with that myself of how much opportunity can you give your threes? He shows good promise of where to go with the football consistently. And again, we’re looking at everything — practices, meetings, games, all the things. He has the ability to be accurate, and he does a lot of good things.”
Roseman traded for QB Sam Howell on Aug. 24, saying, “It was the right thing to do here for the short term.” Howell’s contract is up after this season, meaning McCord may resurface as the third-string quarterback if he develops as the organization hopes.
“This is my fifth offense I’ve had to learn in the NFL, so I’m kind of used to learning new things, and I feel like I do pretty well with learning things pretty fast,” Howell, 24, who was previously with the Vikings and Commanders, said Wednesday. “Honestly, it’s just time. You’ve got to sacrifice a lot of time, and I’ve spent a lot of time in this building since I got here Sunday night. And it will continue to be that way so I’m ready to go.
“We had some good battles (when I was with Washington), but I’m glad to be on this side of it now.”
Also released by the Eagles and signed to the practice squad: G Kenyon Green, LB Chance Campbell, S Andre Sam, CB Eli Ricks, WR Elijah Cooks, TE E.J. Jenkins, CB Brandon Johnson, EDGE Patrick Johnson, TE Cameron Latu, WR Terrace Marshall, CB Parry Nickerson, OT Hollin Pierce and EDGE Antwaun Powell-Ryland.
The Eagles acquired Green when they traded safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and a sixth-round draft pick to the Houston Texans in March to clear cap space. Green missed a chunk of camp after suffering a shoulder injury in the preseason opener against the Bengals. He returned to play 49 snaps at left guard in the final preseason game against the Jets with the second- and third-string units. The team feels like it needs more of a look at him.
“Obviously, he missed a bunch of time here, which hurt him,” Roseman said after cutdowns to 53. “I think that when you come here and you play offensive line for the Philadelphia Eagles, understanding how we want our offensive linemen to play with the fundamentals that Stout (offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland) is teaching to make them compete at a high level, it takes time, and he ran out of time here. That doesn’t mean that he isn’t a guy that we’d want to work with if the opportunity presented itself.”
McCollum, 26, played in 14 games last year, mostly as a rotational piece, finishing with 30 tackles and two passes defended. He was a reliable special teams player and had a solid camp this summer. Cutting him left the Eagles with steadfast fourth-year safety Reed Blankenship, who had 78 tackles and four interceptions a season ago (predominantly at strong safety), and Sydney Brown and rookie Drew Mukuba competing for the starting spot opposite him at free safety.
Mukuba, who missed the early part of camp recovering from a shoulder injury, had a breakout game against the Browns in his NFL debut, finishing with a pick six, fumble recovery, pass breakup and solo tackle. But he subsequently injured his hamstring, which has kept the door open for Brown, who had a solid summer even if it wasn’t flashy.
The Eagles hoped Keegan, a 2023 national champion at Michigan as a guard, would provide depth at center. He struggled there this summer, and after dealing with a back injury, he played 64 snaps against the Jets, allowing a sack.
Keegan and McCollum could still end up on the 17-player practice squad, which has two open spots (plus an NFL exemption spot for an international player, which neither is).
Edge rusher Patrick Johnson, 27, had a strong summer on both defense and special teams. He was on the bubble to make the active roster and could be elevated this season.
NOTES: LG Landon Dickerson (knee surgery) and LT Jordan Mailata (concussion) participated in practice. … WRs A.J. Brown (hamstring) and DeVonta Smith (groin) also participated. … Second-year WR Ainias Smith, whom the Birds waived Tuesday, was picked up by the Carolina Panthers and signed to their practice squad. He caught a pair of touchdowns in the preseason and had a 46-yard punt return against the Bengals, showing off his 4.47 speed and ability to juke multiple defenders. But the Eagles already have a deep receiver room. … Former Villanova men’s basketball coach Jay Wright visited practice.
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