ClutchPoints
Though the 2026 NFL season is still a few weeks away, the Philadelphia Eagles’ season has already begun, with the team arriving in South Philly for minicamp earlier in the month.
Soon, fans will get to see, hear, and read about how Sean Mannion’s new offense looks on the field instead of paper in training camp, which new defensive players are in for a certified breakout, and how prized rookie wide receiver Makai Lemon looks in a midnight green No. 9 jersey, even if he’s having some issues learning the names of regional delicacies.
With two Super Bowl wins in the last decade and one of the better rosters in the NFL, filled with ready-made talent and a pseudo farm system of young, developmental players ready to call next, there’s a lot to be excited about heading into Week 1, but which players have less clear paths to the opening day roster than, say, Jalen Hurts and Jalen Carter? Which position battles are worth watching, and which Howie Roseman additions could find themselves looking for work elsewhere if things don’t work out down the stretch?
Well, considering the Eagles are a team with more good players than roster spots, that shouldn’t be too difficult to identify.
There was a time early in the summer when it looked like Grant Calcaterra might not just make the Eagles roster but could actually be the de facto starter, headlining a platoon at the position. At the time, Dallas Goedert was still testing the free agent market, and Eli Stowers, who the Eagles selected in the second round, was still doing draft prep after a successful run at Vanderbilt.
Oh, how things have changed.
Now sitting third on the depth chart at best behind the current and future starters, Calcaterra, a college teammate of Jalen Hurts at Oklahoma, is suddenly on the bubble, assuming the Eagles only keep three tight ends, and he will be competing with a very different style of player, Johnny Mundt, for a chance to stick around with the team that drafted him.
Standing 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, Calcaterra proved last year that he really is more of a one-dimensional player than a do-it-all tight end, with his blocking a serious liability for a team that likes to run the ball. With Stowers also more of a joker pseudo slot wide receiver than a true two-way tight end, having a player like Mundt, who comes to Philadelphia as a run-game specialist, Calcaterra will have to prove that he’s seriously upgraded that aspect of his game to justify a spot on the roster; otherwise, he could be looking for a new team before Week 1.
As things presently stand, the Eagles likely have five wide receivers who are more-or-less locks to make the 53-man roster: the starters, DeVonta Smith, Makai Lemon, and Dontayvion Wicks, plus veteran speedster Hollywood Brown and third-year draftee Johnny Wilson, who missed last season after summer surgery.
On paper, that’s...
