PHILADELPHIA -- They came from all over to get a look at Carson Wentz, and the second-year quarterback did not disappoint.
The Philadelphia Eagles held their second and final open practice at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday. More than 36,000 fans showed up. There was a sea of No. 11 jerseys in the crowd, as well as signs to grab the QB's attention. One just over the player tunnel read: "We flew 1,700+ miles to see Wentz". Another said, "Fan from Wyoming."
Wentz rewarded them with arguably his best day of training camp.
The best example of how dialed-in he was came during team drills, when he managed to zip a seam pass through three defenders and into the arms of tight end Trey Burton for a big gain. It was that type of day, where just about everything Wentz threw was accurate and on-time.
While it's a good policy to never read too much into what happens in the offseason, the improvement in Wentz is noticeable compared with this time last year. The ball isn't sailing on him like it was during his first pro camp, and his delivery looks to be tightened up. We'll see how it all translates when the lights come on in September.
After Sunday's session, Wentz once again received a rock-star welcome as he mingled with the crowd.
Crowd loves them some Wentz. pic.twitter.com/60zCw8ZM0p
— Tim McManus (@Tim_McManus) August 6, 2017
Other notes from Sunday:
Alshon Jeffery returned after missing four days with an injured shoulder. Rookie running back Donnel Pumphrey (hamstring) and linebacker Mychal Kendricks (quad) came back as well.
Newly acquired defensive back Corey Graham practiced with the Eagles for the first time. Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said beforehand that while they'll start Graham off at safety, they like him in part because he's a "multidimensional player" who has worked as a nickel corner in the past and has the ability to match up against wide receivers.
Wide receiver Jordan Matthews responded to the recent comments from NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah, who said Nelson Agholor is "going to be their slot receiver. I'll be shocked if he’s not. I don't know what that means for Jordan Matthews." Matthews said: "Football is so unpredictable. It’s so early in training camp. People make so many bold predictions. I make a bold prediction and it’s wrong, I get scrutinized. He might do it and it’s like, 'OK, well his mock drafts are pretty bad every year.' They’re terrible. Nobody in another field can be that wrong and keep their job.”
On a related note: Agholor had an up-and-down day. He made some impressive catches but also had a couple of drops, including one in the back of the end zone after cleanly beating C.J. Smith. An otherwise supportive crowd let out a bit of a familiar groan.
It was an encouraging day for rookie wide receiver Shelton Gibson. The fifth-round pick out of West Virginia has had a hard time holding onto the football during camp to this point. Sunday, though, was a different story. He made a couple of difficult leaping catches, including a sprawling grab down the left sideline during one-on-ones. Several teammates ran over and chest-bumped him to offer encouragement. If he can show some of that in the preseason games, perhaps he can change his fortunes around.
