Breaking down every Eagles offensive player ahead of Super Bowl LIX

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Breaking down every Eagles offensive player ahead of Super Bowl LIX originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Eagles are heading to New Orleans to play in Super Bowl LIX with a really strong roster assembled by general manager Howie Roseman.

While many players were on the team for Super Bowl LVII, there are also plenty of newcomers from the last two years.

It will be a busy week of Super Bowl coverage, but before we get too far into it, here is a breakdown of every offensive player on the Eagles’ 53-man roster:

The starters

QB Jalen Hurts: The Eagles’ starting quarterback had one of the best games of his career in the NFC Championship Game and in the process answered a lot of questions about himself and the passing offense. This season, the Eagles relied heavily on their rushing attack after the bye week. Before the bye, Hurts averaged 33 passing attempts per season and he has thrown 30 times just once since. The key thing Hurts did was cut down on his turnovers. After seven turnovers in the first four games, he has turned the ball over just three times in his 14 starts since. He has also had 14 rushing touchdowns in the regular season and 4 already in the playoffs

RB Saquon Barkley: This has been a magical season for Barkley, who is one of five finalists to win MVP and Offensive Player of the Year. Barkley this season became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a season and he hasn’t slowed down in the playoffs. In three games in the postseason, Barkley already has 442 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns. He’s just 30 yards away from breaking Terrell Davis’s single-season rushing record for a regular season and postseason. Barkley has also been a home run threat; he has seven TD runs of 60+ yards this season and the rest of the league has 10.

WR A.J. Brown: After a quiet first two games in the playoffs (3 catches for 24 yards), Brown had a huge game in the NFC Championship Game with 6 catches for 96 yards and a touchdown. And for anyone who thinks Brown is a diva, he’s also been blocking his butt off for Barkley during these playoffs. Brown missed a few games this season but still managed to go over 1,000 yards in 13 games for a run-first offense and was named as an All-Pro second-teamer. He’ll be one of the best players on the field in the Super Bowl.

WR DeVonta Smith: Like Brown, Smith also missed some time this year. He ended up with 68 catches for 833 yards and 8 touchdowns in the regular season. In the playoffs, Smith is the Eagles’ second-leading receiver with 12 catches for 121 yards. In his career, Smith has 526 receiving yards in 8 playoff games. He’s a big-game player.

WR Jahan Dotson: The Eagles traded away a third-round pick in a deal to acquire Dotson from the Commanders before the season and it’s been a quiet year for the former first-rounder. In the regular season, he had just 19 catches for 216 yards and in the playoffs his only catch was an 11-yard touchdown catch against the Packers in the divisional round. While Dotson doesn’t see many targets, he has come through in moments where the Eagles actually throw him the ball.

TE Dallas Goedert: Not only is Goedert the Eagles’ leading receiver in these playoffs (15/188/1) but he’s also their all-time leader in playoff receiving yards with 535 in 11 games. Goedert was limited to just 10 games in the regular season and has struggled staying healthy throughout his career. But when he is healthy, he means an awful lot to the Eagles’ offense in both the pass and the run.

LT Jordan Mailata: Even though he played just 12 games in 2024, this was by far Mailata’s best NFL season and he was named as a second-teamer on the All-Pro team after missing out of the Pro Bowl. This season, Mailata finished as the No. 1-graded offensive tackle by ProFootballFocus. Mailata is a huge key to the Eagles’ run game and has been really good in pass protection too. In 15 games (including playoffs) Mailata has given up just 18 pressures and 2 sacks.

LG Landon Dickerson: The Eagles’ left guard had to start the NFC Championship Game at center and battled through a knee injury to play the whole first half before exiting. He has two full weeks to heal up for the Super Bowl. Dickerson was named to his third consecutive Pro Bowl in 2024 and has been a solid cornerstone guard for the Eagles during his career. Dickerson was PFF’s No. 4-ranked offensive guard this season.

C Cam Jurgens: In his first season taking over for the legendary Jason Kelce, Jurgens was named to the Pro Bowl and was consistently one of the best centers in the conference. He has been dealing with a back injury and somehow fought through it to take over for Dickerson in the NFC Championship Game. Like Dickerson, Jurgens has a couple weeks to heal up for the Super Bowl.

RG Mekhi Becton: This season, Becton was one of the coolest stories of the 2024 Eagles season. The former Jets first-round offensive tackle was available in free agency through the draft before the Eagles signed him. The initial thought was that Becton would be their backup swing tackle. But during training camp, offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland tried Becton at guard and it stuck. Becton ended up 15 games this season and will be a key free agent in free agency after signing a one-year deal with the Eagles.

RT Lane Johnson: It just seems like Johnson doesn’t age. He turned 34 before the season and played at a really high level again in 2024. He made his third straight Pro Bowl and was a second-team All-Pro with a strong case to be called a snub for the first team. Johnson has given up just 2 pressures and 0 sacks this postseason after giving up just 10 pressures and 0 sacks in the regular season. Johnson has been strengthening his Hall of Fame resume in recent years. He’s the only offensive player left from Super Bowl LII.

^{The non-starters}

TE Grant Calcaterra: The Eagles’ second-string tight end has played 44% of the Eagles snaps in the playoffs so it’s not like he doesn’t see the field when Goedert is healthy. But this year when Goedert did miss time, Calcaterra was productive. He had his best season with 24 catches for 298 yards and a touchdown. He earned Hurts’ trust along the way.

WR Parris Campbell: After getting released at final cuts, Campbell was convinced by Nick Sirianni to sign to the practice squad and he has been on the 53-man roster for the last two playoff games. In the regular season, Campbell played in 5 games and had 6 catches for 30 yards and a touchdown. His roster spot could be in danger is Britain Covey (neck) is able to return for the Super Bowl.

WR Britain Covey: Covey is still on IR but has been practicing the last couple of weeks and could perhaps return for the Super Bowl. Covey doesn’t factor in much on offense but is a quality punt returner. Nickel cornerback Cooper DeJean has been handling those duties but if the Eagles want to take that off his plate, then perhaps Covey will be activated for the game.

RB Kenny Gainwell: This season, Gainwell was the RB2 behind another Pro Bowl running back. While Barkley played a huge percentage of snaps and led the NFL in carries, Gainwell always seemed to make the most of his opportunities. Gainwell is a favorite of Sirianni for a reason. In the regular season, Gainwell had 406 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. In the playoffs, Gainwell has 58 yards on 10 touches. And a couple years ago, we saw the arrival of Playoff Kenny, so he is someone the Eagles will trust in a big game. Gainwell is coming off a concussion suffered in the NFC Championship Game.

OL Nick Gates: Gates has been inactive for most of the season, including the three playoff games. The veteran offensive lineman played 68 snaps in the regular season but will likely be inactive for the Super Bowl.

TE EJ Jenkins: This season, Jenkins split his time between the Eagles’ practice squad and 53-man roster but has been on the 53 for the playoffs after C.J. Uzomah went on IR. Jenkins got his first NFL playing time this season with 95 snaps in the regular season. In the three playoff games, he has played 11 offensive snaps.

OT Fred Johnson: The Eagles haven’t needed Big Fred to play in a while but he was one of the great stories earlier in the season when the Eagles needed him to fill in for Mailata. There was an obvious drop-off from Mailata to Johnson but Johnson played fairly well. Entering the Super Bowl, he’s the Eagles’ swing tackle behind the starters.

OG Trevor Keegan: The rookie fifth-round pick mostly had a redshirt season. He did get to play some in the Week 18 regular season finale. He has been inactive in the playoffs and will be inactive again for the Super Bowl.

OL Darian Kinnard: The former Kansas City Chiefs draft pick won’t get to play his former team in the Super Bowl. He’ll most likely be inactive after spending the season with the Eagles. Kinnard played 71 offensive snaps this season and 68 of them came in Week 18. He has been inactive all playoffs.

QB Tanner McKee: The Eagles’ third-string quarterback finally got a chance to play late in the 2024 season and was really impressive. In fact, McKee played so well, plenty of folks wondered if he would be bumped up the depth chart. That hasn’t happened. McKee has been the third-string emergency quarterback for the first three playoffs games. But he showed enough this season to think he could perhaps be the backup next year.

QB Kenny Pickett: The former first-round pick was perhaps outshined by McKee late in the season but he did some good things too despite a ribs injury. While Pickett couldn’t beat the Commanders in Week 16, he played well against the Cowboys the next week when Hurts was out with a concussion. Pickett has been the backup in the playoffs and even got to finish out the NFC Championship Game blowout.

RB Will Shipley: The fourth-round pick from Clemson didn’t play much all season but he ended up making the most of his seven snaps in the NFC Championship Game. He had 4 carries for 77 yards and a touchdown and also forced a fumble on kickoff.

WR Ainias Smith: The rookie fifth-round pick from Texas A&M was on Injured Reserve for the first six games and then played minimally after that. He finished his rookie year with 7 catches for 41 yards and a touchdown. He has been inactive for the playoffs.

OL Tyler Steen: Coming into training camp, Steen was the frontrunner to win the right guard job but suffered a minor ankle injury. Steen had to watch at Becton wrestled away his job. But give Steen credit. He took it well and stayed ready. He ended up played 27% of the snaps this season and had to play the entire NFC Championship Game and played well. There’s a chance he could be the starting right guard next year if Becton leaves in free agency.

OL Brett Toth: Toth first arrived to Stoutland University back in 2019. He has been active for all three playoff games and got five offensive snaps in the NFC Championship Game.

TE C.J. Uzomah: The veteran had his practice window opened along with Brandon Graham on Thursday and could potentially return for the Super Bowl as the third tight end behind Goedert and Calcaterra. Uzomah is known for his blocking ability and would take the spot of Jenkins on the depth chart if he’s good to go.

WR Johnny Wilson: The sixth-round receiver from Florida State has carved out a role as a blocking receiver in the Eagles’ offense. Wilson (6-6, 228) caught just 5 passes for 38 yards and a touchdown this year but played 369 snaps. Even in the playoffs, Wilson has played 31 snaps (16%) on offense.

https://sports.yahoo.com/breaking-down-every-eagles-offensive-070000028.html