Philadelphia Eagles: Winners and losers from preseason loss to Steelers

The Philadelphia Eagles lost their preseason opener to Pittsburgh but there were notable performances, both good and bad, worth diving into. 

You can’t just look at the final score of NFL preseason games and the Philadelphia Eagles will attest to that. At the end of their Week 1 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers, they suffered a 24-16 loss to their in-state foes. However, that doesn’t tell the whole narrative of the game.

When most of the starters were on the field for both teams and even with a good portion of the second-stringers on the field, the Eagles looked like the decisively better team. Though it may not speak well of the depth in Philadelphia, it was when the third-stringers took over that the Steelers took control of the game and pushed their way to the win.

But this isn’t about the team’s record in the preseason; that doesn’t matter. It’s about seeing players for the first time in live-game action and assessing who stood out, both good and bad. As such, we’re handing out winners and losers to the Philadelphia Eagles from the first game of the preseason.

Philadelphia Eagles winners from Preseason Week 1 vs. Steelers

Quez Watkins, WR – One reception on two targets for a 79-yard touchdown. That sounds like a good way to get people talking about you.

Watkins was a sixth-rounder in 2020 but was praised coming out of Southern Miss for his blinding speed. He definitely showed that as he burned half of the Steelers secondary on his long score with a blazing catch-and-run down the field. The Eagles hope DeVonta Smith can be a target monster when he returns but Watkins is developing into a young player who can provide the lightning in the deep passing attack and take the top off of defenses with big plays.

Tarron Jackson, DE – A sixth-round pick for the Eagles this year, Jackson was highly productive at Coastal Carolina but people worried a bit about his explosiveness and overall athleticism. While he may not be a physical freak, he looked the part of an effective defensive lineman against Pittsburgh. He consistently won reps and demanded attention when pushing upfield, including getting into the backfield for a pretty tackle for loss, his lone stat of the night.

Milton Williams, IDL – There were a lot of people who panned the Eagles for taking Milton Williams in the third round but, after seeing him against the Steelers, don’t be surprised if those same people are pretty quiet.

Though he didn’t register a sack or even any other stat, Williams was consistently dirsuptive when he got on the field. The explosiveness and play strength that made him pop off film in college translated to the NFL, at least in a preseason setting, and he looks like he could be a nice pass-rushing rotational piece.

Jalen Hurts, QB – Looking at the box score, Hurts wasn’t overwhelmingly good as he went 3-of-7 for 54 yards with one rush for four yards in just a couple drives worth of work. However, he was largely on time and accurate with his throws, especially when you consider he was the victim of two pretty bad drops. The jury is still out overall but there’s hope he can be a stable starting quarterback moving forward.

Philadelphia Eagles losers from Preseason Week 1 vs. Steelers

Kenneth Gainwell, RB – Gainwell was someone I was admittedly excited to see as a rookie in his first preseason action. And he did flash once with some nice moves to create space for himself on a run but, overall, he left a bit to be desired.

Part of that is the fact that he only got four touches but he also didn’t do himself favors as he dropped one of his four targets. I’d like to see Gainwell earn the RB2 spot but he might have a ways to go before that happens — or at least some things to clean up.

Zech McPhearson, CB – A fourth-round rookie, there have been good reviews about McPhearson throughout camp. But if Thursday night was an indication of what to expect from him moving forward in games, Eagles fans can’t be confident.

To be clear, he wasn’t a disaster by any stretch. However, he was beaten on a number of occasions and simply didn’t showcase the juice he had throughout practices. He’ll have two more games to try and play his way into any sort of rotation.

Jalen Reagor, WR – Much like Gainwell, we saw a nice route and catch from 2020 first-rounder Jalen Reagor. But the problem was the rest of what he did and how minimal his impact was. He caught two passes for 20 yards but dropped his third target of the night.

It’s not necessarily that Reagor was bad either but he was outplayed by a later-round pick from his own draft class in Watkins. After his struggles with catch-security thus far, he didn’t do anything to quell the concerns that the Eagles might’ve whiffed on this pick.

Nick Mullens, QB – There was a strange amount of hype about the Eagles signing Nick Mullens this offseason but it feels safe to say that this game might’ve been the nail in the coffin for that.

Mullens went just 1-of-5 for four yards and threw two interceptions on the night. If that wasn’t bad enough, Joe Flacco looked good in his work against Pittsburgh. Suffice it to say that Mullens affirmed there is no competition for QB2 in Philadelphia.