AFTERNOON PRACTICE
2:15 PM - 3:00 PM
These are the dog days of summer for any NFL football player. There's not much action but for what it's worth, here you go:
During the Riverside situational drill, Sav Rocca practices punting out of limited space in the back of the end zone. One rep in particular forces Rocca to run out of bounds away from on-coming rushers. This causes some cheers for the Aussie football legend. It seems that the players are having some difficulty staying motivated until special teams coach Rory Segrest says, "Screw around later, let's go." The team goes through punt and kickoff situations at 3/4 speed. David Akers and Sav Rocca work on directional kicking on the side field. One of the last drills of the practice allows the hands unit to field onside kicks.
Afternoon Nugget: Jon Dorenbos, the Eagles long snapper and professional Magician, could have a flourishing career in sales because in just five minutes he convinced me that P90X will get me into the best shape of my life. The conversation was sparked by Dorenbos pointing out the grunting, jumping, punching and kicking of some Eagles personnel along the far sideline.
MORNING PRACTICE
10:12 AM -A special moment taking place on the field as members from the US Coast Guard, Army, Navy, and Air Force walk around the field. Brian Westbrook walks over and shakes everyone's hand as they walk by.
10:07 AM -WOW! Catch of the day. In the back of the end zone, L.J. Smith sticks out his right hand and it just stops the ball in it. Looked like a magnetic reaction. Was it a catch? Well, it didn't look like both feet were in bounds.
10:00 AM -Jerome McDougle is lining up on Winston Justice and is getting great pressure a few plays in a row. Andy Reid pulls Justice aside and personally gives him some instruction.
9:57 AM -Nice play by Kyle Arrington's back. He's standing right in the way of a pass intended for DeSean Jackson in the back of the end zone.
9:53 AM -Oh, Booker. Will it ever get old watching your video game like moves? Doubtful. 25 yard fade route and a touchdown for Lorenzo.
9:50 AM -Brent Celek breaks some linebackers ankles. There's a solid second year player that has not received much press.
9:41 AM -What's going on today? J.R. Reed ran out of bounds after a play and grabbed me. I'm awake J.R! That's twice now a player was gunning for me. It must be the red shirt. It attracts the players like bulls.
9:34 AM -Richmond McGee lines up for a 58 yard field goal. If he makes this I (Chris) will walk back to Philadelphia. OK, it's a fake. McGee gets a direct snap and punts it. That saves me a good 12 hours.
9:28 AM -Avant makes his way to the sidelines and is now working on holding placekicks, with Sav Rocca off today for the "30-Plus" club. Avant takes the field, and gets some fans yelling, "LACES OUT, JASON."
9:24 AM -Series of great catches in a row here. Greg Lewis makes a grab falling away in double coverage. On the next play, Jason Avant makes a leaping catch across the middle, also in double coverage. On the immediate play after, Avant makes almost the exact same grab.
9:22 AM -Great pressure from Dan Klecko and Bryan Smith, as they get to Kevin Kolb.
9:05 AM -It was bound to happen at some point, I (Chris) guess. It has been over two weeks and finally, a receiver (Hank Baskett) nearly runs me over. Luckily I am nimble, as some say after the play, and am able to keep blogging away.
8:55 AM -Therrian Fontenot, or T. Font, makes another play during the one-on-one portion of practice. Just in case anyone doubts it he proclaims that he did, in fact, get a hand on the ball.
8:45 AM -Frantz Hardy stutter steps a few times then takes off down the field. Coach Culley loves it, repeating, "He worked him. He worked him"
8:40 AM -Three defensive backs match up against two receivers. Brandon "Bam" Childress might only be 5-10, 185-pounds but here he uses his quickness to make the play. His teammates shout, "Yea Bambino." A nickname based on a nickname. Nickname squared?
8:30 AM -Asante Samuel and Lito Sheppard arrive together and stand together as spectators on the sideline.
8:20 AM -Today the Eagles honor the military. After the morning practice those who have served will get to walk around the field as fans cheer and then they will be greeted by the players. The Eagles staff and coaches are wearing camouflage baseball caps with the Eagles logo on it.* *
8:15 AM -The team is in shells today. As we know, yesterday was the final day of contact in practice. The Eagles are hitting the home stretch before Friday's preseason opener in Pittsburgh.
6:49 AM - Tuesday is Military Day here at Lehigh. Hundreds of men and women from our Armed Forces will surround the field after practice and receive an ovation from the crowd before spending over an hour mingling with the players. It's one of the best days here at training camp. On the field, the 30-and-over Club is scheduled to have the morning off. Note that there will be no more live hitting, but it will be intriguing to see if the team is in full pads or just shells and shorts. By the way, if you didn't check out Dave Spadaro's column last night it's a must read in terms of answering one of the most popular questions of the offseason - with a high jump champion like Hank Baskett, what happened to the fade in the end zone until now?
