A way-too-early Eagles 53-man roster prediction: How might the personnel picture change before training camp begins?

It goes without saying, but we’ll say it anyway. The Eagles still are more than two months away from cutting their roster down to 53 players by the Aug. 30 deadline for the 2026 NFL season.

A lot can change between now and then.

It’s almost a guarantee that there will be some player movement on and off the 90-man roster between now and then, and probably even before the Eagles take the field for the first time at training camp at the end of July.

OK. The necessary caveats are out of the way.

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Who’s going to be on that initial 53-man roster? We’re going to make predictions throughout training camp, and since the Eagles just finished their offseason program and have some downtime before camp begins, it’s worth taking a shot at predicting the roster now. Future iterations of this list will be more informed (not that this one isn’t!).

Without further ado, here is our initial 53-man roster prediction for the 2026 Eagles — and a first guess some players who will stick around on the practice squad, too.

Traded: Tanner McKee

Practice squad: TBD

Something’s got to give, right? The Eagles aren’t going to use four roster spots at the quarterback position. They also may be reluctant to expose a fifth-round pick (Payton) to waivers unless his camp is that uninspiring. But Kyle McCord was a sixth-round pick last year and the Eagles were able to pass him through waivers. Still, the Eagles have been rotating Dalton and McKee with the second-team offense throughout the offseason program, which means McKee’s grip on the No. 2 spot has loosened. The Eagles probably are hopeful McKee plays well at camp and in preseason games so they can deal their 2023 sixth-round pick for a draft asset.

As for that TBD spot in the practice squad, if McKee is dealt, count on the Eagles bringing in another body late in camp with the goal of keeping that player on the practice squad.

Cut: Dameon Pierce, Elijah Mitchell, Carson Steele

Practice squad: Mitchell

Count Barkley and Bigsby as locks, but behind them is a real competition for roster spots. Shipley gets the nod here, but we’ll see what happens when camp starts rolling. Pierce and Mitchell bring some experience. Steele, meanwhile, is a fullback. Latu is listed as a tight end by the Eagles, but he transitioned to fullback last year and his best path to the roster is at that position. Whether the Eagles keep a fullback or not remains to be seen, but Latu is a pretty solid blocker and has made an impact on special teams.

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Cut: Johnny Wilson, Britain Covey, Danny Gray, Quez Watkins, Erik Ezukanma, Samori Toure

Practice squad: Covey, Wilson

The Eagles have begun life after A.J. Brown. There’s a pretty clear pecking order as things stand right now. The top four receivers seem pretty etched in stone, but there will be healthy competition for the back end of the depth chart. They could end up keeping five instead of six, too. Cooper and Moore slot in on this first pass and get the nod over Wilson, who should be easy to get through waivers since he’s coming off injury.

The Eagles liked what they saw out of Cooper, an undrafted free agent, last season and Nick Sirianni raves about the “dirty work” Cooper and Wilson bring to the table. Having them both may be a little redundant. Moore may be considered a relative long shot to make the team, but he has had his moments in the NFL and could push for a spot for a team that might need some more playmaking at wide receiver with A.J. Brown gone. Covey, meanwhile, could slot in on the practice squad and be called upon in the punt return game.

Cut: Grant Calcaterra, Stone Smartt, E.J. Jenkins, Dae’Quan Wright

Practice squad: Wright

If all goes as planned for the Eagles, this position might be the most boring one in camp when it comes to figuring out who to keep and who to cut. Mundt was brought in to provide a big boost in the blocking department, and the Eagles drafted Stowers in the second round. There’s a world where they keep four, but Calcaterra, who has been a mainstay on the team over the last four seasons, seems like a long shot to make the roster given his deficiencies as a blocker and his slot work being superfluous with Stowers in the mix.

Cut: Myles Hinton, Willie Lampkin, Jake Majors, Jaedan Roberts, Hollin Pierce, John Ojukwu

Practice squad: Hinton, Lampkin, Majors, Pierce

The five starters are pretty set unless someone wows in camp and pushes Steen for a spot. Behind the starting unit is more talent than there was at season’s end. The Eagles made a concerted effort to add some depth to the offensive line. They brought back Fred Johnson and drafted Bell. The third-round pick might have first dibs on the swing tackle job. They also added some more experience on the interior in Jordan, who started 20 games over the last two seasons. Having Jordan makes it so that Kendall and Morris aren’t the primary backups on the interior. The Eagles likely will have a decision to make on the two tackles they drafted last season: Hinton and Williams. It seems unlikely both make the team.

Cut: Ty Robinson, Gabe Hall, Zion Wilson, Ta’Quan Graham

Practice squad: Robinson, Wilson

This is a tricky one. How likely is Bernard to be claimed by another team if the Eagles waive him? Remember, the claiming team needs to put the claimed player on the 53-man roster. The first-time football player has some elite athleticism, but he doesn’t know how to play football. It’s hard to justify keeping a player on the 53 that is unlikely to dress for a single game. But Bernard is unique. Robinson is the roster casualty here, but last year’s fourth-round pick gets through waivers in this prediction and gets onto the practice squad, where he can be elevated for game days. Wilson is an intriguing prospect the Eagles probably would like to keep around.

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Cut: Keyshawn James-Newby, Jose Ramirez, Joshua Weru

Practice squad: James-Newby, Weru (IPP)

The first four spots offer little intrigue. There’s an obvious trio at the top in Greenard, Hunt, and Smith, and Ebiketie, who signed a one-year deal worth more than $7 million, slots in as a rotational rusher. The last spot likely will come down to James-Newby, a seventh-round pick in this year’s draft, and Epenesa, who signed with the Eagles on the day minicamp ended after his free-agent deal with Cleveland fell through following a physical. We’ll give the nod to the experienced Epenesa and put the rookie on the practice squad for now, where he’ll join Weru, who won’t count against the 17-player limit on the practice squad due to his International Pathway Player (IPP) designation.

Cuts: Chance Campbell, Deontae Lawson

Practice squad: Chance Campbell

With Jihaad Campbell recovering from shoulder surgery, Trotter got a chance to shine during the offseason program. The Eagles have two clear starters and a very capable backup in Trotter. Mondon had some moments on special teams last season. Could Chance Campbell push for a roster spot? Special teams would get him there. But the Eagles went heavy at offensive line in this projection and don’t have the space to keep five off-ball linebackers. Chance Campbell should get through waivers cleanly and onto the practice squad.

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Cuts: Jakorian Bennett, Ambry Thomas, Shaun Wade, Tariq Castro-Fields

Practice squad: Thomas

The Eagles should have one of the best defensive backfields in the league in 2026. Mitchell and Woolen will man the outside and DeJean, an All-Pro in 2025 like Mitchell, slots into the nickel spot, though he’ll play safety in base. Jones was brought in to provide some more depth on the outside. Ringo has had his chances and seems like a change-of-scenery candidate, but he’s been great on special teams and should earn his spot that way.

Cuts: Cole Wisniewski, Andre’ Sam, Kapena Gushiken, J.T. Gray, Max Pulley, Tucker Large

Practice squad: Wisniewski, Sam, Gushiken

We’re going light here for now since DeJean will play some safety. When the Eagles aren’t in base, which is the majority of the time, Epps is, as it stands, the guy who will play next to Mukuba. Carter II is a converted nickel corner who the Eagles will slot in a backup safety spot. Wisniewski was a seventh-round pick who could have some upside. If the Eagles keep 10 offensive linemen, or five receivers, Wisniewski likely makes the team if four safeties are kept. Keeping four is the more orthodox route. But it’s June, and we’ll start our first roster prediction with a little twist.

No cuts, no practice squad. These are the only three specialists on the roster.