The 53-man roster is here but a big mystery remains. Can the Eagles be patient with Makai Lemon and Eli Stowers?

The Eagles’ drafts from 2021-24 were successful, first and foremost, because the team identified talented prospects, particularly in the first three rounds. But hardly ever forcing a positional need with a draft pick expanded the pool and decreased the expectations that often come attached with being selected early.

Makai Lemon wasn’t necessarily drafted in the first round to replace A.J. Brown. Eagles general manager Howie Roseman had the parameters for a trade that would move the discontented wide receiver to the New England Patriots in place by the time Lemon was chosen with the 20th pick overall. But Roseman had already begun the process of restructuring the position.

It wasn’t a complete rebuild, of course. DeVonta Smith was returning as the now-bona fide No. 1 receiver. But Roseman signed free agents Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore and traded for Dontayvion Wicks by the time the draft arrived. Having them already on the roster would allow Roseman the freedom to take a receiver in the first round and potentially not rush him.

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But what became apparent over the course of training camp was that the Eagles had not only intended for Lemon to play meaningful snaps from the jump, they needed him to start in the slot. Wicks, Brown and Moore all had their moments during the summer — to varying degrees — but the dropoff from Smith was significant.

Lemon, meanwhile, missed three weeks to a recurring hamstring injury — including the increasingly important joint practices with the Patriots — and didn’t play in the preseason until Saturday’s finale vs. the Bengals.

It was a small sample, but he looked far from ready to make an immediate impact. He was receiving passes from a quarterback he hardly worked with in camp, but it wasn’t as if he had popped when Jalen Hurts was throwing during practices in which he was healthy.

The Eagles knew that tight end Eli Stowers would likely need more development, particularly as a blocker. But they had envisioned a scenario in which he would thrive as the “F” tight end on passing downs, much as Zach Ertz did in his first season with the team 13 years ago.

But Stowers never worked with Hurts in team drills throughout camp. And just when it seemed like he was making progress, a hamstring injury put him on the shelf for the final week of the preseason. Even before the injury, there was a question of whether the former quarterback would be active for the season opener on Sept. 13.

Roseman isn’t panicking — at least on the surface.

“This is the only business that you look at how guys are doing right away and sometimes there are early judgements made. Any other business there’s a long-term view,” Roseman said when asked about Lemon and Stowers contributing right away. “And we see it on our roster, guys how they have developed over two, three, four years. And I understand there are big resources into those guys — first- and second-round picks.

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“Tremendous confidence in who those guys are as players, what their skill set is. Obviously, they had some setbacks here physically and we looked at that as a staff and a group and maybe can figure out some changes here to get those guys going a little bit sooner from a skill position perspective.

“But don’t have any doubt about what they’re going to be in the NFL over time. Still believe they’re going to contribute to our 2026 team.”

That may end up the case. But Roseman’s 53-man roster construction suggests he went deeper at receiver and tight end than he did a year ago to account for Lemon’s and Stowers’ stunted starts.

Moore, as the sixth receiver, could shoulder some of the load on concepts designed for Lemon if he struggles early. And while EJ Jenkins, as the fourth tight end, won’t factor much as a pass catcher, his blocking ability will allow for Dallas Goedert to line up more in the “F” role.

Roseman’s actions, ultimately, will demonstrate how he feels about both positions. He’s yet to make a trade during this period — which is uncharacteristic — but he has a week until on-field preparation for the Commanders begins and has other avenues to add players if necessary.

But Roseman seems to want to follow his own advice, which is to be patient. And that may apply to the new offensive system as much as it does the youngsters. Coordinator Sean Mannion kept his cards close in camp, joint practices, and the preseason. But the offense was objectively scattershot.

“I think that there has to be a level of patience about how guys are going to look,” Roseman said. “We’re not showing everything in the preseason. That’s not what anyone’s doing. You get an opportunity. The first four games of the season have always been kind of another ramp-up period for your football team.

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“You get an opportunity to evaluate. The trade deadline’s a long way away.”

And this year the deadline was extended a week to Nov. 10. But Roseman doesn’t have to wait that long to address a need, and he doesn’t even have to part with a commodity if he wants someone sooner.

Ertz is on the street and available. There’s a question about his recovery from the knee injury that ended his season last December with Washington. But the 35-year-old is open to returning and finishing his career where it started. And he could step into the “F” spot, while also being the ideal mentor to Stowers.

“First, I’d say what an unbelievable player, what an unbelievable person, tremendous respect for him,” Roseman said when asked about Ertz. “At the same time, love what we have going in our tight end room, too.”

Goedert will run the majority of routes in the new scheme that asks for more point-of-attack blocking from its “Y” tight ends. That’s why Johnny Mundt was signed in the offseason and why Jenkins got the nod over Cameron Latu, who was claimed off waivers by New England.

“You see in this league where the position is going, where it’s trending,” Roseman said. “A lot of similar offensive systems to some of the things we’re running where these “Y” tight ends, they’re highly valued in free agency, they’re highly valued in the draft.”

And they may have even more value in the Eagles’ version of the Kyle Shanahan-Sean McVay offense because its effectiveness will likely be contingent on how well they can run the ball. There have been signs that the new wide-zone blocking scheme will capitalize on strengths at offensive line and running back.

» READ MORE: Eagles rookie Makai Lemon ‘glad’ his rough NFL debut happened in the preseason and not September

But the health of the O-line, in particular left guard Landon Dickerson and 36-year-old right tackle Lane Johnson, warrants monitoring. And if defenses are once again allowed to focus on slowing Saquon Barkley, the deficiencies of the pass offense could be exposed.

And A.J. Brown, despite his issues last season, won’t be around to alter coverages and win one-on-ones. And it’s unclear if Roseman did enough to offset his departure, especially if Lemon and Stowers need significant time.

For the first time since Nick Sirianni became coach and Hurts his starting quarterback, there is some mystery to the offense. The element of surprise could be a good thing vs. defenses. Or it could be bad, with even Roseman unsure of how it will look.

Either way, the quarterback will be central to how it unfolds.

“I think Jalen’s adjusted really well to the new offense. Now again, we’re at a moment in time, we haven’t played a game,” Roseman said. “This isn’t in reference to Jalen; this is in reference to anything else. I think that a lot of the things that we’ll do during the regular season when we have game plans, I think from an offensive perspective, they’re going to be different than what we’ve done in the past.

“Jalen’s embraced it. He’s excited about it and obviously we’ve got to be better than we were last year.”

Even if that’s a relatively low bar to clear, it is an uncertainty.

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The Eagles’ first-stringers get little to no action in exhibition games, annual joint practices with other teams become one of the few opportunities for starters to get preseason reps of consequence. This year, the Eagles traveled to New England for two days of live workouts with the Patriots. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Boston Sports Journal’s Greg A. Bedard recap what they saw, and explain why, even after the joint practices, the Eagles still haven’t shown much of an identity. Listen here.

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