Players to watch in the Eagles’ preseason opener, and why one of them calls it a ‘statement game’

Nearly seven months after winning the Super Bowl, the Eagles are back in game action Thursday night, kicking off their 2025 preseason schedule at home against the Cincinnati Bengals.

And while most of the stars from that championship victory likely won’t put on pads Thursday night at Lincoln Financial Field, there are plenty of storylines to pay attention to in the preseason opener. Roster spots and roles are up for grabs at multiple positions, and camp has been competitive.

Here are our top six players to watch closely Thursday night (and some honorable mentions to follow):

The second-year receiver didn’t hold back when asked Monday what Thursday night meant for him.

“This is going to be a statement game, for sure,” Smith said. “A statement game.”

Why?

“I’m just looking to prove to myself that I’m where I’m supposed to be,” he said.

The Eagles are looking for him to prove that, too. They drafted Smith in the fifth round last year, but an ankle injury discovered late in camp sent him to injured reserve ahead of cut-down day, which may not have been particularly friendly to him. Smith had trouble in camp last year consistently catching passes and punts.

Smith played sparingly after debuting in late October. He took on a bigger role in Week 18, when the Eagles rested their starters, and tallied four catches on six targets for 35 yards and his first career touchdown in a game that gave him a “confidence boost.”

Smith may still have some work to do this summer to show the Eagles he belongs. The top of the depth chart is crowded, and the Eagles even brought in a four-year veteran, Terrace Marshall, in free agency. Marshall has been sidelined with a knee injury, and because the Eagles have been without A.J. Brown (hamstring) and DeVonta Smith (back) for multiple days in camp, Smith has seen an uptick in reps.

He hasn’t done a whole lot with them, but Thursday is a chance for Smith to make, as he says, a statement.

» READ MORE: Tuesday's Eagles practice observations: Saquon Barkley isn’t letting up; Jahan Dotson thriving; Andrew Mukuba’s uneven return

The cornerback position certainly got a lot more interesting earlier this week after the Eagles traded defensive tackle Thomas Booker to Las Vegas for cornerback Jakorian Bennett.

A sign the Eagles haven’t seen enough from Ringo and Adoree’ Jackson to make them comfortable in one of them starting? A chance to add more competition to camp? Both?

Neither Ringo nor Jackson has separated himself, and competition in camp can’t hurt. Ringo nearly put an interception on tape Tuesday, but he couldn’t haul in a poor throw from Jalen Hurts.

It’s worth noting that Ringo, who is in his third season, just turned 23 in June and still has some developing to do. Still, there’s a job to be won, and he’s in the mix. Thursday offers a chance to get some snaps against Joe Burrow & Co., whom the Bengals plan on playing for a few drives.

Obviously, it’s worth watching Jackson on Thursday for similar reasons, too, and rookie corner Mac McWilliams, who has impressed so far.

It’s been about a week since Vic Fangio noted that Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt looked good, but no one had separated himself from the pack behind them.

Since then, Joshua Uche has raised his hand.

Ojulari, who registered six sacks in 11 games with the New York Giants last season? He looks like just another guy during most of his reps, though he found his way into the backfield Tuesday when the Eagles sent some extra pressure.

To be fair, any traditional reps against the first-team Eagles offense means trying to get by two of the best offensive tackles in football. But it’s a bit concerning that Uche, who signed for less than Ojulari, seems to have supplanted Ojulari as the third edge rusher on the depth chart.

It’s still early enough in camp for Ojulari, 25, to flash his upside, and, to be fair again, he is learning a new scheme. But Thursday would be a good time for the player the Giants drafted 50th overall in 2021 to turn his camp around.

The darling of training camp keeps meeting his goal of making one play per day. He’s been making contested catches look easy at times and probably is forcing the Eagles to have some difficult conversations about their roster outlook at wide receiver.

There’s a lot to like about Cooks, including his size at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds.

Brown, Smith, and Jahan Dotson are the shoo-ins atop the depth chart. Marshall seemingly was a safe bet, but his injury might have made things a little more interesting. Count Cooks, a former Jacksonville Jaguar, as someone who is in the mix with Ainias Smith, Johnny Wilson, and a few others for the final spots at receiver.

While rookie Drew Mukuba returned to team drills Tuesday, it was Brown who continued to take first-team reps next to Reed Blankenship when the Eagles were in nickel or dime packages.

The Eagles, of course, don’t love playing starters in preseason games, but Brown needs some more real reps in Fangio’s scheme after missing a large chunk of last season while recovering from the torn ACL that prematurely ended his promising rookie season.

Fangio hasn’t given Brown any ringing endorsements yet, other than to say he’s seen improvement. If the season started tomorrow, Brown would be the starter, but there’s time for that to change, and he could help himself immensely with a good showing Thursday.

Mukuba, of course, would be near the top of any list like this one, but it’s hard to imagine the Eagles throwing him into a full-contact game so soon after missing time with a shoulder injury.

» READ MORE: Forced to the sideline, injured Eagles rookie Drew Mukuba is trying to learn as much as he can

What made Booker so expendable in the trade to Vegas? Hall’s performance so far in training camp is one reason. Hall spent last season on the practice squad after the Eagles signed him as an undrafted free agent out of Baylor, but he has looked like a player capable of being a rotational piece in 2025.

Hall is a big body at 6-6 and 295 pounds. He mostly was invisible in camp last season but has made his share of plays so far in this camp. Hall should see lots of snaps Thursday.

LB Jihaad Campbell: The first-round pick normally would lead this list, but Campbell is still not far removed from rehabbing a shoulder injury that kept him out of the team drill portions of OTAs. It would be no surprise to see him without a helmet on the sideline during warmups Thursday.

LB Smael Mondon: If Cooks is the camp darling on offense, Mondon, the other linebacker the Eagles drafted, might take that title on defense. With Zack Baun (back) missing some time, Mondon has taken a chunk of first-team reps. On Tuesday, he ran step for step with Saquon Barkley and made it impossible for Hurts to hit Barkley in the end zone. Eagles fans will get their first look at the rookie Thursday night.

WR Darius Cooper: Cooper continues to make plays in team drills. On Tuesday, he made an impressive diving catch on a corner fade in the end zone. Cooks probably is ahead of him in the pecking order right now and the more likely of the surprising players pushing for a spot to actually make the roster, but Cooper continues to push the envelope.

DT Ty Robinson: You’d have to imagine the Eagles wouldn’t have felt as comfortable moving Booker if they didn’t also like Robinson, the rookie fourth-round pick out of Nebraska. Robinson has had some eye-catching moments at camp, although many of them have come against the backups. Assuming he gets some early reps Thursday, those could come against a good chunk of the first-team Bengals unit.

The quarterbacks: Hurts likely won’t play, so it’s Tanner Time. Tanner McKee has looked impressive in camp and should see lots of work Thursday. But Thursday and the other two preseason games offer opportunities for Dorian Thompson-Robinson and rookie Kyle McCord, who infrequently get reps in 11-on-11 drills, to see some more action. Thompson-Robinson, who has two seasons of NFL experience with Cleveland, has looked better and more advanced than McCord so far. Like everything else, it’s early.