Eagles practice observations: Jalen Hurts and Darius Cooper finish strong; Kelee Ringo joins the injured

The Eagles held their 18th and final open practice of training camp for the 2025-26 season on Wednesday at the NovaCare Complex. Links to Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17. Here are my observations from Day 18:

There’s a bit of injury housekeeping to get to before the practice notes. The following players were new additions to the list and didn’t practice: safety Andrew Mukuba (hamstring), cornerback Kelee Ringo (quadriceps), wide receiver Johnny Wilson (knee/ankle), and outside linebacker Joshua Uche (groin). We already knew about Mukuba and Wilson after they left Tuesday’s workout early. Wilson was the only one of the four to not be out on the field. He’s still undergoing testing.

The following remained out: receivers A.J. Brown (hamstring) and DeVonta Smith (groin), tackle Jordan Mailata (concussion), guard Landon Dickerson (knee), quarterback Tanner McKee (finger), cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields (hamstring), and safety Lewis Cine (groin). Cornerback Brandon Johnson (groin) returned to practice, and tight end Dallas Goedert (groin) was upgraded to a full participant for a light workout in shorts and shells.

» READ MORE: Jalen Hurts says offense is ‘building’ as a training camp with moving parts and injuries ends

With Mukuba and Ringo out, Sydney Brown and Adoree’ Jackson took the first-team repetitions at safety and outside cornerback, respectively, when in nickel personnel. Cooper DeJean continued to be the outside corner opposite Quinyon Mitchell in base personnel. Jihaad Campbell was exclusively paired with Zack Baun at inside linebacker.

If the season opened today, my guess is this is how the starting back seven would look, unless DeJean is at safety in base. There still is the preseason finale, more practice time, and, most importantly, roster movement that could change personnel, specifically at cornerback and safety. But we’re getting closer to the finish line.

Jahan Dotson overall had a strong camp. He effectively stepped into the No. 1 and 2 roles with Brown and Smith out at various points in camp.

Dotson caught a bunch of passes from quarterback Jalen Hurts on Wednesday, but his best might have come on one of the last plays of camp. He ran a short crosser but took a detour to the back of the end zone over Baun, who was in the hole. It was a nifty option route, and Hurts floated a strike to his receiver for the score.

Wilson’s injury, which could land him on injured reserve, has changed the math for the final two or three receivers on the 53-man roster. Undrafted rookie Darius Cooper has had a few hiccups since his breakout in the preseason opener two weeks ago, but he finished strong.

Cooper flashed his athleticism when he elevated for a Hurts throw over the middle between Mitchell and Campbell. He later caught a touchdown on a stick route vs. Jackson. John Metchie didn’t have any catches with the first unit in his second practice with a new team. He couldn’t make a diving grab for a Kyle McCord pass that was negated by a would-be sack.

Ainias Smith hooked up with Hurts for a touchdown on a timed-out route vs. DeJean. He had a couple of earlier receptions, one of which was unnecessarily bobbled.

As the touchdown throws above suggest, Hurts was mostly sharp even though he was again without four starters on offense. He found running back AJ Dillon alone in the flat on a blown coverage, and he hit tight end Grant Calcaterra for a touchdown on a corner route vs. Sydney Brown in coverage.

A few of Hurts’ completions might have been negated by pressure or sacks. I don’t want to overstate a less-than-full-speed workout, but it was a positive end to camp, considering the quarterback and his offense often have struggled.

» READ MORE: No longer fearing cutdown day, Reed Blankenship is now a mainstay for an Eagles secondary in transition

Having better protection helped Hurts and Co. Matt Pryor, who has been filling in for Mailata at left tackle, rebounded after a rough practice on Tuesday vs. outside linebacker Jalyx Hunt. Brett Toth continued to get all the snaps at left guard in place of Dickerson.

The backup tackle spots remain unsettled. Coach Nick Sirianni said before practice that he doesn’t necessarily need a swing tackle on game days. Pryor has been the primary No. 2 on both flanks, but Darian Kinnard or Kendall Lamm also are in the mix. Kinnard was at right tackle with the second unit on Wednesday.

Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio dialed up the blitz at various points with varying degrees of success. Campbell got to Hurts on a delayed rush. Rookie linebacker Smael Mondon was unaccounted for when he blitzed McCord up the “B” gap.

Fangio sent a zero blitz, and Hurts threw wide of Dotson, who was matched up opposite Jackson. Some offensive players mimicked tossing a flag because they wanted pass interference called.

McCord took most of the second-unit snaps with McKee tending to his finger. Most of his completions were check-downs, although that’s not always a bad thing. He had a nice throw to receiver Terrace Marshall off a play-action bootleg.

He made a poor decision when he threw to tight end EJ Jenkins in triple coverage and was intercepted by linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. The play effectively was dead anyway if defensive tackle Moro Ojomo — who destroyed guard Kenyon Green with his hands on a pass rush move — didn’t stop short of McCord.

Cornerback Jakorian Bennett also broke up a McCord toss to Marshall on a slant and then shook his head in self-approval.

Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson did get time under center and was more efficient, completing passes on all six of his drops. … The Eagles will have a closed walk-through on Thursday ahead of Friday’s preseason finale at the New York Jets. The 90-man roster must be trimmed to 53 by 4 p.m. Tuesday. … Practices beyond warmups and individual drills will be closed to reporters from now on. Observations will return in the spring. Thanks for reading.