August 16, 2024
Brian Fluharty/USA TODAY Sports
Tanner McKee has looked great in Eagles camp and the preseason.
Tanner McKee checked back in with the Eagles down seven and was in complete control.
The Eagles' second preseason showing against the Patriots Thursday night in Foxboro wasn't exactly a stellar one for the offense, but when McKee got his turn – his first one – under center, he had his looks and definitely some cleanly placed throws.
"Just trying to take what the defense gave us," McKee said postgame, though it wasn't until late when there was a clear opening.
With 7:36 left in the fourth quarter, McKee and the offense stepped back out after a punt downed at the Philadelphia 30-yard line, and deep into each team's roster at that point – because, remember, it is still preseason – the Eagles started chipping away.
A 16-yard completion to Joseph Ngata, a check over the middle to Austin Watkins Jr. for 12 more, a screen to Kendall Milton for 10, and then another big pass over the middle to Ngata for 28 all brought the Eagles down to within the Patriots' 4 efficiently and methodically. Then, less than a minute later, Milton took the short run into the end zone with McKee signaling for two to go for the win.
And on a sharply executed play off of motion that left Ainias Smith all alone by the front-right pylon of the end zone, they got it, with McKee only needing to sail the ball straight into his receiver's chest.
Ainias Smith hauls in the 2-point conversion to give the @Eagles the late lead!
— NFL (@NFL) August 16, 2024
📺: #PHIvsNE on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/W5fKS8Blhi
But, hey, that's only because he's been making it tough to ignore him.
"Mentally, I feel like I can see the defense a lot cleaner," McKee said afterward of what's changed entering his second training camp and preseason. "I feel like that was one of the biggest things going from college to the NFL, just post-snap movement. I feel like they're always going to lie to your eyes pre-snap, so I feel like I'm just comfortable seeing post-snap movement, being able to adjust off of that.
"I think that was a big growth point for me last year, and I'm obviously going to continue to try to grow on that, just so I can see the defense clearly and figure out where the ball needs to go."
He figured it out against the Patriots on Thursday night, moving the ball across his two stints pretty quickly and cleanly to the tune of 15-19 passing for 140 yards and no sacks.
Tanner McKee with a dime to the sideline 🎯
— NFL (@NFL) August 16, 2024
📺: #PHIvsNE on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/OQ3Ny3qpwi
By comparison, Kenny Pickett, who is the designated backup to Jalen Hurts on the depth chart, looked shaky. He completed 11-13, but only for 67 yards in total while rarely converting on pass attempts that stretched beyond 10 yards. He also got sacked four times, though with the caveat of seeing more talented competition.
But at the same time, this is the second straight preseason where McKee has arguably very well outplayed the QB in front of him.
Late last summer, when he was the sixth-round rookie out of Stanford, he looked noticeably more poised in the pocket and precise in his throwing than the former backup Marcus Mariota, and this summer, with Pickett ahead of him, it's been looking like much of the same – to the point where McKee was even asked postgame if he believes he's actually ready to be the No. 2 quarterback.
"That's not my decision," McKee responded. "I wish it was, but I'm just ready to go out and play whenever they call my name."
And for now – at least not openly – the Eagles don't seem to want to entertain the idea and risk rocking the boat too much in that aspect of the team.
"Kenny's our No. 2, Tanners our No. 3," head coach Nick Sirianni said. "I'm really happy that those guys are both on the roster."
But Philadelphia and Eagles fans at large? They are thinking, and while McKee said that he was told by GM Howie Roseman ahead of time back in the spring that the team was trading for Pickett to slot in behind Hurts, that didn't mean he wasn't going to at least try and make it a competition.
"I think they did a really good job of communicating," McKee said. "They told me that they were going to bring in another quarterback and we were going to compete."
"So that was the message that I got," McKee continued. "Kenny has been a great teammate, and we're going to continue to compete for probably the whole year."
So you can't ignore him.
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