August 27, 2024
There were some Philadelphia Eagles and other NFC East news items over the last few days that probably aren't worthy of their own articles, but we'll round them up here.
On the final day of training camp last week, the Eagles' coaches had some players square off in 1-on-1's against each other in front of the whole team to close practice. LB Ben VanSumeren lined up at receiver against rookie UDFA S Andre Sam. VanSumeren ran an absolutely filthy corner route, complete with head fakes at the route stem, and absolutely dusted Sam, causing both offensive and defensive players to go nuts. But... Kenny Pickett overthrew him. 🤦♂️
"I played receiver growing up," VanSumeren said after the Eagles-Vikings preseason game. "They wanted to give me a look at running some routes. So I ran one. I had a nice little swim off the release, gave him a little head move from the outside, little push off, and then back out to the corner. So, you know, it just felt like it did in high school, I guess."
Asked if more opportunities to play on offense were on the horizon, VanSumeren said, "We're gonna, see, we're gonna see real soon. That's all I can really say on that."
As for Pickett's overthrow, VanSumeren said, "I went to eat with Kenny and some of the guys later that night. I couldn't even look at Kenny."
VanSumeren was an undrafted rookie free agent last season who did not make the initial 53-man roster, and who was thought of as more of an athlete than a football player in some scouting reports. His athleticism was indeed appealing, as he ran a 4.45 40 and vertical jumped 42.5" at 231 pounds.
Ben VanSumeren is a LB prospect in the 2023 draft class. He scored a 9.65 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 93 out of 2652 LB from 1987 to 2023. QTing just to get updated numbers #Eagleshttps://t.co/DdoHP02K40 https://t.co/vnmuqFhqEO pic.twitter.com/Qec3npME9u
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 30, 2023
VanSumeren eventually worked his way onto the 53-man roster during the 2023 season and found a role as a regular on special teams, where his athleticism was often praised by Michael Clay.
During 2024 training camp, he was one of the most improved players on the team.
Bland is expected to be out 6-8 weeks with a stress fracture in his foot.
#Cowboys All-Pro CB DaRon Bland will undergo surgery for a stress fracture in his foot and is out six to eight weeks, the team said.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 24, 2024
Top 10 Daron Bland plays of 2023pic.twitter.com/xKskBw0U5d
— Tom Downey (@WhatGoingDowney) February 8, 2024
Still, some regression from Bland's 2023 season to 2024 was a certainty, as in, we could probably safely assume that he ain't getting five pick-sixes again. With Bland missing the first month of the season, seemingly at a minimum, that regression is even more certain.
With Bland out, the Cowboys are thin at CB. 2023 starter Stephon Gilmore signed with the Vikings a few days ago, and Trevon Diggs is coming off an ACL tear. Their depth at corner otherwise is dicey.
Cowboys fans breathed a sigh of relief with Lamb's deal getting done, and his holdout ending.
BREAKING: WR CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys agree to 4-year, $136M extension with $100M guaranteed.
— NFL (@NFL) August 26, 2024
(via @tompelissero, @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/S0A7chtCQ6
Lamb's deal is a million dollars less on an average annual basis than what Justin Jefferson got from the Vikings, which is logical and reasonable. Of course, that begs the question, what took so long?
The Cowboys will now turn their attention to a new deal for Dak Prescott, which, again, feels like something that should've been hammered out in the spring instead of with the 2024 season starting in less than two weeks.
Teams have to trim their rosters to 53 players by 4:00 p.m. Follow our Eagles cut tracker here.
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