Vic Fangio hypes up Eagles' first-round draft pick Quinyon Mitchell

Philadelphia Eagles players have learned quickly that defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is a no-B.S. kind of coach , so if they're not living up to his standard, they're getting benched.

That means as the Eagles kick off training camp, anything can happen to their starting lineup on defense.

“I'm all for playing the best guys. I think if you looked at my history, when we've had rookies, we've played them, provided they're good enough. We aren’t playing somebody just because they're young," Vangio explained to reporters this week.

“If we were an expansion team like I was in two places, we might just throw them out there to see what we got. We’ve got more serious business here. If they're worthy of playing, they will play.”

One rookie who has caught Fangio's eyes and even appears to have taken charge behind Darius Slay is their 2024 first-round pick Quinyon Mitchell.

The Eagles have had Mitchell lined up both inside and outside, though primarily on the outside opposite Slay.

“He's a talented guy, he's smart, has a good football feel,” Fangio said. “All of that really is more than I thought he had just from watching the college tape, so that's been a plus.”

Mitchell Could Start Week 1 for the Eagles

The Eagles had plans for second-round pick cornerback Cooper DeJean to handle the slot, but with his i njury keeping him away from camp practice , they've been leaning on Mitchell.

So far, he's handled both jobs well.

“I think he's a guy we can move around anywhere in the coverage part,” Fangio said. We just tried it,” said Fangio. “We just put him in there and tried it and it looked fine.”

The Eagles currently have 15 cornerbacks (including injured DeJean) battling for a roster spot through training camp over the next few weeks.

While Mitchell looks like he could be headed toward a starting role come Week 1, Fangio said it will all play itself out.

“Usually when you have battles going on and it's time to make a decision, the players make the decision for you, and everybody sees it,” he said. “It's rare that it's so tight that everybody is waiting for who the coaches pick. It becomes obvious. Hopefully, it will become obvious here - through somebody's really good play and not somebody's bad play. So, it will define itself out.”

Related: Eagles QB Jalen Hurts kicks off training camp on a high note under Kellen Moore's new-look offense