Surprising Eagles Rookie Earning Rave Reviews In Training Camp

The Philadelphia Eagles ‘ 2024 NFL Draft haul was widely acclaimed due to their additions of defensive backs Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean, as the Eagles addressed a pass defense that ranked just 31st in the league last season.

But Mitchell and DeJean haven’t been the rookies generating major buzz in training camp.

That title belongs to edge rusher Jalyx Hunt, who Philadelphia chose in the third round.

Apparently, Hunt has been the most impressive rookie in training camp for Philly, with Martin Frank of The Delaware News Journal noting that the youngster “has shown his speed in rushing the quarterback as well as dropping into coverage.”

Hunt’s versatility does not come as too much of a surprise given that Hunt was actually a converted safety at Houston Christian (he began his collegiate career at Cornell).

The 23-year-old rattled off 46 tackles, 6.5 sacks, an interception, a couple of forced fumbles and a pair of fumble recoveries in his final collegiate campaign last year.

Eagles’ defense needs a lot of work in 2024

The Eagles’ porous defense was one of the primary culprits for their late-season slide in 2023, where Philadelphia lost five of its last six regular-season games before getting blasted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs.

Philly has taken measures to improve on the defensive side of the ball this offseason, signing edge rusher Bryce Huff and defensive back CJ Gardner-Johnson before adding some more pieces in the draft.

It should be noted that the Eagles did lose top pass rusher Haason Reddick, who the team traded to the New York Jets in March.

So, as much as everyone raved about Philadelphia acquiring Huff, one can make the argument that the Eagles actually downgraded by moving from Reddick to Huff this year.

Philadelphia ranked 26th in defense last season, which was the worst mark of any NFL team the made the playoffs in 2023.

The ballclub is hoping for big jumps from young players like Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis, the latter of whom is coming off of a very disappointing campaign.

Make no mistake: the Eagles’ defense still has a long way to go, and it’s hard to imagine that a third-round pick like Hunt is going to represent a quick fix.

But there is also no doubt that Philadelphia has attempted to address its defensive issue this offseason.

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