Eagles fall in New England as McKee outplays Dalton in the QB2 race
Philadelphia's reserves showed real fight in a 24-21 loss to the Patriots — a dominant backup offensive line, three preseason sacks from Ty Robinson — while the Tanner McKee-Andy Dalton competition may have tipped.
The scoreboard in Foxborough read Patriots 24, Eagles 21, but the night mattered less for the result than for what it settled — and unsettled — on Philadelphia's back-of-roster bubble. Beat writer Eliot Shorr-Parks filed a full stock report after the game, and the risers far outnumbered the fallers.
Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks): Eagles 21, Patriots 24: Stock Up, Stock Down STOCK UP: Backup O-Line: The Eagles might have an entire backup offensive line as good as some starting offensive lines. Markel Bell, Drew Kendall, Willie Lampkin and Jake Majors all had some great snaps vs the Patriots but it was the running game where they especially shined...
The headline development sits behind the starter: Tanner McKee plainly outplayed Andy Dalton, who struggled for the second straight preseason game while going 3-of-10 for 44 yards. Both Jeff McLane's postgame grades and Shorr-Parks' assessment landed the same way — this loss may be the moment Dalton slipped behind in the quarterback-two competition.
Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane): FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- My #Eagles grades after a 24-21 loss to the Patriots: *RBs have strong performance *QB2 role still undecided, but Tanner McKee outplays Andy Dalton *Josh Weru notches first sack with D-line again a strength
The backup offensive line might be the deepest unit nobody talks about. Markel Bell, Drew Kendall, Willie Lampkin and Jake Majors opened gaping lanes for Will Shipley, whose strong night capped the offense's first preseason touchdown drive — work that position coach Chris Kuper deserves credit for developing.
Defensively, Vic Fangio's line keeps producing. Ty Robinson added two more sacks to run his preseason total to three, a week after Fangio joked the young tackle had gone from life support to having life — now he looks like a roster lock rather than a long shot. Fullback Carson Steele made his own case in a bid that could end with him on the practice squad and in uniform on Sundays.
Evan Lazar (@ezlazar): The #Patriots end a week with the Eagles with a 24-21 victory in preseason game No. 2. Some shaky line play by the Pats on both sides in the first half but some big plays and a good ending for day-three, undrafted rookies to get the win.
The down nights were concentrated on the fringe: rookie tight end Eli Stowers still hasn't produced the splash play his roster bid needs, cornerback Ambry Thomas got burned deep for a touchdown with his odds already slim, and Kelee Ringo's illegal-contact penalty summed up an uneven night for the backup corners.