PHILADELPHIA — On Day 1 of OTAs, Eagles coach Doug Pederson was upfront about how important the spring really was in the grand scheme of things.

“I mean, is it important? Yes,” he said. “Is it training camp? No. Is it the regular season? No.”

There was a lot that transpired over the last few weeks between nine OTA practices and three for mandatory minicamp, but it’s important not to overreact for too much of what is seen at NovaCare Complex in that stretch.

Just because training camp, the preseason and the regular season are more important, though, doesn’t mean there’s nothing to be gleaned from OTAs and minicamp.

And no, Carson Wentz isn’t the only aspect of spring worth reacting to.

We’ve written plenty about Wentz’s spring, how he played and what we saw.

What else can be gleaned from we’ve seen?

Here are 10 things we learned from watching the Eagles prepare for the 2019 season over the last few weeks.

1. New slogan: In 2017, the Eagles were “Underdogs” and eventually won the Super Bowl.

In 2018, the Eagles motto was to “Embrace the Target”, building on that Super Bowl win and the target it created on the team’s collective back. It was a bumpy season that ended two rounds earlier in the playoffs.

Now, Doug Pederson has adapted a new motto for the upcoming season: “Everything Matters.”

The Eagles finished the regular season 9-7 last year, but easily could have won a few more games (or lost a few more) if one or two plays went differently. That ties into the message this season.

“Everything we do in life ... matters,” Pederson said. "You have choices and consequences to those choices. The decisions we make sometimes matter, and so I feel like as a football team, as coaches, as players, and even as personnel, support staff, everybody in the organization, everything we do matters. It matters to winning games or losing games on the football field.

“So I just want to keep reiterating that point with our team. Just getting them to understand that if we jump offsides in practice, we’re probably going to jump offsides in a game, right? If we don’t do the little things right in practice, we won’t do them in the game. Everything that we do matters.”

That’s a powerful message and smart rallying cry for a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. Pederson has admitted over the course of the offseason that perhaps the Eagles didn’t fully put the pedal to the medal in offseason workouts and training camp last year, in part a reaction to a shortened offseason after winning the Super Bowl, but the coach has said he won’t be letting that happen again.

This Eagles team has the talent and the right approach, now they just have to execute. By all accounts, the spring ran smoothly.

2. DeSean Jackson really has changed: There’s perception, and there’s reality. When Jackson was acquired from the Buccaneers, there was a lot of talk about how much Jackson has changed since he was cut by the Eagles five years ago, how he’s matured and better suited to contribute to a winning atmosphere.

The reality was that, even in recent years, there were still reports of immaturity — whether they were true or not — with Jackson supposedly showing up late to meetings with the Buccaneers.

Maybe that was true then, but it isn’t now. Jackson was there for all but one of the Eagles’ voluntary OTA practices, and coaches and players alike have raved about the 32-year-old embracing a role as a veteran and a leader. He and Carson Wentz already seem to have a bond, and even just watching his demeanor on the field, he’s clearly making an impact on just the personality of this year’s team.

“He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do,” receivers coach Carson Walch said. “He’s been great in the meeting room. Some of our young guys sometimes are in awe seeing DeSean Jackson in our building.”

3. Jason Peters-Andre Dillard: Joe Flacco got some flak(o) recently when he publicly declared it wasn’t his job to tutor the rookie quarterback (Drew Lock) who was drafted to eventually replace him. It’s a reasonable stance to have, certainly, and the Eagles were in a similar situation when they drafted Andre Dillard in the first round, the clear replacement for Jason Peters when he eventually retires.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise, but Peters has wholeheartedly embraced his role as mentor to Dillard, which is a role he’s played for most of his prolific Eagles career. For all three days of minicamp, when Peters was resting and Dillard would run with the starters at left tackle, after almost every play, Peters was pulling him aside for pointers and extra coaching.

Dillard has Pro Bowl-level potential thanks to his athleticism, pass-blocking prowess and IQ already, but learning from Peters as a rookie should pay major dividends down the line.

“This is a good time for Dillard’s standpoint," Pederson said, “to watch Jason operate and move and really get a great picture of what it’s like to be a left tackle in this league.”

4. JJAW is pro-ready: During the pre-draft process most of the wide receivers the Eagles worked out were predominantly slot receivers. That’s why there was slightly muted response when the Eagles picked J.J. Arcega-Whiteside out of Stanford in the second round, as he fit more of the Alshon Jeffery mold than Nelson Agholor. Early returns make that look like it was not only the right move, but potentially one of the steals of the second round.

Arcega-Whiteside is already a sound route-runner with potentially elite Red Zone-weapon qualities — high-pointing, 50/50 balls, post-ups, fades — that should be able to contribute right away. If it was a question of whether he or Mack Hollins would be the No. 4 receiver, there aren’t anymore.

5. Don’t forget Josh Sweat: After just one season, it already began feeling like Sweat was a forgotten man in the Eagles’ defense, especially after Shareef Miller was drafted in the fourth round. We’re all guilty of this — media and fans, mainly — but young players need time to develop. Maybe Sweat won’t become an elite defensive end, but he has the size, athleticism and skills package to become an intriguing player, and he might’ve been the best defensive end in OTAs in minicamp, albeit without pads and in non-contact.

He’s the front-runner to replace Chris Long as the fourth defensive end.

6. Pump the brakes on the Miles Sanders Hype Train (for now): When the Eagles drafted Miles Sanders in the second round, it was as if everyone forgot they had also traded for Jordan Howard and Corey Clement was returning. Perhaps Sanders will eventually become the team’s No. 1 running back, but expecting that in his rookie season is premature.

His development was halted by a hamstring injury that cost him all of OTAs and minicamp and has him behind the eight-ball in terms of building chemistry with his teammates on the field and enacting what he’s learning in the film room.

“I fully expect him to come in ready, come in healthy, ready to go,” Pederson said. “We have to get him in the mix early. Definitely have to see exactly where he is mentally from all the mental reps that he took this spring, and slowly work him into the mix and see just how he can help us on game day.”

7. Andrew Sendejo, or 2020? There was a thought entering minicamp that the former Vikings safety might have a difficult time making the roster since cutting him would guarantee a fourth-round compensatory pick in 2020. There might have been an overvaluation in that idea. Eagles coaches raved about Sendejo, who ran with the first team with Malcolm Jenkins out for OTAs, and Rodney McLeod out for both minicamp and training camp. He’s the favorite to be the Eagles’ third safety, an important role in the defense.

Safeties coach Cory Undlin said that Sendejo “has been awesome. (He’s) obviously played a lot of football. Then you watch, especially being around the Vikings the last two years, we get to see those guys on tape. I always liked the way he’s played. I’ve never been around the guy, but everything I heard about him before that, he’s wired the way I want them wired. Guy loves ball, he gets it, he’s smart. He’s been a great addition.”

Perhaps linebacker L.J. Fort is a more likely cut candidate — the Eagles would only have to cut one of them to guarantee that extra fourth-round pick — but that’s unlikely considering he signed for $1.9 million guaranteed.

8. Nate Sudfeld isn’t quite ready to fill Foles’ shoes ... yet: Sudfeld is the ultimate “don’t overreact, it’s too early for that” player on the roster at this stage. He had a rough go in the spring, but it’s not as if that’s the death knell on his chances of becoming a starter-quality quarterback. He has the tools, it’s just important to remember that he has no experience of significance at the NFL-level.

There’s at least reason to be worried he’s not ready to fill in yet if Carson Wentz gets hurt, but I’ll wait to express full concern until he struggles the same way in training camp.

9. Kamu Grugier-Hill is ready: One of the biggest winners in the spring was Grugier-Hill. With Nigel Bradham out, Paul Worrilow banged up and Zach Brown still learning the defense, Grugier-Hill was the de facto No. 1 linebacker. He’s risen from full-on special teams player, to part-time starter and the next step is full-time starter. The Eagles rarely use more than two linebackers, and often only one, but it seems like a safe bet that he’ll be one of the two as it stands right now. He’s the most athletic linebacker the Eagles have and brings the most versatility. It could be a breakout season for him.

10. These are the under-the-radar guys to remember: Every year the Eagles fan base gets attached to under-the-radar players — often undrafted — with cool stories. It’s the Paul Turner/Corey Clement sort of story. Through the spring, a few players emerged as the ones to remember for when training camp rolls around.

- WR Marken Michel: He has the perfect training camp story. Older brother of a more famous NFL player (Sony Michel), undrafted player, spent two years in the CFL, is extremely fast and few knew who he was before he stood out in practice. He was targeted more than any other wide receiver in the spring, and seems to have chemistry with Carson Wentz already, somehow.

- RB Boston Scott: He’s pegged as the team’s Darren Sproles replacement. He certainly got the touches. He didn’t necessarily produce any explosive plays, but he’s quick, can return kicks/punts and at least be a pass-catching option out of the backfield.

- DE Joe Ostman: He’s popular among players and fans already, and by all accounts had a standout spring. He’s undersized, but bulked up his strength and already has impressive athleticism. It’s a tough path to the roster, but he will have the fans behind him, especially with Howie Roseman hyping him up and all the stories about him helping the Eagles prepare for Khalil Mack last year.

- LB T.J. Edwards: He’s this year’s Corey Clement, a productive college player from a successful program (the same Wisconsin program, actually) who strangely went undrafted. He looks like a playmaker. The Eagles all of a sudden have a crowded linebacker room, but he should push for a roster spot.

Zack Rosenblatt may be reached at zrosenblatt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ZackBlatt. Find NJ.com on Facebook.