Chip Kelly held a press conference prior to Tuesday’s practice. As usual, he had plenty of interesting things to say, but one item stood out. Kelly said that Eric Rowe would be competing for the Nickel spot. Previously he had left Rowe out of the list of players battling for that job.

Rowe is a good fit for when he goes against guys like Jordan Matthews in the slot, but the question is how he’ll do when going against a Wes Welker type. Those guys are smaller, quicker and very elusive. They can be tough to cover for someone that is tall and over 200 pounds.

Rowe played CB and S in college so he is used to lining up all over the field. He has good cover skills and is a gifted athlete. He just might prove to be capable of playing in the slot. Byron Maxwell, who is a bigger corner, did a good job in the slot for Seattle.

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The Eagles added a DB to the roster, signing former Raven Marc Anthony. He was a 7th round pick back in 2013.

He is an interesting choice for the Eagles. A couple of years ago I actually listed him in a mock draft for PE.com.

Seventh Round (No. 218 overall) – CB Marc Anthony – Cal – 5-11, 196 pounds

Anthony is a talented player. He has good game tape. He played well at the Senior Bowl. Unfortunately, he ran slow at the Combine and that has killed his value. Corners need to run about 4.50 in the 40-yard dash. Anthony was timed at 4.63. In the past, teams would write him off. There is a new movement in the NFL to focus on corners with size and physicality, even if that means sacrificing some speed. The Seahawks are the best example of this. Anthony is a risk, but I think he’s a smart risk. Let him press and be physical and see if he can overcome the lack of top speed. He is a good athlete overall.

Interestingly, I also had the Eagles taking Lane Johnson, Zach Ertz and Joe Kruger in that mock.

Anthony helps with depth for Training Camp and preseason games. I would think of him as a long shot to actually provide competition for a roster spot. We’ll see him play on Sunday and get a feel for if he’s a camp body or could turn into something more.

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Marcus Smith got some praise. First up is Jimmy Bama.

Marcus Smith had the highlight of the day during one-on-one pass rush drills. He put Dennis Kelly on roller skates, and then on his back. Absolutely destroyed him. “It was a head fake bull (rush),” said Smith. “I came off the ball, and did kind of a stutter step to get him off his feet, and then I bull rushed him and got to the quarterback.”

After standing out for the first time since, um, ever, Smith then went into a celebratory dance routine a la Freddy Mitchell. “I was just happy I finally conquered the move I’ve been wanting to do, so now I can bring other moves off of that,” Smith said. The Eagles are light on OLB depth, and they need Smith to step up his game this season. Today was an encouraging sign.

Tim McManus also had a note on him.

Later during team drills, Smith blows up a run play, bursting into the backfield to corral Kenjon Barner before the back even had a chance to make a move. “Good job, Marcus!” a group of teammates yelled from the sideline. Pretty good day for the second-year linebacker.

Jeff McLane offered his take.

We had a Marcus Smith sighting. The Eagles’ 2014 top pick delivered the pass-rush move of training camp, and I’ll get to that in a moment, but Smith was also very active later during team drills. I don’t want to overstate one practice, but the second-year outside linebacker showed some signs of life. Let’s see if he can translate that to game action once the preseason starts on Sunday. As for the pass-rush move, it came during one-on-ones and against OL Dennis Kelly. “I did kind of a stutter-step to get him off his feet and then I bull-rushed him,” Smith said. And, boy, did he get Kelly off his feet. Smith drove the 6-foot-8, 321-pound Kelly back as if he were on skates and, finally, onto his rear end. Smith then did a dance as his defensive teammates jumped around him (and over the fallen Kelly). “I don’t know what that really was,” Smith said. “I was just happy that I finally conquered the move that I really wanted to do. Now I can bring other moves.” Kelly said that he lost his balance, but that Smith, who added 15 pounds, was stronger in this camp than a year ago. “That’s not going to look good on film for me,” Kelly said. “But it was a good move.”

Smith isn’t exactly turning into Lawrence Taylor, but this is encouraging. Smith needs to build on this. Don’t let one good day be an anomaly. Having success on the field will help his confidence, which will then help him to have more success. Can’t wait to see him play this weekend.

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Your Sam Bradford highlights of the day. McManus again.

Sam Bradford is having another fine day. He connects with Nelson Agholor, then zips a back-shoulder throw to Brent Celek for the touchdown. Agholor is getting a lot of first-team reps today. It appears Josh Huff is not a full participant.

Bradford finds Murray for a short-gainer and then tries a back-shoulder throw to Jordan Matthews in the corner of the end zone. But Jaylen Watkins, playing first-team nickel, has good coverage and the pass is incomplete.

Bradford finishes strong. He finds Sproles in the flat, then connects with Jeff Maehl down the left side for a big gain. That’s followed by the play of the day. Bradford lofts a perfect ball to Matthews in the right corner of the end zone about 30 yards downfield. Watkins is on him and again has tight coverage but Matthews rises up and wrestles the ball in for the score. A fired-up Matthews celebrates with an angry flex and a series of chest bumps as he makes his way up the sideline.

That last plays sound like one heck of a throw/catch by Bradford and Matthews. It is also encouraging that Jaylen Watkins still had good coverage, as well as having broken up a previous pass. Good news all around.

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Brandon Lee Gowton covered the RBs.

DeMarco Murray runs ANGRY. The Eagles running back ran up the gut and completely bowled over Walter Thurmond head on. Violent. It was reminiscent of the way Murray once destroyed Damion Square.

Speaking of running backs, it was another day where Ryan Mathews looked pretty good as well. The Eagles’ backfield is stacked.

Murray has been in and out of practice. It is noteworthy because he’s such a key part of the offense, but I’m not worried right now. The Sports Science staff tries to prevent injuries when they can and that means being protective of players.

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McLane had a good note on the ILBs.

There was a flip side to the run drills, and a few linebackers stood out on defense. Rookie Jordan Hicks had a couple of “stops” that stood out. He shuffled to the sideline and caught RB Raheem Mostert before he turned upfield, and Hicks got to him again up the middle a play later. The Eagles drafted Hicks in the third round, which virtually assures him a spot on the roster, but he looks like he belongs so far. DeMeco Ryans’ recovery appears to be going swimmingly. He made one of those slashing run stops into the backfield, on a Darren Sproles carry, that have become customary over his career.

The Eagles expect Hicks to be a key player in the future. He won’t play a ton this year (barring injuries), but the team loves his athleticism and instincts.

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Sam Bradford can throw, which is nice. That's important. However, he does not look like a guy ready to get hit by a 270 pound DE. — Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) August 11, 2015

If Sam Bradford plays on Sunday, expect run plays and quick throws. He's not ready to be hit yet, IMO. — Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) August 12, 2015

I have not been to Training Camp so I can’t offer an opinion on this. I hadn’t even considered the notion that Bradford wouldn’t play this weekend. It will be interesting to see if the coaches do sit him or if he’s out there.

And if Bradford is on the field, will he look confident or timid? Guys coming off a torn ACL (or two) have been known to be nervous about the first contact of the year. Definitely something to watch.

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