Eli Ricks, Eagles Who Boosted Stock With Strong Preseason Showing
The Philadelphia Eagles saw significant improvement from their reserve cornerbacks across three preseason games.
Undrafted free agent Eli Ricks led the collection of impressive performances, and that led to him staying with the team after cut day.
Ricks, a product of LSU and Alabama, was not the only former SEC player who stood out in preseason.
Kelee Ringo, a 2023 fourth-round pick out of Georgia, also stood out in the trio of contests in which the Eagles did not play many of their starters.
Ricks and Ringo are expected to provide some quality depth behind Darius Slay and James Bradberry.
Quarterback Tanner McKee likely will not see the field at all in 2023, but like Ricks and Ringo, he took advantage of his playing time in August to solidify a roster spot.
Eli Ricks
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The Eagles must think they received the steal of the undrafted free-agent process with Ricks.
The LSU and Alabama product starred in the preseason contests against the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts.
Ricks stood out in the first preseason contest against the Ravens with a 31-yard interception return for a touchdown.
He continued his stellar play in the secondary over the next two games and the practices in between to force the Eagles into keeping seven cornerbacks.
Ricks earned a roster spot over potential return men Britain Covey, Devon Allen and Greg Ward. The Eagles kept just four wide receivers because of the impact made by Ricks the other young corners.
Ricks may have a tough few months ahead of him because now he needs to make the gameday roster each week.
The Eagles will have Slay, Bradberry and Avonte Maddox active each week in the starting positions. Ricks will fight with Ringo, Josh Jobe and Mario Goodrich to earn snaps in sets with four defensive backs and on special teams.
He may not be a starter in 2023, but the Eagles could see Ricks as a starter of the future when Slay and Bradberry move on.
Kelee Ringo
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Ringo was not guaranteed a 53-man roster spot as a fourth-round pick.
The defensive back out of Georgia solidified his position with a handful of solid preseason outings while Slay and Bradberry rested for the regular season.
Ringo is one of five former Georgia defenders on the Eagles roster. Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and Nolan Smith are the others.
Ringo will be expected to help out in the slot role and on special teams in his rookie campaign, and he could earn more defensive snaps if his progression from the preseason extends into the regular season.
Like Ricks, Ringo is a potential starter in the future at corner, and he could use 2023 as a good foundation to earning that position in 2024 and beyond.
Tanner McKee
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Tanner McKee did the most with his preseason playing time.
The rookie out of Stanford earned the No. 3 quarterback position through his time on the field in preseason.
McKee threw for 453 yards in preseason, and he finished the three-game slate with a preseason best of 158 yards.
McKee's performances sparked a small conversation about whether he should be the backup to Jalen Hurts instead of Marcus Mariota.
That will not be the case to start the regular season, and for the Eagles' sake, they hope they do not have to find out who is the better backup to their potential NFL Most Valuable Player.
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