Who to Watch in Philadelphia Eagles' Training Camp

JaCorey Shepherd was gifted a chance to start in the NFL literally overnight. The rookie defensive back has an open nickel cornerback position in front of him this month in the Philadelphia Eagles’ training camp.

Head coach and decision-maker Chip Kelly traded away starting corner Brandon Boykin on the eve of camp Saturday to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a conditional fifth-round draft pick in 2016.

Among Kelly’s offseason roster moves, this was equally unexpected. 

Boykin is considered a top-shelf slot corner in the league on a team already in the midst of replacing three starters in the secondary.

Nonetheless, Boykin’s departure leaves a void at the nickel cornerback spot in Philadelphia—and Shepherd seems to be the front-runner for the job, via Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com.

Kelly is giving Shepherd the first look in camp, but the rookie will have to compete with a few others before earning a starting role in Philadelphia, according to defensive coordinator Bill Davis. 

The sixth-round draft pick out of Kansas never played a down of nickel in college, but he had been learning the position from one of the best—Boykin himself. 

Shepherd shadowed his mentor during formation drills in the Eagles’ spring practices, per Jimmy Kempski of the Philly Voice. 

Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News provided some insight into the Shepherd-Boykin relationship.

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“During the spring, Shepherd relied on Boykin to help him learn the intricacies of playing      nickel. Constantly picked his brain. Mirrored him in the teaching portion of workouts.”

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Shepherd also intends to stay in touch with Boykin throughout camp. 

"I let him know that if I got in trouble and somebody can't help me here, then I'm going to reach out to him and ask him," Shepherd said, via Domowitch. "But I learn pretty fast. I'm a fast learner. And the fact that I'm somewhat athletic is making it a lot easier for me."

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After converting from wide receiver to cornerback at Kansas, Shepherd had five interceptions and 37 pass breakups in 26 games. According to Pro Football Focus, his 38.6 percent catch rate allowed last season was the lowest in the entire FBS, and his 53.0 quarterback rating against was in the top 10. 

"He's explosive. He's got great ball skills,” Kelly said of Shepherd. “Really quick in and out of cuts. He seems like he's got a real knack to being around the ball all the time. Showed up a lot when you turn the tape on."

Veteran safety Malcolm Jenkins said Shepherd is dedicated enough to earn the starting nickel job, per Mosher. 

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“The biggest thing with him, he’s been hungry,” Jenkins said. “He’s pulled me aside, he’s pulled coaches aside to do extra stuff, to get into the film room and learn it. He’s not afraid of being out there.

“Very, very confident, and he has the physical attributes to really be successful in the slot, and he’s smart enough to learn it. So we’re looking forward to seeing that development in the next few weeks.

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Shepherd will have his hands full during training camp with incumbent slot receiver Jordan Matthews.

Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com points out the tough challenge Matthews presents on the inside: 

With Jeremy Maclin gone, Matthews is another big name to watch in Eagles' camp. The second-year man is coming off a breakout year of 67 receptions totaling 872 yards and eight touchdowns. 

The combination of Matthews and quarterback Sam Bradford is quickly becoming a main focus this week, per Matt Lombardo of 97.5 The Fanatic. 

Matthews will likely be the No. 1 receiver in Kelly's offense—one that expects to have Bradford leading it if the QB stays healthy. 

The August 2 practice—the first of training camp—saw Bradford without a knee brace on for the first time as an Eagle. 

Philadelphia's offensive players may be dominating headlines, but Boykin's departure presents a personal challenge for Shepherd. 

He'll try to stay atop the Eagles' depth chart after sliding down NFL draft boards just a few months ago.