July 03, 2026
Jimmy/for PhillyVoice
Eagles rookie TE Eli Stowers has a high ceiling, but it might take a while for him to produce like a TE1.
Philadelphia Eagles training camp begins at the end of July, so over the next few weeks we'll detail what we need to see from each positional group heading into the 2026 season. We'll continue on today with the tight ends and fullbacks.
Previous training camp previews
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver
I would have the Eagles' tight end hierarchy like so:
And then they also employ Cameron Latu and Carson Steele, who will both primarily function as fullbacks.
• Dallas Goedert was a force in the red zone in 2025, catching 11 TD passes, a new Eagles single-season tight end record. He also managed to stay relatively healthy, as he missed just one game due to injury after being a regular on the injury report the previous three seasons.
However, the TDs aside, his overall receiving production in 2025 was down. He averaged just 39.4 receiving yards per game, his worst output since his rookie season. He also declined significantly as a blocker.
Goedert has long been a tight end with no glaring holes in his game, but some began to emerge last season, and he is now 31 years old. Will that regression become a continuing trend?
Over the years, Jalen Hurts has proven that he truly trusts throwing to three players — A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Goedert. Brown is gone. By my math, Hurts is now down to two players that he definitively trusts in Smith and Goedert. As noted in our wide receiver preview, Smith is going to be the focal point of the Eagles' passing offense this season. But Goedert could see an uptick in targets as well. Unfortunately, that comes at a time when Goedert might not be the same player that he was in his prime.
Goedert has dominated in training camp in the past. I'm not anticipating that this year against the Eagles' stellar defense, but it'll be interesting to see if he is invigorated by Sean Mannion's new offensive scheme.
• Johnny Mundt, also 31, signed with the Eagles this offseason, and spoiler, he's probably going to get a fair amount of playing time.
Mundt's receiving stats won't impress anyone. Over a nine-year career, he has 74 receptions for 658 yards and 4 TDs. His most productive season was in 2023, when he had 17 catches for 172 yards and 1 TD with the Vikings.
But, what Mundt does bring to the table is blocking ability. For example, he's No. 86 going in motion from the right side of the screen to the left (video via @TexansJacob):
During the 2025 season, it was maddening that the Eagles kept putting Grant Calcaterra on the field to be a blocking tight end, when that is simply not his game. I wouldn't expect glowing reviews of Mundt during training camp, as we rarely get a chance to see what tight ends are doing as blockers, but I would fully expect Mundt to be a regular in the Eagles' offense this season in that kind of role.
• Eli Stowers was the Eagles' second-round pick in the draft this year. He was a high school quarterback who moved to tight end in college. The appeal is that he is an elite athlete who ran a 4.51 40, vertical leaped 45 1/2", and broad jumped 135".
That is elite athleticism. As Nick Sirianni said after the Eagles made the pick, Stowers can do things athletically that nobody else can.
The downside is that Stowers is probably more of a big receiver at this point than he is a tight end. He has a long way to go as a blocker in the NFL. Hell, Sirianni, Howie Roseman, and Stowers himself all acknowledged that he needs work there.
Blocking aside (we'll come back to that), as a general rule of thumb, it usually takes tight ends a few years before they get their NFL sea legs. A quick look at the Eagles' two most recent long-term tight ends and their rookie season receiving stats:
| Rookie tight end | Rec | Yards | YPC | TD |
| Zach Ertz | 36 | 469 | 13.0 | 4 |
| Dallas Goedert | 33 | 334 | 10.1 | 4 |
Ertz and Goedert were both second-round picks. A quick list of recent second-round tight ends and their rookie stats (we'll just go back as far as the Goedert draft):
| 2nd Round TEs | Rec | Yards | YPC | TD |
| Mason Taylor, 2025, Jets | 44 | 369 | 8.4 | 1 |
| Terrance Ferguson, 2025, Rams | 11 | 231 | 21.0 | 3 |
| Elijah Arroyo, 2025, Seahawks | 15 | 179 | 11.9 | 1 |
| Ben Sinnott, 2024, Commanders | 5 | 28 | 5.6 | 1 |
| Sam LaPorta, 2023, Lions | 86 | 889 | 10.3 | 10 |
| Michael Mayer, 2023, Raiders | 27 | 304 | 11.3 | 2 |
| Luke Musgrave, 2023, Packers | 34 | 352 | 10.4 | 1 |
| Luke Schoonmaker, 2023, Cowboys | 8 | 65 | 8.1 | 2 |
| Brenton Strange, 2023, Jaguars | 5 | 35 | 7.0 | 1 |
| Trey McBride, 2022, Cardinals | 25 | 210 | 8.4 | 1 |
| Pat Friermuth, 2021, Steelers | 60 | 497 | 8.3 | 7 |
| Cole Kmet, 2020, Bears | 28 | 243 | 8.7 | 2 |
| Irv Smith, 2019, Vikings | 36 | 311 | 8.6 | 2 |
| Drew Sample, 2019, Bengals | 5 | 30 | 6.0 | 0 |
| Mike Gesicki, 2018, Dolphins | 22 | 202 | 9.2 | 0 |
| Dallas Goedert, 2018, Eagles | 33 | 334 | 10.1 | 4 |
The average stats of the 16 players above during their rookie seasons: 28 catches for 267 yards (9.6 YPC) and 2 TDs. Sam LaPorta made an impact for the Lions as a rookie. None of the other 15 tight ends above topped 500 yards. Only two (LaPorta and Pat Friermuth) topped 400 yards.
In other words, odds are that Stowers won't have impressive numbers as a rookie even as a receiver, which is his strength. Part of that will be a result of a lack of playing time. Goedert and Mundt are clearly ahead of him on the depth chart, and although Calcaterra has fallen out of favor with the fan base, he hasn't with the team, who brought him back on a one-year deal. So there's some congestion at tight end for Stowers to work through.
But also, as a rookie there's just no way the Eagles can line up Stowers at tight end and ask him to block professional edge defenders at this stage of his development, and they'll have to be mindful about not being too predictable on offense when Stowers is on the field.
And so, it could be a little bit of a waiting game with Stowers. Along the way, it would be encouraging if he could make some occasional impressive plays throughout camp to provide optimism for what he might eventually become.
We should also maybe note that Stowers was quiet during spring practices, and even seemed limited in practice due to an injury. (He had a sleeve on his leg.)
• One player I have always liked from a "potential" perspective is E.J. Jenkins. He's 6'6, 245, and he ran a 4.62 at his college pro day. He has ideal physical measurables.
Each year Zach Berman of The Athletic asks veteran players in the locker room which scout team players impressed them throughout the season. Linebacker Chance Campbell was the star of that article, but Jenkins got his fair share of mentions as well. This will be Jenkins' fourth training camp. Maybe this is a the year he balls out?
• Stone Smartt was a quarterback in college who transitioned to tight end in the pros. He signed with the Chargers as an undrafted rookie in 2022, and played three years with them before signing with the Jets in 2025. Smartt has managed to appear in 53 games in four NFL seasons, with seven starts. 38 career catches for 432 yards and 1 TD.
Smartt has had a consistent role on special teams the last three seasons, playing 152 special teams snaps in 2023, 155 in 2024, and 138 in 2025. He didn't stand out during the spring. He'll need to stand out in camp to have any chance of making the roster.
• Dae'Quan Wright was a player I liked as a potential late round pick. Instead the Eagles were able to get him as an undrafted free agent.
Wright made big plays all season for Ole Miss, with 39 receptions for 635 yards and 5 TDs. He had receptions of at least 25 yards in each of his first five games of the 2025 season, and finished with 16.3 yards per catch as a tight end. Wright has versatility, as Lane Kiffin lined him up all over the formation. The consensus is that Wright has some work to do as a blocker. He feels like a prime practice squad candidate.
• At fullback, Cameron Latu has a tight end background, while Carson Steele's background is at running back.
Latu got playing time with the Eagles last season, and proved to be a good special teams player. He also had an occasional nice block in the run game as a fullback. I would say he's pretty comfortably ahead of Steele to start camp.
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