Grayson's Grades: Eagles at Jets

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - The Preseason Finale is never an exciting one for NFL fans. However, it tends to mean the world to many of the players who suit up and play in it. Numerous Philadelphia Eagles were going to either make the team or get cut based on how they performed in the game against the New York Jets.

Getty Images

Most of the Eagles starters failed to dress for this game in an effort to keep them healthy for the season opener September 10th in Washington. That left plenty of plays and opportunities for third and fourth team players looking to make the squad.

The Eagles had the ball inside the five-yard line with less than a minute to go but failed to punch it in for the go-ahead score. Ultimately, the Eagles lost to the Jets 16-10.

Mack Hollins - Hollins should be a lock to make this team. He has looked really good this preseason. Hollins has great hands and runs nice routes that give the quarterback enough of a window to complete the pass. He almost always seems to haul in a pass that is thrown in traffic. Hollins also made a huge special teams play in the third quarter to dive and keep a punt from going into the endzone. Great hands, ran nice routes. Good job hauling in a slant pass for a first down in the first quarter. Does a nice job catching the ball in tight windows. Made a huge special teams play to dive and keep a punt from going into the endzone. It was downed on the six-yard line. Hollins caught three passes for 25 yards.

Corey Clement - Clement should make this team in my opinion. He had a solid preseason and showed a great burst at the point of attack to hit the hole quickly. I like his running style, he rarely hesitates and makes nice cuts on the run to add yards to the play. Clement carried the ball four times for 16 yards.

Shelton Gibson - Gibson had a rough spring after he was taken in the draft and those struggles continued into training camp. He had a hard time holding onto the ball. Gibson has shown improvement as the preseason progressed and that continued in this game. Gibson hauled in a 14-yard pass to get the Eagles down to the three yard line in the final minute of the game. An Eagles score would have given the birds a lead late in the game. Gibson caught four passes for 40 yards.

Elijah Qualls - Qualls has been consistent throughout the preseason. He picked up a nice sack by hanging on to Christian Hackenberg and bringing him down forcing a field goal. Qualls was very active along the line of scrimmage and finished the game with a total of five tackles, one tackle for a loss and half a sack.

Jaylen Watkins - Watkins has looked a lot more comfortable at corner as opposed to safety. He was moved to corner early in the preseason and played pretty well. He made a great break on the ball to deliver a strong, hard hit on the receiver for a short gain. Watkins also broke up a pass. However, he failed to make a tackle in the second quarter that resulted in a first down. Watkins finished second on the team with five tackles. He also had one pass successfully defended.

Donnel Pumphrey - Pumphrey has great agility, but lacks the ability to break any tackles. That is the biggest knock on him. He had several opportunities to break an arm tackle and tack on some big yardage on carries or punt returns, but he failed to bust through those arm tackles and went to the ground. He appears to have the vision to see where to make a cut, but struggles to get through that one tackle that could spring him. Pumphrey carried the ball seven times for ten yards. He also caught one pass for three yards. Pumphrey racked up 80 yards on three kickoff returns as well as 48 yards on five punt returns.

Dexter McDougle - McDougle missed a tackle that allowed a big gain by the Jets. He went low and did not wrap up the ball carrier. McDougle did a great job of recognizing a screen pass and got a hand on the ball to tip it away. He also did a nice job closing on a pass quickly to break it up and force a punt. McDougle registered three tackles and had one pass successfully defended.

Matt McGloin - McGloin did a better job of setting his feet than he has in previous games. He delivered better passes for his receivers to catch in-stride. McGloin left a pass on the back shoulder of Bryce Treggs when he should have led him on a crossing route. It would have been a first down, but throwing behind the receiver caused him to be brought down short of the marker. McGloin completed a lot of passes in the preseason, but does not have a lot of yards per completion. He completes a lot of short passes. McGloin got a ton of opportunities due to Nick Foles' elbow soreness and failure to play in any of the four preseason games. McGloin completed 14 of 21 passes for 90 yards. He also lost a fumble.

Tweets by @SGrayson973