It probably can’t be stressed enough about the strong training camp Jalen Hurts is having.
On Friday, as the Philadelphia Eagles held their longest practice of summer at one hour, 40 minutes, Hurts pulled receiver Quez Watkins right up with him into the stratosphere.
The quarterback and embattled receiver were in lockstep, with Hurts connecting with Watkins on two touchdowns, one a 50-50 ball the receiver skied to get.
At the other end of the spectrum is Olamide Zaccheaus, who has struggled with drops and had three more on Friday.
Watkins is winning the battle to be the slot receiver and it’s not even close. He has an advantage, however, in that this is his third year in coach Nick Sirianni’s offense. Zaccheaus may be doing a bit too much thinking and losing focus when it comes to corralling passes.
His track record speaks to his consistency.
“I feel good,” he said following Friday’s practice. “I think just keep going and trying to improve each day is the goal for me and just try to get more comfortable in the offense and learning the ins and outs of it. I just try to get better each day.”
What Zaccheaus isn’t doing is trying to compete with Watkins for anything.
“I don’t think it’s a competition against him,” he said. “We’re competing with each other. We’re on the same team. We’re building together to win. I’m not on social media a lot, but people send me stuff, but I’m not competing against him.
“I’m competing with him and everybody else on the team to reach a common goal. That’s the perception that I have. It may be different for other people, but the reality of it is that’s the reality of the situation.
“We’re feeding off each other, just lifting each other up to win. We’re competing with each other and that’s to win. That’s the main goal here is to win.”
It’s widely assumed Zaccheaus has a roster spot locked up after the Eagles signed him in the offseason, but he may have some work to do to ensure that is indeed the case.
Britain Covey is also pushing Zaccheaus in the slot, though the second-year punt returner had his first drop of camp on a sliding try in the rain. It would have been a good catch had he made it.
Zaccheaus, however, is looking beyond the slot. He believes his value is as an inside and outside receiver. Just 26, his receptions have risen each of the last three seasons, going from 20 to 31 to 40 despite battling injuries during that time with the Atlanta Falcons.
On Friday, Zaccheaus took a hard hit after catching a slant pass and was slow to get up. He said he was fine.
“I’m confident in what I can do,” he said. “I have things to work on myself, but, overall, I’m just trying to be a complete receiver. I guess statistically or physically you may look at me as a slot receiver, but I want to be a complete receiver
“I want to play every position and that’s something I know I can do. There are things I need to work on, but I have the utmost confidence in myself to get those things done.”
Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.
Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.
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