Eagles' TE2 Hopes To Become A 'Real Threat'

There isn’t a lot of uncertainty on what is a star-studded Eagles offense, and one second-tier would-be competition hasn’t developed in the early days of training camp.

Before TE1 Dallas Goedert decided to return to Philadelphia on a reworked contract for the 2025 season, the belief was the veteran star would have to move on because of a heavy price tag.

Because of that, GM Howie Roseman acted on some contingencies in free agency, signing veterans Harrison Bryant and Kylen Granson to one-year deals.

Once Goedert decided to return, the more proven veteran duo figured to push Grant Calcaterra for the backup job.

Either way, Calcaterra was just happy to have Goedert back.

"Dallas and I are really close," Calcaterra said after Monday's practice. "Obviously, I wanted him as a teammate to be in the room, so I'm definitely happy to have him back."

The competition for the TE2 role also hasn't materialized, and by Monday, when Calcaterra showcased his tremendous hands both in individual work and in team drills, it felt like the fourth-year pro was lapping the field.

Granson, meanwhile, dropped a potential red-zone touchdown pass from Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Bryant might as well have been on a milk carton, although his inauspiciousness was neither positive nor negative.

Calcaterra, who was a teammate of quarterback Jalen Hurts at Oklahoma before finishing a stop-and-start college career at SMU, has been the tortoise in this race, distancing himself by being slow and steady and improving each aspect of his game.

Calcaterra’s goal is to be “a threat in the run game and a threat in the pass game.”

“I think there's not too many two-way complete tight ends in this league anymore,” Calcaterra said after practice Monday. “I think there's a lot of pass catchers and a lot of run blockers and I think when you can be really good at both that's when you become a real threat.”