The Philadelphia Eagles might have ample talent for a repeat season, but that doesn’t mean Nick Sirianni is slacking up. Over the course of the offseason, he’s made enough moves to ensure the roster stays robust, and his players, the best. However, his latest signing came with both good and bad news. While for one, it was homecoming, for the other, it meant leaving the safety of familiarity for an uncertain future.

Earlier this week, it was reported that the Eagles have signed defensive tackle Jacob Sykes to the practice squad. Notably, this is the player’s second signing after he joined the squad in July before being waived as part of the final roster cuts. Originally picked by the Seattle Seahawks in 2023 as an undrafted free agent, Sykes’ NFL journey has seen its fair share of ups and downs. After being waived by the Hawks in August that same year, Sykes then joined the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League, recording four solo tackles in the regular season in seven games last year. He also contributed with one more tackle in two playoff games. Interestingly, his college career was pretty much the opposite.

During his sophomore year for the Harvard Crimson, the 26-year-old recorded 36 tackles, 2.5 sacks and blocked a field goal against Princeton, while appearing in all 10 games. Skyes returned in 2021, after the 2020 season cancellation, and totaled 29 tackles and a team-high seven sacks, while becoming a first-team all-conference selection. After graduating with a degree in applied mathematics, the player then entered the transfer portal in 2022, joining the UCLA Bruins where he posted 29 tackles and a sack, starting six of 13 games. Sykes also earned the third-team All-Pac-12 honors from Pro Football Focus that year. Now, given a second chance under Sirianni, the player can hopefully make it count. Although, he’s not celebrating the feat just yet, contrary to his optimism the first time. Perhaps the player knows it doesn’t take much for things to take a turn in the NFL—a hard truth Eli Ricks just realized.

As per Eagles beat reporter Jeff McLane, Ricks, who signed as an undrafted free agent by the team in 2023, has been released from the practice squad. This comes after the player signed to the practice squad on August 27. During his rookie season, the 23-year-old had 19 total tackles and three passes defended in 16 games.

So, one thing’s clear: The reigning Super Bowl champs aren’t wasting time making early moves.

But the team’s worries are not over just yet…

The league’s final verdict on Jalen Carter

The NFL surely made everyone wait before making a final decision on Jalen Carter’s spitting incident against the Cowboys’ quarterback, Dak Prescott. But as things stand, the league slapped the 24-year-old DT with a $57,222 fine. The fine amount is equivalent to his game check for Week 1. Carter was lined up to make $1.03 million this year.

That said, Carter is now expected to show up on the field against the Chiefs on Sunday after missing out on the season opener. The 24-year-old didn’t even play a single defensive snap before the refs ejected him from the game after he spat on Prescott. “I’m going to keep everything that I do with him private, regardless of if you see it on Sunday or not,“ Nick Sirianni said, addressing his DT. “Everything, every conversation, whether it’s a personal conversation, a disciplinary thing, all those things will always be handled privately.”

On the flip side, Carter also apologized to his teammates and fans after being disqualified from the game. The Eagles are now heading to Arrowhead Stadium on September 14.