Philadelphia never misses a chance to rally behind fans, and Tuesday’s open practice at the Linc was no different, drawing a crowd of more than 45,000 fans. But if those fans came hoping to see a flawless Jalen Hurts, they got something messier instead, a night of real highs mixed with some head-scratching lows.
“Hurts throwing four times as many interceptions this training camp as usual should definitely be a red flag heading into the regular season with the new scheme. Correlation between camp INTs and season INTs is not zero from my experience,” Former Eagles staffer Ryan Paganetti posted on X.
The lows came courtesy of cornerback Riq Woolen, who picked Hurts off twice. One of those turned into a pick six, when Hurts forced a sideline throw toward DeVonta Smith that Woolen read perfectly and returned for a score. The cornerback wasn’t done there either, interrupting another route meant for rookie Makai Lemon earlier in the session.
According to Brandon Lee Gowton of Bleeding Green Nation, that brings Hurts’ camp interception total to 13 this summer alone, compared to just 15 across his previous four camps put together. That’s a jump worth noticing.
To be fair, camp picks don’t carry over into the regular season. Nobody’s marking Philly down 0-1 because Woolen had a big Tuesday. But the pattern building up, especially after five interceptions against the New England Patriots in joint practices, including three in a single day, establishes a pattern that cannot be ignored. His 2025 completion rate of just 64.8% last season was worrying enough, and he is working in a new offensive scheme for yet another time in his career.
Sean Mannion’s playbook reportedly demands more precision and more snaps from under center. Mannion himself admitted his quarterback committed multiple turnovers during the Patriots’ joint sessions, while still crediting the overall performance.
That said, Tuesday wasn’t all rough. Hurts found the end zone with Saquon Barkley, connected with both Lemon and Hollywood Brown for scores, and targeted Smith multiple times. Barkley caught a 20-yard pass from the quarterback and scored a touchdown. Smith also bested Woolen in another play, correcting his break route-breaking angle to prevent the cornerback from undercutting him.
However, the session went the defense’s way, which won 58-36 after seven team periods.
If you’re an Eagles fan trying to stay positive, here’s the silver lining. Better these mistakes happen now than in a real game. And it’s worth remembering that Hurts hasn’t actually had an interception problem in recent years. He only threw six all of last season. That rough 15-interception year back in 2023 still stands out as the exception.
In other words, the flashes are real. So are the fixable mistakes.