Underdog Stories

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles kick off preseason play Saturday in Baltimore as the Ravens playing host for the preseason opener. While head coach Nick Sirianni remained coy on whether or not he’ll play the starters, the reality is that this game matters most for those on the roster fringes.

For them, these next three games are anything but a throwaway or snoozefest. It’s an intense audition, for the Eagles and 31 other teams.

This camp notebook focuses on providing insight and perspective by spotlighting two younger players you’re sure to see plenty of this preseason.

This edition of my training camp notebook introduces you to two offensive players vying to stick on the Eagles’ 53-man roster, offensive lineman Jake Majors and running back Carson Steele.

ITB PHOTO/ANDREW DICECCO: Jake Majors is a major long shot but is pushing hard to make the 53 as a C/G.

Jake Majors: An underdog story

Majors, who as a rookie spent all but one week last season on the Eagles’ practice squad, entered his second season with the advantage of perspective. Behind the scenes, the 24-year-old worked alongside some the NFL’s best at their respective positions while also absorbing invaluable knowledge from legendary offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland.

That prior background has given Majors a sturdy foundation on which to build in his first training camp with the Eagles.

He’s also taken advantage of the opportunity to pick the brain of an Eagles legend.

Longtime Eagles center Jason Kelce has spent some time in training camp counseling Majors. Among the focuses, according to Majors, included Kelce’s instruction of coaching points gleaned from his playing days, fixating on honing in on particulars, like the keys to jump sets, striking with his hands, having good position and getting fit to where, as Majors illustrated it, “you give yourself the best chance of winning the fight.”

But before the proverbial wheels were already in motion months earlier, when the groundwork for Majors’ run at a roster spot was first established.

Once the offseason commenced, Majors took a brief pause after a long season, taking some time to visit his parents and “get his body right.” But before long, Majors returned to training, working with some offensive line-specific trainers in the Dallas Fort Worth area, his home base.

During the lengthy holding period between OTAs and training camp, he maintained the same routine.

Majors, known for his toughness and pre-snap dissection of defenses, is a center by trade. He’s logged quite a few miles there, too, setting a Texas program record for most games started (56). While the Eagles this summer have often deployed Majors at his natural position, he’s also crossed-trained at both guard spots, an expanded workload that he’s embraced.

“In the NFL, the more you can do, the better,” he said. “And so, any chance I get the opportunity to play guard, I’m going to attack it full speed. You know, it’s not the easiest thing in the world going from playing center. your whole career in college and then going to guard in the NFL.

“But you got supporters, you got mentors around you like (Jason) Kelce and (Tyler) Steen and Landon (Dickerson), the guys that play the interior position. And (Cam) Jurgens. When you get to learn from guys like that, they make it easy.”

Majors has worked almost exclusively with the second-team offense this summer, pivoting between center and guard. At center, Majors appears to be right at home navigating the controls. That’s where his intangibles, namely mental acuity, have been most pronounced. Guard is something Majors is learning on the fly – he appears to be a work in progress there — though it’s evident the Eagles see something in him, as evidenced by the team’s approach in working to increase his value as a multi-positional player.

For perspective, Majors would go on to detail the adjustments required to play guard.

“You just got a little bit more space at guard, where that’s the man side of protection and you got a wide three,” he explained. “You’ve got to think about all the variables. Is this going to be a T-E stunt, E-T stunt? Is he going to cross my face, come pick the center, cross my face. Stuff like that. So, it’s a lot more to think about. But at the same time, it’s football.”

The reality is that there only figures to be only two, maybe three, job openings in the offensive line room. Eight spots are already spoken for, meaning Majors will be in contention for a roster spot among the likes of fellow holdover Willie Lampkin and 2026 sixth-round pick Micah Morris. And that’s without including Myles Hinton, a 2025 sixth-round pick who has repped at both tackle and guard in training camp.

It’s projected to be an uphill battle for Majors to land one of those vacancies, to be sure, but a good showing Saturday night could make the road ahead a little less daunting. If Majors is to gain ground in the coming weeks, chances are it’ll have a lot to do with his approach.

“Dependable,” he said when describing his game. “Longevity, man. I played 57 games at center and I’m still rolling. I just try and approach every day to be a pro. Learn from these guys, like I said, Jurgens Landon, Steen, guys before us like Kelc. Just being dependable, man, and just attacking every day. You never know when your last rep is, so you just got to make the most of every opportunity.”

---

ITB PHOTO/ANDREW DICECCO: If the Eagles keep a fullback, Carson Steele could be a consideration.

Carson Steele: Making most of scarce reps

Carson Steele isn’t a name that’s likely to register with many tuning in across the Delaware Valley, but there’s a good chance the third-year running back becomes a preseason favorite.

Steele, 23, arrived in Philadelphia in January, signing a reserve/future deal after spending the 2025 season on the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad. Hamstring soreness sidelined him for spring practices, but Steele has since managed to piece together some encouraging moments in his first camp with the Eagles.

For Steele, 23, reps this summer have been sporadic, a byproduct of miring in a position room headlined by Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby. His opportunities have been mostly relegated to developmental periods at the end of practice, where he’s showcased a gritty, rugged running style. The kind of hard-nosed approach that lends itself to preseason glory.

It’s difficult to evaluate the run game in a training camp setting, but Steele believes his physicality shows up in games.

“One hundred percent,” he said. “I’m a big weight room-type guy, love that stuff, so I feel this is when I can show myself when the pads come on and we actually get physical contact.”

Steele has also demonstrated a flair for pass protection, delivering the boom on a blitz pickup earlier in camp. That was an acquired skill set, though, as Steele admitted to struggling in the facet of his job description earlier in his career. He’s learned along the way, watching reps on a constant loop to help him focus on not “over-jumping” when a defender is making moves and drill the technique of knocking hands down. Facing a numbers crunch, dialing in the details and fundamentals, such as pass protection, becomes even more essential.

So does contributing on special teams, a phase that Steele hadn’t been exposed to much in high school and college. Still, there’s enough evidence to suggest Steele has the chops to become a ringer in coverage.

That’s where Steele will have to make his mark in order to defy the odds and make the 53-man roster. He hasn’t had as many opportunities for work during team periods, those are generally reserved for Barkley, Bigsby and Will Shipley, which could frustrate any player, especially someone who was once a focal point of an offense at the collegiate level. Steele, however, has leaned into the benefits of seeing the game from a different lens.

“That’s where the mental side of the game comes in for me,” he said. “Playing all through high school, all through college, I didn’t do that, so it’s really kind of helped me to stay in the I-pad, walkthroughs. Just the little stuff. Even when you’re not getting as many reps has helped me.”

Sporting a chiseled, six-foot, 228-pound frame and smash-mouth mentality — his NFL career began as a fullback — Steele’s play style is notably fueled by power and contact balance. He’s as likely to bounce off a defender at the second level as he is upending a linebacker steaming downhill. With veteran Dameon Pierce sidelined with a hamstring, Steele could see more snaps, providing more film for the Eagles and other teams to evaluate.

Steele, who in 2024 latched onto the Chiefs’ 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent, has been in this position before. So, even with pressure levels rising as roster decisions loom, Steele is wired to remain present in the moment.

“Treat it like any other game,” he said. “This is kind of where I can show my talents. We haven’t really had tackling. We’ve had thud practices, but this is where you showcase yourself and go from there.”

— Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is the Eagles beat reporter for InsideTheBirds.com.