Three practices of Philadelphia Eagles training camp are in the books. Three practices of seeing this new and invigorating Sean Mannion offense. Saturday's training camp practice showed this offense is still a work in progress. You can read all about that in the observations here. Not only are the Eagles learning a new offense and trying to get the repetitions down, they are also going up against a defense that has the potential to be the best in the NFL. At worst, this unit is a top-10 defense. When learning a new offense, the defense typically wins early. This has been true in shells and shorts, which the Eagles have been in through three practices. This is the acclimation period of training camp, and the pads aren't coming on until next week. This is the proper way to treat this offense. They are acclimating at this portion of training camp. Now isn't the time to panic (far from it), but there are some takeaways that are noticebale. This offense needs Lane Johnson healthyJohnson was out of this practice for a non-injury related reason. Without him participating, the Eagles offense struggled to protect Jalen Hurts. Fred Johnson was the first team right tackle, but the entire offensive line struggled against a defensive line with Jalyx Hunt and Jalen Carter dominating. Hurts would have been "sacked' multiple times in the team session of practice. He was rushed on his throws, which led to batted passes and good reads on his throws by the defense. Without Lane Johnson, this offensive line isn't dominant. There's a reason Johnson is an All-Pro when he's healthy, a future Hall of Famer. There is a significant dropoff after Johnson, even if Fred Johnson or Markel Bell can hold their own.Next time Johnson misses a practice, maybe the Eagles try Bell at right tackle to see if the offensiev line is more cohesive. Remember they have a new coach and system too.Jalen Hurts is under center and in playaction -- a lot Hurts isn't foreign to playaction, but the shutgun snaps are becoming less and less. This is part of the adjustment for Hurts, and is why he hasn't been as sharp through the first three practices. Getting rushed by Hunt and Carter is a chore in itself, and this is an Eagles defense without Jonathan Greenard right now. The Eagles struggle dto score in the red zoen on Saturday,a nd teh only time Hurts scored is when he ran in for a touchdown. That may be the where playaction can come in handy. If Hurts can keep the defense honest with his accuracy as a playaction passer, his ability as a plus one in the running game will be a major asset. In Hurts' five full seasons as a starter (2021 to 2025), he has completed 65.7% of his passes in playaction. Hurts has thrown for 36 TD to 14 INT for a 100.5 passer rating, averaging 8.1 yards per attempt. Over the last two seasons, Hurts is 141-of-208 (67.8%) in playaction, throwing for 13 tD, 3 INT, and a 107.3 passer rating.Hurts will be using playaction significantly more this year, but he can do it with more reps this summer. The defense is really, really good The common theme through Saturday's practice was how good the defense is. At this stage of camp, the defense should be ahead of the offense -- yet this is another level of dominance. This defense didn't have Jonathan Greenard (PUP) nor Jihaad Campbell (rest) and still had their way with the offense. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. was all over the football, which shouldn't be a surprise given he played well in minicamp and will split reps with Campbell this summer (more on that here).Carter was dominant. He blew through Tyler Steen for a sack and also had a batted pass. he also consistently applied pressure on Hurts, showing what a game changer he is. When Carter is healthy, this is what he does. The secondary has Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, and Tariq Woolen, so it's going to be a struggle for recievers to get open. Saturday's practice was more about Hurts' progressions and the Eagles offense struggling to move the ball in the red zone. This defense plays a huge role in that. The Eagles defense looks elite. They have the potential to be the best in the NFL, and are showing it early. Let's see how the offense responds as camp progresses. That will be the tell tale sign. Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow