The main attraction of the Philadelphia Eagles’ five-day trip to New England came earlier this week with two practices against the Patriots. Those sessions featured the starters for most of practice and offered the closest preview of the season this summer.But the two teams still played a game to finish the week. The best part of the Eagles’ 24-21 loss to the Patriots was that it brought the regular season one day closer. There was still much to learn Saturday — and this week — including …1. Tanner McKee made his case for the No. 2 jobYou don’t often see the No. 2 quarterback on the field late in the fourth quarter of an Eagles preseason game, but it’s worth remembering Tanner McKee is not the No. 2 quarterback at the moment. The question is whether he’ll be the No. 2 by next Sunday when the roster is cut to 53.McKee made his case. He outplayed Andy Dalton.Dalton started… again. Dalton and McKee rotate days as the No. 2 in practice, but they didn’t rotate starting spots. McKee replaced Dalton in the second quarter and played into the fourth quarter — six drives, not including end-of-half kneel-downs. McKee looked closer to the version that had inspired confidence before, finishing 16-for- 22 for 173 yards and two touchdowns. He was helped by yards after the catch, and there were drives he likely wishes he had sustained, but he also played in rhythm and found answers against pressure.It stood out how late into the game he played. Remember: McKee didn’t even play in the second preseason game last year because he had the No. 2 job sealed. He played deep into the fourth quarter in New England on Saturday.There are a few ways to look at this. Perhaps the Eagles are showcasing him to the league. I still think Dalton would be more of a trade chip one week before the season because of his experience. Perhaps the Eagles wanted to give McKee confidence after the way last week went. Although if that were the case, I’d think they would play McKee with the second-team offensive line (a group that played well, as Brooks Kubena wrote). It might just be that the Eagles wanted to put pressure on McKee this summer after the way they approached last summer. Head coach Nick Sirianni told reporters after the game that McKee needed more work than Dalton because of the experience difference.I still can’t imagine the summer has gone the way the Eagles would have wanted at the position. It was a curious approach given how they’ve viewed McKee in recent years (and the initial messaging that the Dalton trade had nothing to do with McKee), but this game was a step in the right direction. Compared to how Dalton played (3-for-10 for 44 yards on Saturday; 6-for-16 for 64 yards in the preseason), it’s harder to make a Dalton argument. Dalton has far more experience, including big-game experience. And as Sean Mannion could tell you, there’s more to a No. 2 quarterback’s role than how he plays in relief. Dalton’s background is valuable in the quarterback room. But Howie Roseman would be keen to tell you that no organization has benefited more from the backup quarterback than the Eagles.If Jalen Hurts goes down, which quarterback gives them a better chance to win games? I still think it’s McKee. The Eagles haven’t treated it as such this summer, but it looked that way on Saturday.Top Plays from Eagles @ Patriots2. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. won’t start… but he can startEvery time Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is on the field, he’s a factor. You saw that again Saturday. He had five tackles and flew through the line for a sack on a blitz. Trotter’s instincts are superb. One could look at him and say the way he plays would make him a natural replacement for Nakobe Dean.