Britain Covey and Grant Calcaterra get a rare chance to contribute in the Eagles’ passing game

For Britain Covey, who is primarily known as one of the league’s leading punt returners, patience and persistence are the keys to his involvement in the Eagles’ offense.

In Week 4, the offense installed a few plays with Covey as the primary target. A couple of them have been called in-game since then, according to Covey, but quarterback Jalen Hurts checked out of them to different plays. Covey’s patience paid off Monday night in the Eagles’ 33-25 victory against the New York Giants when he earned his first career target and reception on a screen pass for 7 yards in the first quarter.

“I‘m not the type of person to ever raise my hand and ask for more playing time,” Covey said. “I try and let my performance do the talking in practice, in the game.

“You only get so many opportunities. You want to take advantage of them. But I’m glad they have the confidence in me. I know Jalen does. He talks to me a lot about it. I’m hoping for more in the future.”

For the first time since Week 12 against the Buffalo Bills, the Eagles targeted eight receivers, which they have done just three times this season. Covey wasn’t the only player who, in Week 16, earned his first target of the year thanks to Hurts’ trust. Tight end Grant Calcaterra was targeted twice against the Giants and had two receptions for 21 yards, picking up a pair of first downs.

One of those first downs — Calcaterra’s first reception — was a fluke. On third-and-3 in the first quarter, the Eagles botched the snap on what was supposed to be a rushing play for running back D’Andre Swift. Hurts managed to collect the ball in the backfield, and when Calcaterra noticed that, he tried to be an option. A scrambling Hurts, deep behind the line of scrimmage, connected with Calcaterra for a 9-yard gain and a first down.

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The second reception on first-and-10 in the third quarter was a play-action pass in which Calcaterra served as the self-proclaimed “safety net” in case the opportunity to throw it deep to A.J. Brown wasn’t available. The Giants dropped both safeties deep into coverage, taking away Brown as an option, so Hurts elected to check the ball down to Calcaterra for 12 yards and a first down.

“I like to be involved in any way I can,” Calcaterra said. “And obviously, it’s nice to get some balls thrown my way. But I like to be ... it feels good that Jalen trusts me in those situations to make plays.”

On average, the Eagles have targeted 6.7 receivers per game this season. In their Week 14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Hurts targeted only four receivers — Brown, DeVonta Smith, Dallas Goedert, and Olamide Zaccheaus. It’s no secret that the Eagles offense runs through Brown (152 targets), Smith (107), and Goedert (74), with Swift (48) and running back Kenneth Gainwell (32) also getting in on the action in the passing game.

That’s why the Eagles’ third-receiver duties aren’t “ball-centric,” according to Covey. Instead, players like Quez Watkins and Julio Jones tend to take more of the third receiver’s snaps because the Eagles believe they can use their size and speed to take some of the defensive attention away from their primary targets.

“I think, personally, my play style is kind of a possession, yard-after-catch player,” Covey said. “And that’s not quite in the offensive scheme at the moment. Perhaps one day. But I’ve always, and I still view myself as a receiver who plays punt returner, rather than the other way around. And I know that I can be a great receiver in this league. I do it in practice every day; I’ve done it against the top competition. And so it just comes down to when our offense needs it.”

So while the likes of Covey and Calcaterra may not have ample targets in the future, they’re embracing their opportunities when they get them, regardless of the role they’re asked to play. According to Pro Football Focus, Calcaterra had eight run-blocking snaps against the Giants. He helped create a hole to spring Swift for a 17-yard run in the fourth quarter in which he hurdled safety Dane Belton in the open field.

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Zaccheaus, who had just one target on Monday, made a highlight-reel downfield pancake block on Smith’s 36-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the second quarter. From big blocks to clutch catches, those little moments for role players can help galvanize an offense.

“Just knowing that whoever’s in can make a play and they will do their job to the best of their ability, and the best of their ability is more than capable,” Zaccheaus said. “So it’s just a huge confidence builder for not only the whole team, but those individuals as well.”