Eagles 2018 roster: Breaking down the depth chart

The Eagles are finalizing their regular-season roster.

Here's a look at the 53 men, plus a handful of suspended or injured players who will join the roster once they're eligible.

9 Nick Foles

Arizona | Years pro: 7 | 6-6, 243

The Super Bowl MVP doesn't know how much he'll play this year, beyond the season opener. That's extraordinary, but then again, Foles' entire career has been extraordinary, from 27 touchdowns and two interceptions in 2013 to near-retirement after the 2015 season, to taking over for Carson Wentz Dec. 10 and powering the Eagles to their first-ever Lombardi Trophy.

7 Nate Sudfeld

Indiana | Years pro: 3 | 6-6, 227

A solid preseason, his first with the Eagles, probably gave management and the coaching staff enough confidence in Sudfeld that if a trade opportunity were to come along, they would consider moving Nick Folesand making Sudfeld Carson Wentz's primary backup.

11 Carson Wentz

North Dakota State | Years pro: 3 | 6-5, 237

The NFL's best red-zone quarterback from last season hopes to soon pick up where his 2017 NFL MVP-level season left off, when he tore two knee ligaments Dec. 10 against the Los Angeles Rams. He has worked tirelessly to recover, but his doctors want to give him a little more mending time.

26 Jay Ajayi

Boise State | Years Pro: 4 | 6-0, 223

Ajayi was key part of the offense during the Super Bowl run after arriving in a midseason trade, but his role should expand in 2018 as the top running back. A former Pro Bowler, Ajayi needs a strong season in the final year of his contract.

30 Corey Clement

Wisconsin | Years Pro: 2 | 5-10, 220

After making the team as an undrafted rookie last season, the Glassboro native turned into a key player for the Eagles. He led the team in receiving yards in the Super Bowl, and his role should grow in his second season.

28 Wendell Smallwood

West Virginia | Years Pro: 3 | 5-10, 208

Smallwood was on the roster bubble this summer. The 2016 fifth-round pick slipped on the depth chart last year, although he has experience in the system and can be a steady, albeit unremarkable, reserve.

43 Darren Sproles

Kansas State | Years Pro: 14 | 5-6, 190

Sproles planned on retiring after last season, but a second-ending injury was no way to go out. He returns for one final season as a versatile offensive threat and returner. Sproles needs 528 all-purpose yards to crack top five on the all-time list.

13 Nelson Agholor

Southern Cal | Years Pro: 4 | 6-0, 198

Agholor finally had his breakout in season 3. As well as he performed, he could have a greater impact this year. The Eagles picked up his fifth-year option in May, which should take contract worries out of the equation. Agholor had a strong training camp until a hamstring injury sidelined him for all the preseason.

16 DeAndre Carter

Sacramento State | Years Pro: 1 | 5-8, 190

Added to the squad during training camp, Carter made a surprising push for a roster spot. The journeyman receiver has spent time with four different NFL teams since being signed as an undrafted rookie in 2015. He has the tools to play at this level, but his size is a detriment against longer cornerbacks.

18 Shelton Gibson

West Virginia | Years Pro: 2 | 5-11, 191

Gibson has notably improved over the last year. He's always had the jets to beat outside coverage down the field, but he's looked more comfortable in other facets of receiving. Gibson will have a role on special teams as a gunner, but he could also supplant Hollins as the fourth receiver.

10 Mack Hollins

North Carolina | Years Pro: 2 | 6-4, 221

Hollins had a solid rookie season and was poised to have his offensive workload increase. But he couldn't take advantage of first team training camp repetitions in place of the injured Alshon Jeffery, partly because of a lingering sport hernia issue. His readiness for the season remains in doubt.

17 Alshon Jeffery

South Carolina | Years Pro: 7 | 6-3, 218

Jeffery played through last season with a torn rotator cuff. He underwent surgery after the Super Bowl and missed the entire offseason program. He's never been a big fan of practice, but he will likely have to work off some rust once he returns.

14 Mike Wallace

Mississippi | Years Pro: 10 | 6-0, 200

The 31-year-old Wallace may not have his 20-something legs, but he can still burn. He should be an upgrade over Torrey Smith. But there could be some growing pains in developing chemistry with Carson Wentz.

80 Markus Wheaton

Oregon State | Years Pro: 6 | 5-11, 185

An experienced receiver with 22 career starts, Wheaton provides the Eagles with veteran depth. He'll be valuable early in the season while Alshon Jeffery and Mack Hollins recover from injuries.

Eagles season preview: The long, arduous countdown to Carson Wentz's comeback | Marcus Hayes: Eagles' biggest hurdle in repeating as Super Bowl champs will be overcoming loss of Frank Reich, John DeFilippo | 50 things to know about the upcoming season | Which Eagle, who didn't play in the postseason, will have the biggest impact? | Eagles' roster reconstruction reveals they have a type: Experienced players on short-term deals | What roster holes should the Eagles worry about? | Previewing the NFC | Previewing the AFC | Bob Ford: Repeat as Super Bowl champs? The Eagles can learn from teams that did. | David Murphy: Do the Eagles have what it takes to establish a dynasty? | Super Bowl carryover – good for this year's Eagles or bad? | Will Carson Wentz return to MVP form?

86 Zach Ertz

Stanford | Years pro: 6 | 6-5, 250

Ertz has developed into one of the top three or four tight ends in the NFL, as he demonstrated in his dominant Super Bowl performance. And never mind what Mychal Kendricks thinks about Ertz's blocking.

88 Dallas Goedert

South Dakota State | Years pro: Rookie | 6-5, 256

The Eagles' top draft pick has looked amazingly polished through training camp and the preseason. His size and willingness to block – even if he's still learning the nuances – might make the Eagles much more willing to use two-tight-end sets than they were in 2017.

83 Joshua Perkins

Washington | Years pro: 2 | 6-3, 223

Perkins missed time late this summer because of a concussion, but the Eagles still carried the converted wide receiver on the 53-man roster while there's an early need for tight end depth and special teams contribution.

82 Richard Rodgers

Cal | Years pro: 5 | 6-4, 257

Rodgers suffered a knee injury catching a touchdown pass in the preseason game at New England. He probably will miss the first few weeks of the season. When healthy, he is expected to bring veteran experience to the group, along with blocking.

79 Brandon Brooks

Miami (Ohio) | Years Pro: 7 | 6-5, 335

Brooks earned his first Pro Bowl invitation in 2017. He's a 350-pound road-grader who is one of the league's top run-blocking interior linemen. He allowed no sacks and just three quarterback hits  in 1,076 snaps last season.

65 Lane Johnson

Oklahoma | Years Pro: 6 | 6-6, 317

Johnson was drafted in 2013 to succeed Peters at left tackle. But Peters still is there and Johnson, a first-team All-Pro selection last year, has established himself as the league's best right tackles and one of two or three best on either side.

62 Jason Kelce

Cincinnati | Years Pro: 8 | 6-3, 295

Kelce bounced back from a sub-par season in 2016 to earn first-team All Pro honors last year. He is undersized and that sometimes hampers him against bigger DTs. But his intelligence, athleticism and ability to get outside on screens and stretch plays makes him special.

68 Jordan Mailata

Australia | Years Pro: Rookie | 6-3, 346

The 6-8, 346-pound Mailata has made giant strides since the Eagles selected the former Aussie rugby player in the seventh round of the April draft. Nothing has been too big for him so far. He has incredible strength and a kickstep that has been compared to that of future Hall of Famer Joe Thomas.

71 Jason Peters

Arkansas | Years Pro: 15 | 6-4, 328

Peters, who turned 36 in January, is coming off a torn ACL that caused him to miss 12 games last season, including the playoffs. The Eagles seem very confident that the nine-time Pro Bowler can give them at least one more good year.

69 Matt Pryor

TCU | Years Pro: Rookie | 6-7, 338

Pryor was taken in the sixth round of the April draft out of TCU. The 6-7, 332-pounder can play both guard and tackle, but has worked mostly inside. Twenty-three of his 31 college starts were at guard. He was a second-team All-Big 12 selection.

73 Isaac Seumalo

Oregon State | Years Pro: 3 | 6-4, 303

The Eagles handed the starting left guard job to Seumalo last summer, but it ended up being too much too soon. He struggled and was eventually replaced by Wisniewski. Seumalo has tremendous strength and power and can play both guard and center.

72 Halapoulivaati Vaitai

TCU | Years Pro: 3 | 6-6, 320

Vaitai, who did a solid job replacing Peters at left tackle last season after he got hurt, will enter Week 1 as the team's top backup tackle. He did not play particularly well in the preseason, but has 19 career starts in just two seasons.

67 Chance Warmack

Alabama | Years Pro: 6 | 6-2, 323

Warmack was taken by the Tennessee Titans with the 10^th overall pick in the 2013 draft, but seldom has played up to that level. The 6-2, 323-pound guard signed with the Eagles last year and played a little more than 300 snaps. But Warmack only can play guard, while Seumalo can play guard and center, and Pryor can play guard and tackle.

61 Stefen Wisniewski

Penn State | Years Pro: 8 | 6-3, 305

Wisniewski is an underrated player who was benched last summer in favor of Isaac Seumalo, but stepped in when Seumalo faltered and had the best season of his career. The intelligent LG gives the Eagles a second set of center eyes up front.

96 Derek Barnett

Tennessee | Years Pro: 2 | 6-3, 259

The Eagles' 2017 first-round pick finished with five sacks while playing 41 percent of the snaps. His playing time will go up this year, and so will his production. Barnett could be the Eagles' breakout player.

77 Michael Bennett

Texas A&M | Years Pro: 10 | 6-4, 274

Bennett came to the Eagles in an offseason trade. The three-time Pro Bowler won't play as much as he did in Seattle, but he'll still be on the field often both on the edge and interior of the defensive line.

55 Brandon Graham

Michigan | Years Pro: 9 | 6-2, 265

Graham entered Philadelphia lore with a strip-sack of Tom Brady to help clinch the Super Bowl victory. He's been one of the Eagles' most productive players during the past two years, although that couldn't net him a new contract. Graham had offseason ankle surgery and missed the preseason.

56 Chris Long

Virginia | Years Pro: 11 | 6-3, 270

Long decided to return for another season, which is good news for the Eagles defense. The respected veteran finished with five sacks and will remain a key part of the defensive end rotation.

75 Josh Sweat

Florida State | Years Pro: Rookie | 6-5, 250

The Eagles' fourth-round pick requires development, but he has the size-speed combination to become a dangerous pass rusher. Look for him to be inactive on game days this season.

91 Fletcher Cox

Mississippi State | Years Pro: 7 | 6-4, 310

The Eagles' highest-paid player, Cox has established himself as one of the NFL's elite defensive linemen. He wants to win defensive player of the year this season. That will likely require double-digit sacks.

97 Destiny Vaeao

Washington State | Years Pro: 3 | 6-4, 299

Vaeao has been a depth defensive linemen during his first two seasons with the Eagles, but he'll take on a bigger role this season while Tim Jernigan is out. Vaeao has recovered from a wrist injury that stunted his progress last season.

94 Haloti Ngata

Oregon | Years Pro: 13 | 6-4, 340

A five-time Pro Bowler, Ngata can help in the defensive line rotation — especially on early downs. He won't have as a big of a role as he played on Baltimore earlier in his career, but his talent and experience made him an offseason target.

66 Bruce Hector

South Florida | Years Pro: Rookie | 6-2, 296

Hector made the roster as an undrafted rookie after a good summer. He likely won't have a big role — at least not early in the season — but showed potential with interior penetration.

93 Tim Jernigan

Florida State | Years Pro: 5 | 6-2, 295

Jernigan opens the season on the non-football injury after an offseason back injury. There's mystery surrounding his return this season, and he'll miss at least six weeks.

53 Nigel Bradham

Florida State | Years pro: 7 | 6-4, 241

The Eagles' most physical linebacker will miss the opener because of a one-game league suspension. His growth as a leader last year was a key to the Super Bowl run.

58 Jordan Hicks

Texas | Years pro: 4 | 6-1, 236

Hicks is a cerebral, dominant player when he's healthy. So far that has been the case in only one of this three NFL seasons. Last year the Eagles overcame losing him to an Achilles' tear; they'd rather not try that again.

54 Kamu Grugier-Hill

Eastern Illinois | Years pro: 3 | 6-2, 220

Last year's special teams ace could be this year's starting weakside linebacker, with Mychal Kendricks out of the picture. Grugier-Hill didn't play a lot of football growing up and is still developing as a player.

50 LaRoy Reynolds

Virginia | Years pro: 6 | 6-1, 240

Former Falcon, Bear and Jaguar will back up Jordan Hicks. He was a tremendous special-teams player in Atlanta. Recovered a fumble against the Eagles in last season's playoff meeting.

47 Nate Gerry

Nebraska | Years pro: 2 | 6-2, 218

His rookie season was spent trying to transition from college safety to pro linebacker. His offseason was spent trying to make his body more linebacker-like. Though the Eagles still list him at 218, Gerry says he weighs 230.

57 D.J. Alexander

Oregon State | Years pro: 4 | 6-2, 233

The Eagles claimed Alexander on the waiver wire on Sunday. Alexander, who made the Pro Bowl as a special teams player after the 2016 season while with Kansas City, will help on special teams and with linebacker depth.

21 Ronald Darby

Florida State | Years Pro: 4 | 5-11, 193

Darby struggled last season after the Eagles traded for him a month before the opener. An ankle dislocation sidelined him for eight weeks, and when he returned, he was inconsistent. But he had one of the Eagles' best offseasons, despite being the subject of trade rumors, and could deliver upon great promise in a contract year.

22 Sidney Jones

Washington | Years Pro: 2 | 6-0, 181

The Eagles have high expectations for their 2017 second round draft pick, but Jones couldn't overtake Ronald Darby or Jalen Mills at outside cornerback. He did hold off several competitors for slot corner spot, but will likely hit some bumps as he learns a new position.

29 Avonte Maddox

Pittsburgh | Years Pro: Rookie  | 5-9, 184

Maddox impressed almost immediately. The fourth-round rookie pushed for the slot job and showed that he has the chops for the spot should Jones falter or move outside. Maddox will likely have a role on special teams.

31 Jalen Mills

LSU | Years Pro: 3 | 6-0, 191

Mills is more than just attitude. His knowledge of Jim Schwartz's scheme has grown as he's become a staple in the secondary. Will he occasionally give up soft completions underneath at the expense of getting beat deep? Yes. But Mills' confidence helps offset what he lacks in skill.

32 Rasul Douglas

West Virginia | Years Pro: 2 | 6-2, 209

Douglas is a starting-caliber corner, but the Eagles' depth means that he will have to bide time. He's rangy and physical and is at his best on throws in front. But Douglas' technique is prone to break down on passes downfield and over his head.

27 Malcolm Jenkins

Ohio State | Years Pro: 10 | 6-0, 204

The 30-year-old Jenkins is entering his 10^th NFL season. The two-time Pro Bowler has a 127 career starts and hasn't missed a game in the four years he's been with the Eagles. He's a versatile player who can play both safety spots, drop down and cover the slot or even play LB in some sub-packages.

23 Rodney McLeod

Virginia | Years Pro: 7 | 5-10, 195

McLeod is an excellent compliment to Jenkins. He is a solid run defender with good ball skills who often is used as a single-high safety on passing downs by Jim Schwartz. He has six interceptions the last two years.

24 Corey Graham

New Hampshire | Years Pro: 12 | 6-0, 196

The Eagles re-signed the 33-year-old Graham in mid-August. His safety/corner versatility made him a valuable addition to Schwartz's defense last season. With Graham and Jenkins in the game together, the Eagles had a lot of flexibility in their sub-packages.

37 Tre Sullivan

Shepherd | Years Pro: 1 | 6-0, 220

Sullivan spent part of the 2017 season on the Eagles' practice squad. He was an undrafted free agent out of Division II Shepherd (WV) College. He'll be the team's fourth safety behind starters Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod and Corey Graham.

42 Chris Maragos

Wisconsin | Years Pro: 9 | 5-10, 200

Maragos, 31, still is recovering from a 2017 Week 6 knee injury and probably will open the season on the PUP list. His primary role is on special teams, where he long has been one of the league's top special teams players.

Deiondre' Hall

Northern Iowa | Years Pro: 3 | 6-2, 206

Acquired via trade on Saturday, Hall will come off suspension after Week 1 and provide depth in the secondary. Hall is a converted cornerback who brings coverage skills to safety.

4 Jake Elliott

Memphis | Years Pro: 2 | 5-9, 167

Elliott became a key part of the Eagles' Super Bowl run with his deep field goal range and clutch kicks. He needs to be more consistent on extra points and short field goals, but he's proven to be a weapon for the Eagles.

1 Cameron Johnston

Ohio State | Years Pro: 1 | 5-11, 194

Johnston spent the summer uncontested, but he had a good preseason game and the Eagles are relying on the strong-legged Australian to replace Donnie Jones.

45 Rick Lovato

Old Dominion | Years Pro: 2| 6-2, 249

Lovato was an injury replacement for Jon Dorenbos in 2016 and became the full-time long snapper last season.