Eagles practice: Brandon Graham energized; Gardner Minshew with more INTs; Jalen Reagor hanging on

The Eagles held their ninth open practice of the 2022 training camp at the NovaCare Complex on Tuesday. Here were my 10 observations from Days 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. Let’s get to the action from Day 9:

BG staying alive. Coach Nick Sirianni moved up practice an hour to compensate for heat for the second time this camp. The humidity made it probably the most oppressive workout thus far. Players were hunched over throughout practice as Sirianni, on a megaphone, tried to ratchet up the intensity. He has been questioned for dialing back on the number and length of practices, but Tuesday’s 1-hour, 30-minute session had to be grueling enough.

At least one guy, though, seemed to be having a ball. Brandon Graham is one of the few players on the roster to have endured two-a-days and Andy Reid’s three-hour death marches. The longest-tenured Eagle always brings the energy, but he also looks like a veteran who isn’t taking his 13th season for granted. Graham missed most of last season after an Achilles tendon rupture and may not be a bona fide starter anymore, but he clearly doesn’t want to be an afterthought.

» READ MORE: Eagles’ Jason Kelce has ‘routine clean-out’ elbow surgery; source says he’ll return before opener

He’s been one of the more consistent performers in camp and again caused headaches for Sirianni’s offense on Tuesday. Graham wasn’t fooled by motion at the snap and a misdirection flip to running back Miles Sanders and easily disposed of receiver Zach Pascal’s block for a stop in the backfield. A play later, he notched a “sack” after quarterback Jalen Hurts was forced off his first read.

Earlier in camp, Graham did most of his damage against backup right tackle Jack Driscoll, but he’s getting more first-unit snaps vs. Lane Johnson and beat him late in practice for his second credited “sack.” Josh Sweat and Haason Reddick are the Eagles’ younger edge rushers, but the 34-year-old Graham has been competing as if he’s reluctant to forfeit playing time.

Kelce on the shelf. Jason Kelce was the most significant addition to the injury report. The center underwent arthroscopic surgery on his elbow on Tuesday. The Eagles deemed the procedure a “routine clean-out” and an NFL source said that the team expects him back by the season opener on Sept. 11. Kelce has dealt with nagging elbow pain for some time.

He has played through myriad injuries on the way to 122 consecutive regular-season starts. But the 34-year old is no spring chicken and the Eagles will have to be careful with his return. Kelce’s absence should afford rookie Cam Jurgens plenty of opportunity to get ready in case of emergency. He hasn’t looked overwhelmed, but it’s early.

As for other new injuries, running back Kenny Gainwell (hip) and receiver John Hightower (groin) were inactive. Joining them on the sideline: receiver DeVonta Smith (groin), running back Boston Scott (concussion), tight end Grant Calcaterra (hamstring), safety Jaquiski Tartt (personal reasons), receiver Greg Ward (toe), tackle Le’Raven Clark (hamstring), cornerback Kary Vincent (groin), cornerback Jimmy Moreland (ankle), and receiver Keric Wheatfall (hamstring).

On the good-news front, left tackles Jordan Mailata and Andre Dillard were out of concussion protocol and were limited participants.

Love connection. Another practice, and another opportunity for Hurts to target A.J. Brown significantly more than any other receiver. I’m no fantasy football guy, but Brown seems poised to see more passes come his way than in his previous three seasons when he averaged just shy of 100 targets.

During the “backed up” portion of team drills, Hurts’ first attempt went to Brown on a 10-yard out route. On the next play, he went back to Brown on a hitch route, but their timing was a touch off, and linebacker Davion Taylor’s tight coverage resulted in an incompletion. Later, after a play was whistled dead pre-snap, Hurts looked to Brown on a slant.

Hurts had another pass sail through Browns’ hands, off a safety, and directly to tight end Dallas Goedert for a short gain. While it’s likely that Smith’s absence has increased Brown’s targets, Brown’s size and skill set make him an obvious go-to guy on shorter routes. He has been one of the better yards-after-catch receivers in the NFL. Fans got to see what he can do downfield on his diving grab at the Linc on Sunday, but Brown’s most explosive moments may come after the catch when the football is live.

Cornering the market. Avonte Maddox has silently had another impressive camp. I choose “silently” because he hasn’t seen many passes come his way, which for a cornerback often means that he’s doing something right. Maddox is often matched up against Quez Watkins and the slot receiver just hasn’t been involved as much as he was in camp a year ago. Brown’s arrival is one reason. But Maddox has been another.

Britain Covey got matched up vs. Maddox in one-on-ones. It was a short route and Maddox was playing inside leverage, but the rookie receiver, who has been a camp darling, displayed the quickness that Sirianni spoke about two days ago.

Watkins did have a couple of back-to-back grabs later in team drills, even though he appeared to be fighting through something prior to the set.

Passing grade. The Eagles obviously want to improve a passing offense that finished near the bottom in many categories last season. Brown should help. Smith and Watkins should mature. Goedert should benefit from an entire season as the TE1. And the offensive line, at least on paper, is still a top-tier unit.

But Hurts remains the big question mark. Playing in the same system for the second year in a row — and for the first time since high school — should make him a better passer. But that doesn’t mean it will be so. He got off to a rough start and hasn’t exactly lit camp on fire, but he has settled into a comfortable pace over the last week.

The interceptions that plagued his first three practices are no longer. He has mostly thrown the ball away or scrambled when necessary. But there just hasn’t been enough consistency through the air. Not having his top two left tackles hasn’t helped matters.

» READ MORE: 10 years ago, Garrett Reid’s death at training camp at Lehigh forever altered the Eagles

In the “backed up” period, Hurts had good throws to Brown and Goedert. He also had a long scramble when linebackers broke containment. But during the rest of team drills, the vertical passing game was lacking, as it has been for most of camp. It’s way too early to panic. Getting Smith back will help. And Friday’s preseason game along with joint practices with the Browns and Dolphins will give a better read on the passing game’s progress. But I can’t recall a camp with so few attempts down the field.

Rushing roulette. Gainwell and Scott’s absences meant more rushes for Jason Huntley. Sanders has logged the most touches and had a couple of strong carries. But Huntley was a busy bee and ripped off a couple of chunk-sized runs.

Could he force the Eagles to keep four running backs? My guess would be no. Huntley would have to be viewed as the top returner, but with Covey getting more return repetitions than most, Huntley could be on the outside looking in.

The Eagles could be inclined to sign or trade for a running back, perhaps a bigger-bodied one, who could step in for Sanders in case of emergency. Scott has done the job before, but Gainwell remains unknown in terms of being able to carry the load on the ground.

Minshew moments. I didn’t watch all of seven-on-sevens as I typically like to focus my attention on D-line/O-line one-on-ones. But each time I glanced over, Gardner Minshew seemed to be throwing an interception. I’m not sure how much the first fell on his shoulders. Safety K’Von Wallace made a diving break on the pass and deflected the ball to Taylor for an interception. Wallace hasn’t excelled much in camp, but he did there.

Minshew’s second pick was probably more his fault, but cornerback Josiah Scott was able to secure another pass that was deflected. Sirianni wasn’t pleased with his offense during the seven-on-seven period. The backup quarterback rebounded during team drills and hooked up with receiver Jalen Reagor over the middle. He also found tight end Richard Rodgers in space at the second level.

Rumors of Reagor’s demise have been exaggerated. He won’t be released. He’s been relatively steady in camp and the Eagles also have 8 million other reasons ($) for not cutting ties with their former first-round draft pick.

Strong willed. Carson Strong probably doesn’t have a future in Philadelphia. Is it too early to pull the curtain on the undrafted rookie quarterback? Maybe he could return on the practice squad. But making the 53-man roster seems unlikely. Strong hasn’t taken a team snap in the last two practices. He hasn’t really done much at all, in fact. And when he has dropped from under center, the results have been mostly subpar.

Strong likely has a couple of preseason games to make his case. But the Eagles have invested more time in Reid Sinnett, who could possibly sneak on the roster as the third quarterback. The third-string offense saw only a handful of team drills. Sinnett tossed a dart to Devon Allen that went through his hands. The receiver did hang onto a shorter throw on a slant.

The returns on Covey. Covey, as mentioned above, has been featured on both punt and kick returns. He’s mostly been sure-handed and will likely see his share of kicks in the preseason. During one return drill, he held a football in one hand, and just before he caught a punt, threw it in the air and pulled it in with his free hand.

And a few leftovers … Vic Fangio was again a guest at practice. That’s at least three days I’ve spotted the former Broncos coach at NovaCare. How much pressure does the Eagles front office want to apply to Jonathan Gannon? … The Eagles practice on Wednesday for the last time before Friday night’s preseason opener against the New York Jets. Thursday will be a walk-through.