The Philadelphia Eagles will open training camp on Wednesday, July 27. Team activities will begin one day earlier when the Eagles can sign their own free agents and draft picks as well as execute any potential trades. However, veteran free agents can't officially sign until June 29. In addition, they won't be able to practice until the new league year begins on August 4. That means that the training camp at Lehigh will be somewhat jumbled. Still, as an Eagles fan this is welcome news. It's great for the fans and great for the Lehigh community.
The prospect of losing training camp at Lehigh was one of those things that became increasingly possible as the lockout wore on. Every July, Eagles fans migrate to Lehigh to watch the team conduct training camp. It leads to great business for the area. Had there been no training camp, those businesses would have suffered significantly. Still, Eagles fans were already on their way to Lehigh even before the lockout officially ended. They assumed that the players would be there soon and they were right.
It is a little confusing to try and figure out what will happen at this camp. The Eagles are going to be players in the free agency world, which means there won't be a full roster ready to practice until August 4. That might not be a bad thing. The Eagles can evaluate some of the younger players and determine a depth chart. They should have a good idea of who they are going to sign as camp starts and will officially know by the weekend. That means that the Eagles can assume that those signed players will fill certain positions. This training camp is going to be different but it will also be more important than any previous camp. The players and coaches will need to conduct an entire offseason into a couple of short weeks. The preseason opens about two weeks after the team reports to training camp. Everything is going to happen very fast. Despite the adjustments, the Eagles won't be at a disadvantage. Every other NFL team is under the same circumstances. So while training camp might be difficult, it shouldn't hurt the Eagles any more than it would hurt another team. The key will be figuring out a plan to get the new players into the fold as they can.
For the fans, the Lehigh training camp should be special this year. After more than 130 days without any real football activity, the opening of camp is a sure sign that the NFL is back and that the Eagles are gearing up for a 2011 season. It means it's time to forget about the lockout and start thinking about the annual summer event that is training camp. It's a great thing for everyone involved that the Eagles will be able to hold training camp in Lehigh in 2011. Read More
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