Eagles Wake-Up Call: Huff Looks To Bring ‘Nastiness’

Josh Huff is anticipating a rather smooth learning curve in the coming months.

The Eagles’ third-round pick got a taste of what to expect during the team’s three-day rookie camp, and he sees a lot of similarities to the way things were run at Oregon.

“There’s some things that I know in the offense already,” Huff said. “Just getting things separated from the Oregon offense to the Philly offense. The play-calls are different. The hand signals are different. I have to reboot my whole system and get it in order, and that’s why each and every day I stay late, try to get things done here and then go home and study and test myself with Jordan Matthews.”

For many of the Eagles’ new players, getting adjusted to the way Chip Kelly runs things can be a challenge. But for Huff, reuniting with his former coach allows for an easier transition.

And that’s not just with the offensive scheme, but with the way Kelly wants to run the organization also.

“Everything’s the same from what he did at Oregon,” Huff said. “What he did here’s just more complex and it takes a lot more time, whereas at Oregon it was just quick and simple and to the point.”

Asked to expand on his answer, Huff added: “It’s an everyday thing now, whereas Oregon for instance, every Thursday we would do a hydration test, but we do that every day [now]. That’s a key factor in your performance. So that’s an everyday thing for us now.”

As for Huff’s potential role in 2014, it’s tough to rule anything out. If Jeremy Maclin, Riley Cooper and Jordan Matthews stay healthy and meet expectations, Huff will likely be the fourth receiver and see a limited number of snaps on offense, while contributing on special teams.

But given his familiarity with the scheme, Huff could be a surprise contributor on offense. As we pointed out in our No-22 breakdown, Huff plays with an edge that Kelly described as a “nasty presence.”

Asked where that comes from, Huff said: “Just the will to want to win. I love winning. I hate losing more than anything. If you have a mindset to go out and dominate the dude lined up across from you, that’s gonna translate onto your teammates, and that’s gonna make the team better. So that’s just the nastiness that I play with. And hopefully I can bring that to the Philadelphia Eagles.”

Time will tell if Huff gets a chance to contribute immediately, but clearly, he has a lot of things going for him.

WHAT YOU MISSED

Could the Giants top the Eagles in the division this year? Here’s what the national media are saying.

A position-by-position look at the Eagles’ depth chart on defense.

LeSean McCoy on where he ranks among NFL RBs, Johnny Manziel and more.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Tom Mahon of the Daily News notes that the Eagles’ over/under for wins in Vegas is 9:

It puts the Eagles in the top 10 and first among teams in the NFC East. The book has the Cowboys with eight wins, and the Giants and Redskins – now featuring former Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson – with 7 1/2 each.

Brent Cohen of Eagles Rewind looks at some of the Birds’ issues, including an aging offensive line:

The team did not draft an OL. I’ve made it clear that I think the aging line is a big area of risk. The team’s offense revolves around the running game, and Foles isn’t exactly going to run away from guys that get through. I was hoping the team would at least add a late-round OT (those guys have much higher hit rates than any other late-round position). Maybe they means they’re confident in the current depth OL. At some point, though, the Eagles will need to start lining up replacements for Peters and Mathis. Herremans I was kind of hoping would be replaced this offseason…

The danger is in having to replace them all at once. That’s the situation the team should be trying to avoid, because finding one good starter is hard enough. Finding 3 at the same time almost guarantees that you’re going to have a big hole for at least a season or two.

COMING UP

I’m sure McManus has something up his sleeve.