Despite having no collegiate or NFL starts at the position, Cam Jurgens is receiving the first crack at the starting right guard spot for the Philadelphia Eagles.
As the Eagles dusted off their helmets and cleats for day one of training camp on Wednesday, Jurgens ran out with the first-team offense as the starting right guard.
“That’s where we’ll start today, and we’ll see how that plays out,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. “We got some good options there as well, so looking forward to seeing how that battle plays itself out.”
Drafted by the Eagles in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft, Jurgens played 44 total snaps as a rookie last season, all of which were at center. In practice last season, he did cross-train at both guard positions. But during his college days at Nebraska, Jurgens only played at center, starting there in 31 of 32 career games after initially being recruited to play tight end.
The Eagles are looking for a new starting right guard because last year’s starter, Isaac Seumalo, signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers in free agency in the spring. Seumalo started at right guard for the Eagles in all of their 20 games in the 2022-2023 season. With his departure and the return of 13-year veteran center Jacon Kelce, the most straightforward path for Jurgens to become a starter is to slide over to the right.
Back in the spring, Jurgens dished on how he felt about the transition.
“It’s not as challenging as going from tight end to center, so that helps,” said Jurgens, who came to Nebraska as a tight end before moving to center. “It’s been fun. It’s super helpful having Kelce next to me, telling me how things are supposed to be done. Watching (left guard) Landon (Dickerson) do it, and Isaac was a pro at it last year. You just watch film every day. Watch what those guys do. And how Isaac handled himself, all his footwork. You don’t have to have the same footwork. I think I can still go in and still be an athlete at right guard as I can at center.”
At the time, Jurgens added the mental challenge of moving to guard is having to communicate with both the right tackle and center. It’s something Dickerson picked up rather quickly after he moved from center at Alabama to left guard when the Eagles drafted him in the second round in 2021. But Dickerson did play other offensive line positions in college.
Like Jurgens, Dickerson was drafted as an eventual successor to Kelce. But after being selected to the Pro Bowl last season, Dickerson is most likely entrenched at left guard.
Kelce details the challenges of playing guard
Having more than a decade of experience in the league, Kelce described the challenges of switching to guard when he spoke to the media on Wednesday.
“We’ve had one day at it, and he’s doing good,” Kelce said of Jurgens. “I think once we get pads on and everything, it’ll be more apparent. I thought he did some really good things today and (had) a couple really good blocks. We’re just trying to iron everything out together and be on the same page. For him, he’s used to guard, that he’s never played before, not even in college. So there’s a little bit of differences there. You’re already off the ball … You’re more of the aggressor at guard than at center. But he has a tremendous skill set.”
Another challenger
Also vying for a starting role to the right of Kelce is Tyler Steen, who the Eagles selected in the third round of this year’s draft. Steen played offensive tackle in college but is listed as a guard on the roster.
“He’s smart, he’s coachable, he learns well and I think he does a lot of things really well. So I’m super excited about what he’s going to bring to this team,” Jurgens said of Steen in the spring.
Previous experience may be a non-factor
Excluding Dickerson, Philadelphia has five players on its roster listed as full-time guards. Of those five players, Sua Opeta is the only one with any career starts at right guard, and he only has one at the position.
Jack Driscoll, who is listed as a tackle/guard, has eight career starts at right guard, all of which came in 2021.
Projecting the Eagles’ starting offensive line
Outside of right guard, Philadelphia’s offensive line is likely set in stone, barring any injuries.
If Jurgens wins the job and last year’s starters remain the same, here is the projected offensive line ahead of the 2023 season:
- Left tackle: Jordan Mailata
- Left guard: Landon Dickerson
- Center: Jason Kelce
- Right guard: Cam Jurgens
- Right tackle: Lane Johnson
