Whose stock is up, whose is down after Eagles’ second preseason game

The Eagles beat the Bills 20-16 Thursday night, but the score couldn’t matter less. What matters is what happened on the field as the Eagles evaluate and prepare their roster for the 2017 season. 

Here’s a look at who helped and hurt their stock in the game:

Stock Up

Ronald Darby, cornerback

The loss of Jordan Matthews was certainly felt around the locker room; likewise, the addition of Ronald Darby was felt on the field. In his debut, Darby played aggressive, breaking up a pass early on before jumping a route for his first interception with the Eagles. The performance from Darby certainly was inspiring, giving the fans hope that maybe this secondary can hold up after all.

Derek Barnett, defensive end

The first round pick followed his impressive debut last week with another strong showing. Barnett picked up a pair of quarterback hits, including a sack. Through two games, Barnett has racked up three sacks and continues to beat offensive linemen off the snap. It’ll be worth watching over the remaining two preseason games if and how much Barnett gets snaps with the first team.

Corey Clement, running back

With Darren Sproles, LeGarrette Blount and Donnell Pumphrey holding down roster spots, the likely final spot among the running backs is going to come down to Wendell Smallwood and Corey Clement. So far, Clement has flashed while Smallwood has been unable to make much noise because of his injury. Clement, an undrafted free agent, added to his case by picking up his first rushing touchdown on Thursday while tacking on 34 yards, averaging four-plus yards a pop.

Stock Down

Donnel Pumphrey, running back

Labeled a playmaker who mirrors Darren Sproles, Pumphrey has yet to back up that claim thus far in the preseason. Through two games, he’s hardly made an impact. He caught both of his targets on Thursday for 20 yards, but he turned his three rushes into negative three yards. This coming after his debut in which he muffed a punt and struggled with ball security on the few touches he had.

Matt McGloin, quarterback

Nick Foles has yet to take a snap this preseason, and he’s already won the backup role. While McGloin was going to have a tough time making this roster anyways, he’s done absolutely nothing to warrant even consideration. The offense has been a dud with him under center. He threw another pick against the Bills and appears to be operating on borrowed time here in Philadelphia.

Offensive line

It’s hard to single anyone out on the line, so this stock down consists of the collective group. The first-team offense struggled to get moving, especially LeGarrette Blount. The former New England tailback managed just eight yards on five carries with most of those runs getting cut down at the line as a result of missed blocks. Carson Wentz was sacked, as well, in the limited time he saw. If this Eagles offense is going to reach its potential, it’ll need this line to work out its kinks now before the season kicks off.