“I think each year you go into a season, there’s question marks or, for fans, maybe concerns of what’s this season going to look like? What’s the team going to look like?” McLaurin told ESPN’s John Keim. “And I think a lot of people tend to look at things on paper and try to make assessments or judgments, which I’m not necessarily saying is the wrong thing, it’s human nature, but at the same time, I have a lot of confidence in the guys that we have in the room right now. Somebody’s going to step up. Most of the guys are going to step up, and I think guys are going to be ready for their opportunities. We have guys who have played in the league, we have guys who have had success, we have guys who are just waiting for that opportunity to really show what they can do. As a leader, I’m just looking forward to help pushing the room, having them push me, as well, and I’m looking forward to see who steps up. Because somebody will.”

McLaurin also expressed his confidence that QB Jayden Daniels will be successful given the work he puts in on the practice field.

“I had that opportunity my rookie year, and I think a lot of things that fans may not be able to see is the behind-the-scenes work, the day-to-day actions and habits of these guys,” McLaurin said. “The thing about Jayden, he has a knack for being able to spread the ball around, give guys opportunities. I have the utmost confidence, and it’s not just me, it’s not just Jayden.”

Eagles

Eagles DB Cooper DeJean alternated between cornerback and safety last season, but will now focus on the safety role after the organization signed CB Riq Woolen. DeJean said he’s excited about lining up at safety full-time. 

“I’m excited,” DeJean said, via Zach Berman of The Athletic. “I did it a little bit last year during training camp. I’ve been around it and feel like I’ve gotten to learn all the roles in this defense pretty well. So, yeah, I’m excited. It’s a good challenge for me, just trying to perfect that position now rather than going back and forth from safety to corner to nickel last year, just kind of sticking to that safety and nickel spot now. That’s been fun.”

DeJean mentioned that playing the nickel role in DC Vic Fangio‘s defense is very similar to the safety spot. 

“Playing nickel in this defense is kind of like playing safety in a lot of ways,” DeJean said. “The techniques are pretty similar.”

Eagles DBs coach Joe Kasper thinks DeJean moving further away from the line of scrimmage will allow him to maximize his “visual tools,” and he has translatable skills from playing the nickel role. 

“Anytime you move a little bit further away from the ball, now you’re talking about enhancing your vision and being able to maximize your visual tools, right?” Kasper said. “The trick at safety is now things happen a little bit slower. I’m a little bit further away, but I’ve got to determine angles and space and time and distance a little bit differently. So, we’ve got to get him used to that. Everything that he’s done at nickel, though, indicates that the understanding and feel for time and distance is not a bridge too far for him. That’s where maybe you’d see guys struggle with going from one spot to the other. He doesn’t have those issues that we actually enhance that element within how he plays the nickel position. So to me, it’s another way for us to continue to maximize a resource that we have.”

Giants

• Jeremy Fowler reports that the Giants are working out former SMU S Ahmad Moses, who underwent spinal fusion surgery after learning of a herniated disc during an MRI at the combine.