Tim's Take: News and notes from Eagles camp

Here is an inside look at Eagles camp on Friday:

 BETHLEHEM, Pa - Nnamdi Asomugha made his long anticipated Eagles debut on Friday. As did Cullen Jenkins, who may be one of the only sure things at a shaky defensive tackle spot right now.

One interesting nugget with the new free agents was that Jason Babin, the former Titans defensive end the Eagles gave big money to, worked with the second team for most of the morning practice while Juqua Parker ran with the first team.

So I'm emptying my notebook from Friday's practice. Here are my notes:

Nnamdi looked taller than his listed height of 6-foot-2. It's easy to see why he was matched up with every team's best receiver - Brandon Marshall, Andre Johnson, and the rest of the AFC's best - because he can see eye-to-eye with them at the line of scrimmage. Not many corners can say that.

He was certainly eager to start. Near the beginning of practice, during a position drill, Asomugha wanted to go first in a backpedaling drill and his coach had to reel him in, making Curtis Marsh go first. It was, after all, Asomugha's first day of practice.

Later, during passing drills he allowed a few completions. But to his credit it looked like the Eagles coaches didn't keep him consistently in position.

In dime situations, which is what the Eagles started in 11 on 11, Nnamdi was lined up inside over the tight end, almost playing like a linebacker, according to Joselio Hanson.

"No more tight ends killing us," Hanson said.

Then, Asomugha lined up at right cornerback in the Eagles' base 4-3 defense. With all of the cornerbacks on the Eagles roster, too, Asomugha didn't see as many reps as you would expect, and he looked upset when one drill ended before he could get back in. Consistency was rare on this day.

His first interception came in a 7-on-7 drill. After having allowed a completion, defensive coordinator Juan Castillo went over to talk to him for half a minute before Asomugha got back to it, lining up across from Chad Hall in the slot. Vince Young dropped back and tried to thread the needle to Hall in the seam, but Asomugha glided in front of the ball and made the athletic play look easy for the smooth, lanky corner.

"Look like [No.] 22 out there, I like it," Asante Samuel told Asomugha when he got back to the sidelines.

Samuel, of course, is No. 22.

Both Sinorice Moss and Riley Cooper have been used a lot for screen passes and slants, certainly more than the other receivers.

The two could not be more different in stature: Moss is 5-8 and wiry strong, and Cooper is all of 6-3, 222 pounds.

During full team 11-on-11s and one-on-one drills, Cooper used his size to box out the smaller corners on slants and has shown sure hands. That's expected. But Moss has been physical himself. He's not afraid to run through a guy to get the ball, and his quick feet work well in tight space.

In one instance in a one-on-one drill, Moss ran right into the body of a safety, the 6-2, 215-pound Jamar Adams, outmuscling him to the inside on a slant before getting his hands free for the catch.

The bubble screens, where the inside receivers crash into defenders to block, are especially intriguing involving these two. Moss has the speed to exploit the smallest hole, and Cooper has the size to run over defensive backs if he gets rolling.

In fairness to Moss and Cooper, while neither is DeSean Jackson or Jeremy Maclin, the two of them have repeatedly made plays down the field, too. Moss has been lined up out wide, which may seem odd considering his size, but his route running and hands have rewarded the decision.

The Eagles offense will get fancier than this when Jackson returns from his holdout and Reid can dig into his Wildcat playbook, which should be fun to watch with Ronnie Brown, Jackson and potentially Michael Vick all in play.

On Friday in one trick play, Jason Avant took the snap and handed the ball to LeSean McCoy on the end-around, then he flipped the ball to Vick, who was lined up wide. Meanwhile, Avant had released downfield, but Nate Allen had read the play perfectly and was with Avant every step of the way.

Vick floated the pass downfield, but Allen made a great leaping tip to get the crowd going.

New Eagles running back Ronnie Brown said that the No. 36 was assigned to him when he arrived. Brian Westbrook's reign as an Eagle is now an afterthought. But that doesn't mean Brown won't play like Westbrook.

During 7-on-7s, Brown lined up in the slot as a receiver. He didn't see many passes come his way, and he looked like a bigger knock-you-out guy than the scoot-around-you Westbrook.

Brown is two inches taller and 30 pounds heavier than Westbrook.

Previously, Brown did say that Reid had discussed using Brown in unique ways, like catching the ball as a running back. Versatility has been a key ever since Westbrook wore No. 36.

Vince Young struggles to the naked eye, and Reid praises enthusiastic Mike Kafka, who was the second-team quarterback on Friday. Rightfully so considering he has been in the Eagles offense longer and has been working all throughout training camp, while Young was forced to sit and watch.

Young does have a cannon of an arm, like Reid pointed out during his press conference. But Young's passes were often inaccurate or too strong. He never seemed to settle down, but Reid liked how Young would jump in and prove he was eager to get more reps.

The battle for Vick's backup is on.

The cornerback battle at the lower level is an interesting one. Curtis Marsh made several great plays on Friday, while Joselio Hanson was grouped with the top three corners and struggled at times.

Marsh had an impressive interception during one-on-ones when he dropped back and had the receiver covered so well that the receiver over ran the pass. So Marsh contorted his body and intercepted it, falling to the ground.

Samuel celebrated by spiking the ball, of course.

Marsh could be pushing Hanson, who seemed to still retain his position as nickel cornerback. But Vick completed a 15-yard pass to Brent Celek in 7-on-7s with Hanson in coverage at one point. Later, in consecutive plays during a 7-on-7 drill, Avant and Celek hauled in passes with Hanson on them both times.

Although, he did slightly redeem himself with a nice breakup of a Kafka pass intended for Hall a few plays later, earning himself a Juan Castillo high five.

Hanson lined up at right cornerback with Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie at left on the second-team defense.

Rodgers-Cromartie will be an interesting story to watch. He played with the second-team in the base defense at left cornerback. But it seemed as if Hanson was getting the reps as a third cornerback when the team went to nickel packages. And Rodgers-Cromartie was rotated in with Asomugha at right cornerback on the first team earlier in the day.

So it's unclear what the Eagles' plan is with DRC.

As the Eagles have maintained to this point: the more the merrier, right?

Babin went through the afternoon walk-through with the first team, an upgrade from the morning. And DRC stayed on the second team at the left corner. Hanson was still nickel back.

Eagles' legend Chuck Bednarik was on hand to watch the Eagles practice. He wore all black, with the only color on his shirt being an old-school Eagles logo. Who knows how the former linebacker felt when the Eagles started their 11-on-11 drills in the dime package, with only one linebacker-Jamar Chaney-on the field.

Wide receiver Johnnie Lee Higgins and tight end Donald Lee were finally allowed to practice, too. Higgins made one real nice tip-toed catch near the sidelines during 7-on-7s, and Lee was active with the backups, too. It will be an uphill climb for either veteran to make this dream team.

Jason Kelce, the rookie center drafted out of Cincinnati, split time with Jamaal Jackson at center. We'll see if the Eagles think he can start or are just protecting themselves in case of another Jackson injury. Check back for more on Kelce in tomorrow's Inquirer.