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Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni addressed if rookie quarterback Cole Payton could play during his first NFL season.
The Philadelphia Eagles added another new quarterback during the 2026 NFL Draft. The Eagles selected North Dakota State’s Cole Payton at No. 178 overall in the fifth round.
Payton will join a quarterback room that already includes Jalen Hurts, Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee.
With three signal-callers already ahead of Payton, the likelihood of the rookie playing in Philadelphia this fall seems slim. But Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni didn’t rule it out when asked about the possibility of Payton seeing the field in 2026.
“We’ll see. We’ll see how that goes. We’re going to get him here, get him acclimated here. We’ll have a chance next weekend at rookie minicamp, learning the playbook,” said Sirianni when asked if he was open to finding a way to get Payton on the field in 2026. “Then we’ll see where we go from there.”
The Eagles head coach made that remark after heaping significant praise on the fifth-round rookie.
“Really, really athletic, really good with the ball in his hands in the quarterback run game, made great decisions with the football, accurate passer,” said Sirianni. “72 percent last year as a starter, and you can’t be that unless you’re making good, accurate throws and going the right place with the ball.
“There are some ‘Wow’ plays on his tape that are really impressive. I think I charted four times he jumped over somebody. Or I wrote down a bunch of times, ‘He’s the best athlete on the field.’”
Dave Holcomb is a sports reporter covering the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Pittsburgh Steelers and a variety of other NFL teams. Originally from Pittsburgh, Holcomb has covered college and professional sports for outlets including FanSided, Rotowire and Yardbarker. More about Dave Holcomb