Eagles 2025 Position Group Report Cards: Special Teams

Part 10 of our 10-part series grading every Eagles position group from the 2025 season. The finale: special teams.

Overall Grade: C

Special teams is supposed to be the invisible unit — the one that does its job, stays off the back page, and lets the offense and defense win games. For most of the 2025 season, the Eagles' third phase was exactly that: quietly competent, occasionally excellent, and only intermittently frustrating. But "intermittently frustrating" is a generous way to describe a unit that ranked 14th in PFF's special teams grades and featured the worst 50-plus-yard field goal kicker in the NFL over a two-year stretch. Michael Clay's group had genuine bright spots — Braden Mann was outstanding, and the coverage units were mostly solid — but the kicking game's decline casts a long shadow over the whole operation.

Jake Elliott: A Legend Running Out of Runway

This is the hardest paragraph to write in this entire series. Jake Elliott is an Eagles legend — a two-time Super Bowl champion, the franchise's all-time leading scorer, and the guy who drilled a 61-yard bomb as a rookie to announce himself to Philadelphia. His Super Bowl LIX performance — four-for-four on field goals, 16 points, a record-setting night — was one of the defining moments of the championship run. He's earned the right to be remembered as one of the greatest kickers in franchise history.

But 2025 was not good. Elliott connected on just 20 of 27 field goals during the regular season — a 74 percent clip that puts him in the bottom tier of NFL kickers. The damage was concentrated at distance: Elliott went just 4-for-8 from 50-plus yards. Over the last two seasons combined, he's converted a league-worst 33.3 percent from 50-plus among qualified kickers. In an era where teams like the Lions and Ravens have kickers drilling from 60, that kind of regression isn't something you can ignore.

At 31, Elliott isn't ancient, but the trajectory is concerning. His four-year extension signed in 2024 complicates things — cutting him before June 1 would balloon his cap hit. The smart play is to bring in genuine competition this offseason and let the best leg win. Elliott has earned that respect. But the Eagles can't afford to ride loyalty into a 2026 season where three points from 52 yards is a coin flip.

Braden Mann: The MVP of the Third Phase

If Elliott's season was a disappointment, Braden Mann's was a revelation. The former Jet averaged 49.9 gross yards per punt with a 43.1-yard net average, both career highs. Those numbers are even more impressive when you factor in the new kickoff rules that had Mann handling a significant portion of kickoff duties throughout the season. He was a weapon in the directional punting game, consistently pinning opponents inside their own 20 and flipping field position in tight games.

Mann also deserves credit for his work as Elliott's holder. Snap-to-hold consistency matters more than fans realize, and Mann was seamless all year. He's set to hit free agency, and the Eagles would be making a mistake to let him walk. Finding a punter who can boom it nearly 50 yards a pop, handle kickoffs, and hold kicks with precision isn't easy. Mann should be a priority re-signing.

The Long Snapper Carousel

The Eagles parted ways with longtime long snapper Rick Lovato after the Super Bowl LIX victory and brought in Charley Hughlett, a 10-year veteran who spent most of his career with the Browns. Hughlett was steady when healthy, but core muscle surgery during the season forced Philadelphia to split duties with Cal Adomitis. Both performed well enough that you probably didn't notice — which is the highest compliment you can pay a long snapper. Hughlett is currently a free agent. The position isn't glamorous, but stability here matters for Elliott's confidence and rhythm. The Eagles need to lock someone down early.

Return Game: Steady but Unspectacular

Britain Covey remained the primary punt returner in 2025, though his role was less dynamic than in previous seasons. Covey is a reliable ball-catcher who won't muff punts and makes smart decisions about when to fair catch, but the explosive returns that defined his 2022 rookie season have been harder to come by. Cooper DeJean filled in capably when Covey dealt with injuries, flashing the athleticism that made him a second-round pick. The new kickoff rules shuffled responsibilities, and the return game as a whole was a middle-of-the-pack operation — you weren't winning games on returns, but you weren't losing them either.

Coverage Units: Quietly Effective

One area where Michael Clay's fingerprints were clearly visible was the coverage units. The Eagles didn't give up any return touchdowns in 2025, and the gunners consistently forced fair catches and tackled well in space. Guys like Quez Watkins and other roster-fringe contributors earned their spots by showing up on special teams Sundays. Clay's units were well-drilled and disciplined — a blocked punt returned for a touchdown against the Saints in Week 4 was the kind of splash play that showed this unit could win games when called upon.

Michael Clay: The Coordinator Question

Clay interviewed with the Buccaneers for their head coaching vacancy in January, a testament to how highly he's regarded around the league. He's been the Eagles' special teams coordinator since 2021, shepherding the unit through five consecutive postseason berths and two Super Bowl appearances. His players love him — the NFLPA report card gave Clay an A grade — and his schemes are consistently well-prepared. He's back in 2026, and continuity at the coordinator spot is valuable when everything else around the coaching staff has been in flux.

The Bottom Line

A C grade feels right for a unit that was competent but not championship-caliber. Braden Mann was legitimately excellent and deserves recognition as one of the better punters in football. The coverage teams were solid. But Elliott's decline from an All-Pro kicker to a bottom-tier performer at distance drags the entire grade down. When you can't trust your kicker from 50, you're leaving points on the field and forcing your offense to convert in spots where three points should be automatic.

The offseason priorities are clear: re-sign Mann, bring in kicking competition, stabilize the long snapper position, and let Clay continue doing what he does best. Special teams won't win the Eagles a second straight Super Bowl by itself — but a few missed kicks in January could absolutely lose one.

This concludes our 10-part Eagles 2025 Position Group Report Cards series. Thanks for reading along. Next up: a brand new series breaking down the Eagles' offseason strategy heading into 2026.