That play never happened, but it definitely helped Tristin McCollum in his efforts to earn a spot on the Eagles’ roster.
Early in the first quarter of the Eagles’ final game of the season against the Vikings at the Linc on Saturday, McCollum intercepted a long ball from Jaren Hall intended for Trishton Jackson and returned it 36 yards. That one snap showcased McCollum’s instincts, coverage skills and athleticism.
The fact that it was nullified by a penalty against Cooper DeJean didn’t matter. We all got to see a glimpse of what McCollum had done all summer in training camp.
And that’s why he’s now on the Eagles’ 53-man roster.
“Tristin has obviously flashed in games and done some really good things that we’ve all seen, but he’s also been consistent in what he’s done in practice,” Nick Sirianni said. “He’s got great athletic ability that can help on special teams. I’m really happy for him. As sad as we are for the guys that don’t make it … you’re really happy for a guy like Tristin. Because he deserves it.”
McCollum went undrafted in 2022 out of Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. He spent his rookie year on the Texans’ practice squad, but the Eagles picked him up after the season as a futures contract player, and he spent last year on the Eagles’ practice squad, where he was a game-day call-up for four games, including the playoff loss to the Bucs.
This is an interesting group of backup safeties. James Bradberry is a 31-year-old veteran who has never played safety. Avonte Maddox is a 28-year-old veteran who has played primarily as a slot corner. Sydney Brown is a 24-year-old 3rddraft pick who is still recovering from a torn ACL from last January. And then there’s McCollum, one of eight undrafted players who made the final cuts on Tuesday.
The Tristin McCollum we saw this year looked nothing like the 2023 version.
“Night and day,” he said. “Last year, the game was very, very fast for me mentally. This year, I had a chance to get into the playbook a lot and tighten the screws in the offseason. That allowed me to come in with a good footing when the game slowed down tremendously. I was able to go through my development nice and easy and calm and that just made all the difference.”
McCollum played 82 special teams games in his four game-day appearances last year. His only defensive appearances – 29 of them – came in the season-ending loss to the Giants, mostly after the game and the Eagles’ playoff fate had already been decided.
It wasn’t much, but enough to make a difference.
“That was really, really important,” he said. “This experience is so great, especially for a player like me who only gets a lot of effort in training. So when you have a lot of good players around you, it makes a big difference to go out there and experience the stadium, play with a lot of high effort guys.”
A taste of the NFL also gave McCollum a sense of belonging, which was reflected in his performance in training camp.
“Last year I was very nervous,” he said. “It was my first time on a new team and the first time I was dealing with different guys. The nervousness – sometimes I think too much. That got the better of me, but this year I decided to put the overthinking to bed, just lock up my keys and just play my game.”
McCollum learned in his first two NFL training camps that he wasn’t doing enough. He did everything that was asked of him, but when you go undrafted, you always have to do more than what is asked of you to stand out from the drafted players with big contracts.
“I always studied the playbook more and more and never thought I understood it,” he said. “I always went home and studied even more and took extra notes. I was always purposeful in the meeting room so that when I get there, I don’t have to think about what I have to do. I just know and I can just act.”
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