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Cole Payton brings juice to an otherwise lifeless Eagles preseason opener

nbcphiladelphia.com · 6h · first reportShare

BALTIMORE — The Eagles’ offense looked pretty lifeless for most of its preseason opener against the Ravens on Saturday night. Then Cole Payton entered the game. The fifth-round pick from North Dakota State played the fourth quarter gave the Eagles some juice. “What an opportunity, what a cool environment and then to get to strap it up for the first time with an NFL logo on my chest,” Payton said after the 24-7 loss. “It was a lot of fun. “Just a ton of excitement. This is what you dream of, this is what you work for. A ton of excitement.” Payton, 23, entered the game early in the fourth quarter and flashed. Before Payton got in, the Eagles had just 77 net yards of offense and just two first downs through three quarters with veterans Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee at quarterback. In the fourth quarter with Payton, the Eagles had 82 net yards and four first downs. They were also able to break up the shutout with a late fourth-quarter touchdown drive. Payton threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to