It’s not easy to know where to start when it comes to the Eagles’ Wednesday injury report, so let’s start at the beginning.
There were 17 players listed either as not participating or limited participants. That’s darn near a third of the team. Things can only get better as the week goes on, right? At least quarterback Jalen Hurts wasn’t on it.
The Eagles didn’t list the QB on their injury report until last Friday, just before boarding a plane to London. He had a calf injury that he said happened last week in the loss to the Rams.
“It was a very unique experience to say the least,” Hurts said on Wednesday. “I don’t want to get into the details of kind of leading up to the game or whatnot, but I got nicked up in the Rams game.”
It’s why Hurts didn’t take the field at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium until just before kickoff. He was trying to get loose. That could explain why he ran just twice for two yards in the loss to the Jaguars, and the Eagles didn’t try a tush push in short-yardage situations.
So, maybe that’s good news for Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers, because there have to be some worries with an injury report the length of an arm.
Six players did not practice: running backs Saquon Barkley (hamstring) and Will Shipley (foot); safety Michael Carter (abdomen); outside linebacker Jalyx Hunt (knee/ankle); offensive lineman Drew Kendall (knee); and receiver DeVonta Smith (hamstring/toe).
Barkley, Smith, and Kendall missed last week’s game. It was the Eagles’ first game without Kendall since he took over center duties in Week 2.
Smith was counted on to be the team’s No. 1 receiver this season after A.J. Brown was traded, but he missed the previous two games. He was on pace for a career season after three games, with 19 catches on 27 targets for 235 yards and one touchdown.
The Eagles have been in scramble mode. Well, Hurts has, anyway. He was asked about the trust factor with receivers not named Smith, each of them new to the team, except Darius Cooper, who is in just his second year with the Eagles.
“Building a lot of trust, and there’s value in that,” said the QB. “There’s value in those experiences, and ultimately there’s time right now. When I reflect on my experiences as a quarterback, I think about the down times; I think about the times where we had adversity in front of us, and I could look at the guys around me and see how we responded to that. And that gave me the utmost encouragement to be able to build forward and have confidence in what will come.
“And I think the same thing about where we are right now with this group. The plays that are being made and things that are being put on tape and then the conversations that are being had.”
Without Barkley, Shipley and Tank Bigsby, who was put on IR last week, the Eagles will be awfully thin at running back with Dameon Pierce and probably Carson Steele and possibly Jaydon Blue, who is on the practice squad.
Carter’s absence in the secondary could mean that Kenny Moore will have to start at safety, something he has never done before, though he had a good run at that position when Carter left early with his injury.
Players listed as limited were cornerback Jakorian Bennett (knee); receivers Tay Wicks (hamstring) and Hollywood Brown (ankle); tight ends Grant Calcaterra (back), Eli Stowers (quad), and E.J. Jenkins (toe); left guard Landon Dickerson (knee) and right guard Tyler Steen (shoulder); outside linebackers Jonathan Greenard (ankle) and A.J. Epenesa (back); and safety Marcus Epps (groin).
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