Injuries are nothing new for our Philadelphia Eagles. The past three seasons we’ve seen extensive injuries to key players, and we’ve witnessed position groups get absolutely ravaged due to injuries.
Heading into camp this year, the team seemed to be relatively healthy. With the exception of Alshon Jeffery who’s currently on the Active/PUP list, every other key starter looked ready to go once they hit the practice field.
With the team hitting the field in full pads for the first time today, we learned that the team is actually not at full strength. The team’s first injury report indicated a handful of players missing some time; J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and Jason Peters are day-to-day with a lower body injuries, Duke Riley is out with an illness.
But the two that jump out the most are the injuries along the defensive line, where both Derek Barnett and newly signed Javon Hargrave could miss multiple weeks. It’s unclear how these injuries occurred or exactly what they are. Barnett is listed as week-to-week with a lower body injury, while Hargrave is listed as out for multiple weeks with an upper body injury.
The Barnett injury doesn’t seem as severe as Hargrave’s given the fact that he’s listed as week-to-week as opposed to flat out being sidelined for multiple weeks, but neither of these are ideal obviously.
Jim Schwartz’s entire defensive scheme is predicated on getting consistent pressure with his front four and having ample depth to ensure every pass rusher stays fresh throughout the game. The starting four may not take much of a hit with Malik Jackson stepping in for Hargrave and Vinny Curry stepping in for Barnett, but the rotation is where these injuries really hurt.
Hopefully neither of these injuries linger into the regular season. The last thing any fan wants to see is another position group get decimated by injuries.
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