Philadelphia Eagles second-round pick Landon Dickerson is set to make his NFL debut this Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. After missing all of training camp, Dickerson was left off the PUP list to start the year and now we see why.
With Dickerson now fully healthy, should we expect to see him on the field this week?
It’s hard to say. The Eagles offensive line was pretty stellar in their Week 1 performance against Atlanta. On 35 passing attempts, Jalen Hurts was only pressured on 17.9 percent of those snaps. Four of the five starting lineman finished with a PFF pass-blocking grade over 75.
They were also very efficient in the running game. The team totaled 173 yards on the ground with a YPC average of 5.6 last week. Their 173 yard total was the second-most of any team in the league Week 1 — No. 1 being Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens.
There’s no clear avenue for Dickerson to get immediate playing time at the moment. His natural position is center — unless there’s an injury to Jason Kelce, there’s no chance Dickerson overtakes him for the starting job. Both of the guard positions are also solidified with their starters in Isaac Seumalo on the left and Brandon Brooks on the right.
Some may argue that Dickerson would be an upgrade over Seumalo, which may or may not be true, but Seumalo is coming off an outstanding performance in Week 1. His 88.4 pass-blocking grade per PFF was the highest among all guards last week.
He was pretty damn good in the run game too. His block sprung Kenny Gainwell on his first touchdown in the NFL.
When asked during Friday’s press conference, Nick Sirianni didn’t divulge much in terms of how they plan to use Dickerson now that he’s healthy. In short yardage situations, maybe we’ll see Dickerson used as an extra blocker. Who knows?
Regardless, Dickerson provides great depth along the line. Personally, I’d love to see them put Dickerson in there and move Jordan Mailata into the backfield for at least one play. You’re telling me you don’t want to see this guy toting the rock?
Please make this happen. Please.
Football season is finally here! Get in the action by signing up for BetMGM. New users will get a risk free first bet up to $1,000. Sign up here to get started.