December 13, 2020
The Philadelphia Eagles will be facing a very healthy team on Sunday in the New Orleans Saints, even if the Saints will be missing their starting quarterback, Drew Brees.
Here are the Eagles' and Saints' inactives, with analysis.
• LB T.J. Edwards: Edwards has been the Eagles' No. 2 LB, and his absence could especially hurt with Taysom Hill starting at quarterback for the Saints, as Edwards is better against the run than the pass.
• CB Michael Jacquet: Jacquet has gotten playing time against the Cowboys and Packers, and wasn't exposed by either team. He's a player who should be getting a look down the stretch, if he gets healthy again.
• S Rudy Ford: Ford and Craig James, arguably the Eagles' two best special teams players, are both out.
• S Grayland Arnold: Arnold played on special teams last Sunday, and had a nice hit.
• WR John Hightower: A little bit of a surprise here. Quez Watkins is up, Hightower down. Alshon Jeffery dresses again for reasons that make no sense.
• RB Jason Huntley: RB4.
• QB Nate Sudfeld: QB3.
• RT Lane Johnson: Johnson's season is over, as his recurring ankle issues continue. We covered Johnson in more depth here. His season is over.
• WR DeSean Jackson: Jackson played three games, missed three games, returned for one game, and is probably done for the season. Predictably, relying on Jackson to stay healthy this season at this stage of his career was a mistake.
• OL Jason Peters: As Doug Pederson announced on Friday, Peters' season is over. More on JP here, if you're interested. Jordan Mailata was already starting at LT. Nate Herbig will start at RG.
• LB Nate Gerry: Alex Singleton has taken over Gerry's role as the Eagles' three-down linebacker, and has played better.
• DT Hassan Ridgeway: Ridgeway went on IR with a biceps injury. Because the Eagles were (previously) fortunate not to see any of their top three DTs miss any substantial time through the first six games, Ridgeway didn't get a a ton of snaps, but he was productive when he was on the field. Ridgeway had 11 tackles (2 for loss) and a sack on 137 snaps this year. His season is over.
• LB Davion Taylor: As a rookie third-round pick, Taylor was no better than the fifth linebacker in the Eagles' rotation.
• CB Cre'Von LeBlanc: Nickell Robey-Coleman is now getting all the reps in the slot.
• CB Craig James: Out with a shoulder injury.
• OG Sua Opeta: "Notable" is maybe a stretch here, but he did start two games.
• LT Andre Dillard (season-ending IR): Dillard struggled as a rookie, and he came into camp as a clear player of interest, as he was poised to start at LT this season. He was up and down in camp, with the "down" moments being alarming. Dillard injured his biceps, and is done for the season.
• RG Brandon Brooks (PUP): Brooks was in the conversation for 'best RG in the NFL," so obviously, losing him for the year has hurt. The Eagles have had a revolving door at RG all season.
• WR Marquise Goodwin: Goodwin was a veteran wide receiver with speed that the Eagles took a flier on, as something of an possible in-game replacement for DeSean Jackson.
• DT Malcom Brown: 24 tackles, 1 sack in 12 games this season.
• CB Patrick Robinson: Yep, that Patrick Robinson.
We'll update with the rest of the Saints' inactives when they are made available.
• QB Drew Brees: You don't need me to tell you who Drew Brees is. He'll remain on IR through at least this weekend.
• WR Marquez Callaway: 15 catches on 19 targets as a rookie receiver this season, and he has also contributed as a returner. He's on IR with a sprained knee.
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