Let's check in on some injury news concerning a few teams the Philadelphia Eagles will play in 2024.
The Cowboys lost edge rusher Sam Williams for the season
The Cowboys lost edge rusher Sam Williams for the season with a torn ACL and a partially torn MCL in his left knee.
Williams was a Cowboys second-round pick who finished fifth in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting in 2022. He had 22 tackles, 4 sacks, and 3 fumble recoveries that season. In 2023, in a crowded edge rusher rotation, he had 26 tackles and 4.5 sacks.
In 2024, Williams was poised to take on a bigger role with the Cowboys after they lost Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler in free agency to the Commanders. Armstrong and Fowler combined for 26 sacks in 2022 and 2023. With Williams done for the season, the Cowboys are now paper thin on the edge. They have Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, which is obviously a great starting duo, however, the top guy thereafter is now second-round rookie developmental project Marshawn Kneeland of Western Michigan.
The loss of Williams does three things to the Cowboys on the edge:
- It depletes their depth (duh).
- Because the Cowboys are now so thin on the edge, it will probably cause them to be less creative with the way they deploy Parsons, in that opposing offenses will now know where he's likely going to be from snap to snap.
- Parsons and Lawrence may be forced to play more snaps than is ideal throughout the season, and it's worth noting that Parsons' production waned down the stretch in 2023.
Williams isn't a household name by any stretch, but losing him is kind of a big deal for the Cowboys. I imagine they'll soon look to sign a street free agent like Yannick Ngakoue or Carl Lawson.
The Saints lost starting RT Ryan Ramczyk for the season
This news is about a week and half old, but the Saints placed Ryan Ramczyk on the reserve PUP list before the start of camp, ending his season.
Ramczyk was once a first-team All-Pro, and he has two Pro Bowls under his belt.
Taking over for Ramczyk will be 2022 first-round pick Trevor Penning, who so far has been a bust for the Saints, starting just five games in two seasons, and not playing well when he has gotten opportunities.
The Eagles play the Saints in New Orleans Week 3.
Browns RB Nick Chubb reportedly won't likely be ready for the start of the regular season
Chubb has had two surgeries on his knee since last September, and he began Browns training camp on the active PUP list. He likely won't be ready for Week 1, per Dan Graziano of ESPN:
While the Browns practiced Friday, running back Nick Chubb worked off to the side with trainers in a session that lasted much longer than practice. A significant knee injury in Week 2 ended Chubb's 2023 season and required multiple surgeries to repair, and he opened camp on the physically unable to perform list and isn't likely to be ready for the start of the season. But the Browns are encouraged by the way his rehab is going and believe with certainty that he will play at some point this season. He has begun working on change-of-direction stuff in addition to full-speed sprinting, and the team is being very cautious not to pressure him by putting a timetable on his potential return. "I would never bet against 24, ever," Stefanski said.
There's an argument to be made that Chubb is the best running back in the NFL, when healthy. He's at least in the conversation with Christian McCaffrey.
The Eagles play the Browns Week 6.
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