The Philadelphia Eagles are finally getting healthier, which feels odd to say about a team that still has ten players on IR and PUP. But expectations are understandably low for an Eagles team that has struggled to stay even somewhat healthy over the last few years.
On Sunday, the Eagles travel to New Jersey to take on the Giants, who are dealing with some significant injuries of their own. As of this writing, the Eagles are a consensus -4 favorite with 61% of experts taking the Eagles against the spread and 82% of experts taking the Eagles straight up, according to BettingPros.
Now, let’s get into the final injury reports.
Eagles-Giants Injury Report, Week 10
On Friday, the Eagles released their official injury report, complete with injury designations. Craig James was the only player they listed as out, and no one was listed as questionable or doubtful. That means Miles Sanders and Lane Johnson are set to return and Alshon Jeffery is going to be playing in an NFL game for the first time in almost a year.
However, this doesn’t quite tell the entire story. As mentioned above, the Eagles are still missing 10 players due to injury. Let’s go over them one by one.
Eagles Injury Report
Out
OG Isaac Seumalo (knee)
Isaac Seumalo has been on injured reserve since injuring his knee in the team’s Week 2 loss to the Rams. The team activated his 21-day practice window this week, and there was optimism that he could play on Sunday after he was seen practicing with the first team in practice. However, he was not activated to the active roster on Saturday and will not play against the Giants.
CB Craig James (shoulder)
Craig James will miss his second straight game due to a shoulder injury. He also missed three games earlier in the season. James is a reserve cornerback but a key special teams contributor. With James out, Michael Jacquet was promoted from the practice squad for the second straight game.
S Marcus Epps
Marcus Epps is on the Reserve/COVID-19 List and will miss at least this game against the Giants.
Short-term IR
TE Zach Ertz (ankle)
Zach Ertz is not having a good 2020 (who is?). After publicly voicing his frustration over his contract, he looked like a shell of himself on the field through the first six weeks of the season, catching just 24 of his 45 targets for 178 yards and a touchdown. Then, he suffered a high-ankle sprain that is expected to sideline him for approximately six weeks in a Week 6 loss to the Ravens. That injury came on October 18, so we are probably still at least a couple of weeks away from seeing Ertz. In the meantime, Dallas Goedert gets his chance to prove he can be TE1.
LB Genard Avery (elbow)
The Genard Avery trade will go down as one of Howie Roseman’s worst, or at least most bizarre, trades. Does he stink? Does Jim Schwartz just not like him? Did Roseman bring him in without talking to Schwartz first? We’ll probably never know the answers to those questions. Avery has to miss at least one more game before he is eligible to return.
WR DeSean Jackson (ankle)
DeSean Jackson returned for a Week 7 matchup against the Giants after missing the previous three games due to a hamstring injury, and he suffered a non-displaced fracture in his right ankle on a dirty hit while attempting to return a punt late in that game. He has a chance to return by the end of the season.
LB Nate Gerry (ankle)
Nate Gerry has to miss at least the next two games after landing on injured reserve prior to the team’s Week 8 matchup against the Cowboys. He will not be missed by the Philadelphia fanbase.
DT Hassan Ridgeway (biceps)
Hassan Ridgeway is somewhat forgotten along the defensive line because of the other big names (and big salaries), but he has been a solid rotational defensive tackle during his time in Philadelphia. He is out for the season and will be a free agent this offseason.
PUP, long-term IR, and opt-out
In addition to the players listed above, the Eagles will be without RG Brandon Brooks, LT Andre Dillard, TE Joshua Perkins, and WR Marquise Goodwin. Brooks suffered another torn Achilles during the offseason but is already posting impressive workout videos. Dillard and Perkins are both out for the season with injuries, while Goodwin opted out of the season due to COVID.
Giants Injury Report
While the Giants aren’t dealing with the same mountain of injuries as the Eagles, they aren’t completely healthy, either.
Questionable
WR Golden Tate (knee)
Golden Tate didn’t play in New York’s last game due to disciplinary reasons, and he then suffered a knee injury in practice this week. Tate is expected to play on Sunday against the Eagles, however.
DB Isaac Yiadom (calf)
Isaac Yiadom is the starting cornerback for the Giants opposite James Bradberry. Bradberry is very good. Yiadom is not. The Giants cut Core Ballentine this week, so their depth will be tested even more if Yiadom is unable to play.
Out
RB Devonta Freeman (ankle)
The Giants signed Devonta Freeman shortly after Saquon Barkley landed on injured reserve with a torn ACL. While he flashed early, Freeman injured his ankle in a Week 7 loss to the Eagles and has since been placed on injured reserve. Unfortunately for Freeman, this has been the story of his career.
IR/Other
RB Saquon Barkley (knee)
Saquon Barkley is the biggest name missing for the Giants, and he is out for the season after tearing his ACL in Week 2 against the Bears.
LB/Edge Lorenzo Carter (Achilles)
Lorenzo Carter was an inconsistent edge rusher for the Giants who flashed at times. He ruptured his Achilles earlier in the year.
LT Nate Solder (opt out)
Nate Solder was not very good in 2019, but he is dealing with health and family issues that most would not wish on their worst enemies, so his struggles are understandable. He opted out of the 2020 season for obvious reasons.
S Xavier McKinney (foot)
Xavier McKinney was a safety in the 2020 NFL Draft that many fans hoped the Eagles would draft. Instead, the Giants selected him in the second round. He broke his foot early in the season but could return before the end of the year.
CB Sam Beal (opt out)
Sam Beal’s tenure with the New York Giants has not gone well, and he likely will not be with the team in 2021.
CB Ryan Lewis (hamstring)
Ryan Lewis is a journeyman defensive back who started a few games for the Giants this season. He is on IR with a hamstring injury but could return after the team’s Week 11 bye week.
LB/Edge Oshane Ximines
See: Lorenzo Carter, but younger. He is on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.
* * *
Mike Maher is the editor and publisher of The Birds Blitz. Follow him on Twitter @mikeMaher and @TheBirdsBlitz and check out his archive for all of his latest stories about the Eagles and the NFL.
