Sadly, there was no way the Philadelphia Eagles could keep the injury bug away like last year. Other than Jeremy Maclin, who was lost for the season in training camp, only two Eagles starters missed more than two games in 2013.
At safety, Patrick Chung and Earl Wolff took turns on the shelf and were a platoon when healthy—no real stability there anyway. The other injury was to Michael Vick, which allowed Nick Foles to take over under center and produce a historic campaign.
Ironically enough, the Eagles experiencing that kind of injury luck over a full NFL season was about as likely as Foles throwing 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions. Come to think of it, maybe less likely. Both sets of circumstances were pretty much unheard of.
As with Foles’ passing numbers, it’s no surprise the Eagles’ ability to stay healthy regressed to the mean. What’s so amazing about 2014, though, is they keep on winning, despite a laundry list of lengthy injuries to key players.
Philadelphia has managed to compile a 6-2 record, despite missing four starters for at least four games this season—All-Pro left guard Evan Mathis, dynamic center Jason Kelce and playmaking linebacker Mychal Kendricks to injury, plus second-year right tackle Lane Johnson to a suspension. That’s not even counting “minor” injuries to reserves or that only cost somebody a week or two.
Just as all of the above players are returning to the lineup, three more went down during Sunday’s costly win over the Houston Texans. Foles, veteran right guard Todd Herremans and defensive captain DeMeco Ryans are all dinged, and none of the above are returning anytime soon.
The team announced Ryans is out for the remainder of the season, placing him on injured reserve. CSNPhilly.com’s Reuben Frank reports Foles does not need surgery, but he will miss 6-8 weeks with a broken clavicle, meaning we’ve potentially seen the last of him. And there’s no new word on Herremans’ ankle, but considering he was already playing with a torn biceps, that could be just about all for him as well.
I doubt the Eagles will panic. After all, Mark Sanchez stepped in at quarterback for Foles and helped guide the team to a victory. Herremans can be replaced by any of a number of offensive linemen who have filled in admirably, and the same goes for Ryans at interior linebacker.
As it turns out, the Eagles constructed an incredibly deep squad. That’s the only way to explain how this team won six games.
What’s surprising is it’s the areas where the roster appeared to be at its weakest that have been affected the most, yet those positions have held up well.
The front office went out of its way to make sure the offense had a pair of competent quarterbacks, signing Sanchez to a free-agent contract in March. Head coach Chip Kelly reiterated his stance again at Monday’s day-after press conference, carried by PhiladelphiaEagles.com.
“I feel great about Mark. We felt great about him all along. One of the things we wanted to do -- I always said we needed two quarterbacks and had a chance to get him in here.”
Offensive line and interior linebacker, on the other hand, looked far more dire.
Of the five backup offensive linemen to make the team out of training camp, three had never started an NFL game prior to this year. Yet among the many substitutes, Andrew Gardner, David Molk and Matt Tobin all received extensive playing time after playing less than 100 regular-season snaps combined in their careers. It was essentially on-the-job training.
Even general manager Howie Roseman had to lament the fact that the front office was unable to upgrade the depth up front in the draft, calling it a “dagger in the heart,” as Jeff McLane for The Philadelphia Inquirer reported at the time.
The patchwork line has experienced its share of struggles, no doubt, but the unit hasn’t completely killed the Eagles, either. Either Gardner or Tobin is likely to continue filling in at right guard for Herremans.
While the club has been forced to plug in Gardner, Molk or Tobin all at the same time, it’s been relying on a trio of players to replace one man at linebacker. While Kendricks was out, Casey Matthews, Emmanuel Acho and Marcus Smith were taking turns rotating in—a platoon that proved surprisingly successful.
Most couldn’t figure how Matthews secured a roster spot once again this season, yet for the first time in his four-year career, he’s actually performed well. Acho has been bouncing around rosters and practice squads the past couple of years and is now filling in without incident. And Smith, the team’s first-round pick, has done little of note, but he injects some athleticism into the group.
The Eagles might not be in this mess had Najee Goode or even Travis Long not suffered season-ending injuries during the preseason. Again, however, that depth seemed questionable at best.
No more. The depth at the offensive line and linebacker positions are a huge reason why the Birds are not merely staying afloat but in control of first place in the NFC East—and these were considered by most observers to be the weakest spots on Philadelphia’s bench.
Now, new tests lie ahead, particularly with the injuries to Foles and Ryans, each considered the leader on their respective side of the football. So far, the Eagles have been able to overcome the injuries, but every time a new player goes down, the dynamic changes.
And with the latest batch of medical reports likely sidelining multiple players for the rest of the season, the injuries are only becoming more serious. The Eagles can only hope they don’t continue to mount.
//from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/10QOJah
via IFTTT November 04, 2014 at 12:50AM
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