Help may be on the way for the Eagles.
Maybe it arrives in a trade. Perhaps it is a player able to return from injured reserve.
Either way, the Eagles will likely have somebody that hasn’t been on the field with them yet this season when they line up against the Dallas Cowboys on Nov. 11.
Head coach Doug Pederson met with the media on Monday after an overnight flight back from London, where his team evened its record at 4-4 with a 24-18 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, and was asked if there was a player or two close to returning from IR.
The first name he mentioned was tight end Richard Rodgers, who injured a knee during the team’s second preseason game. The second was receiver Mack Hollins, who had surgery for a sports hernia and never played in the preseason. The third name was receiver Mike Wallace, who fractured a fibula in the first half of Week 2’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“These guys are doing a heck of a job with their rehab,” said Pederson. “Obviously, they want to get back out on the field. We’ve got some time this week to get them ready and see where we’re at next week.”
Teams can begin activating players from IR after they’ve been on it for eight weeks. Wallace could not be activated until after the Cowboys game, which leaves the Eagles with a bit of a dilemma.
Since only two players can be activated from IR, the team must decide whether to activate both Rodgers and Hollins or hold out hope that Wallace is healed enough to contribute in the final month or so of the regular season.
Frankly, the Eagles seem to be set at tight end with Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert as well as third tight end Joshua Perkins. The Eagles would have to feel that Rodgers, who was signed to a one-year free-agent deal in the offseason, would be a vast upgrade over Perkins, who has five catches for 67 yards.
Hollins could be the speed threat the Eagles clearly lack at receiver with Wallace out. Hollins would also significantly upgrade the special teams.
Then there’s the trade market.
The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday at 4 p.m. and there are a number of directions in which the Eagles could turn for help.
“I’m very confident and comfortable with the guys we have,” said Pederson. “I’m very confident in those guys and in this group. We are constantly looking. If we can add value and if we can add talent anywhere on the team, we are going to look at that. … If it values the Eagles and helps us win games, we’ll see.”
Executive vice president of football operations Howie Roseman is not known to shy away from a deal. He acquired running back Jay Ajayi from the Miami Dolphins at last year’s deadline.
“One of the things with he and I is we are both on the same page with all of that,” said Pederson about his relationship with Roseman. “We look at our roster, and again, if it is an area that can help us win games in these next eight weeks and hopefully beyond, we are going to maintain that aggressiveness just like we did with Jay a year ago and that helped us win a championship. That is all a part of this process.”
Pederson was asked if injuries and the possibility of getting players back from IR would be a factor in whether or not the team makes a move.
“You’ve got to look at it a little bit from an injury standpoint because we have missed some guys during the first part of the season, but I don’t think that’s the sole purpose for making a move,” he said.
Then Pederson may have given an unintentional clue as to which side of the ball the team may address if it makes a trade.
“I think it has to be the right person, it has to be a character fit and it has to fit what we do offensively,” he said.
He said offense. And maybe that is the side of the ball that will be addressed, either through trade or bringing back a player from IR.
–Pederson did not have any updates on the injuries suffered by right tackle Lane Johnson and cornerback Jalen Mills that saw both players leave in the first half and not return against the Jaguars.
The coach said the team flight did not get back from London in time for him to meet with the medical staff.
Reports are that Johnson suffered an MCL strain in his left knee and could miss up to a month. Mills appeared to suffer a foot injury.
