FRIDAY INJURY REPORT
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
–OUT: S Rodney McLeod (knee), RB Darren Sproles (hamstring)
–QUESTIONABLE: RB Corey Clement (quadricep), LB Nathan Gerry (groin), WR Alshon Jeffery (illness, shoulder)
TENNESSEE TITANS
–OUT: RB David Fluellen (groin), T Dennis Kelly (illness)
–QUESTIONABLE: QB Blaine Gabbert (concussion)
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: WR Alshon Jeffery. The large-bodied receiver was cleared for full contact this week for the first time since offseason surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff. A determination on whether he plays or how much he plays if is active probably won’t be known until game day, but the there is no question that Jeffery will spark an Eagles offense that hasn’t really clicked on all cylinders, partly because so many players have been injured.
“It definitely give us, offensively, a shot in the arm, and he can become a big impact, quite honestly, with the offense and the way (Eagles offensive coordinator) Mike Groh and myself, the formations and moving our guys around, moving him inside, moving him outside,” Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said.
“There’s going to be a progression with him, and I don’t think it will be instantaneous, but at the same time the more comfortable he gets, the better he becomes. He becomes a target defensively as you saw in some of the games last year where he was doubled a lot, especially in the red zone and we know that is going to happen. He or (tight end Zach) Ertz are going to be sort of taken away if defenses can, but yeah he makes a huge difference for us.”
In his first season with the Eagles last year, Jeffery made 57 catches for 789 yards and nine touchdowns in the regular season. In the playoffs, he caught another 12 passes for 219 yards and three scores, including one in the Super Bowl LII triumph over the New England Patriots.
GAME PLAN: The Eagles’ defense, which is ranked ninth overall, will try to shut down the run, especially because quarterback Marcus Mariota’s throws could be affected with an elbow injury that is leaving some of his fingers numb. The Eagles are facing an offensively-challenged offense, one that is ranked 29th in the NFL (10th in rushing, 29th in passing) and averaging just 16 points.
The defense cannot afford to fall asleep in the pass game, though, not with Corey Davis making an impact on the outside. Davis has 151 yards receiving this season.
On offense, the Eagles will have to contend with linebacker Wesley Woodyard, who made 12 tackles in last week’s win over the Jaguars and has had 35 tackles on the season, with three tackles for loss and a sack, and defensive lineman Jurrell Casey, who has three sacks in three games.
The Eagles counter with one of the stronger defensive front seven in football, with a defensive line that includes Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett, Chris Long, Michael Bennett and Haloti Ngata. Their linebacker corps is solid with healthy-again Jordan Hicks patrolling the middle and Nigel Bradham outside.
QUOTES TO NOTE: “He’s probably the fastest quarterback in the NFL right now. He has got a lot of experience running those things,” Eagles defensive coordinator Jim said Schwartz about Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota. “It’s not just zone read and sort of designed runs. He’s a really efficient, bootleg quarterback. Get him on the move, and he can really stretch your defense with his speed. He’s not easing into his boots, he’s running. Looks like a 40-yard dash he’s running so fast.”
“I went to Oklahoma (two years ago to workout) with Sam (then-Eagles quarterback Bradford) and Sam, he has a statue,” Eagles receiver Jordan Matthews said. “He won the Heisman Trophy, but Marcus Mariota has his own center (called the Marcus Mariota Sports Performance Center on the campus of the University of Oregon), so if football for some reason doesn’t work out, in the long run, he’s good, he can live in the center.”
“For us it’s always started with stopping the run,” Eagles linebacker Jordan Hicks said. “We try to make teams one dimensional by stopping the run, and for somebody the mentality that the Titans bring and their offense has, I think it’s going to be a great clash. It’s what everybody wants to see is the leading rushing-attempt team versus the best run-stopping defense. We embrace it.”
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
–Eagles special teams vs. Titans special teams. The Titans have scored two touchdowns on special teams, which says a lot on a team that has scored only four in three games. Tennessee got a 94-yard kickoff return from Darius Jennings and scored a touchdown on a fake punt. The Eagles have had the best specials teams unit in the league the last three years, but they have been more suspect this season thanks to injuries to special teams standouts Mack Hollins and Chris Maragos. They also let stalwart special teamers Trey Burton leave in free agency and chose not to re-sign Bryan Braman and Najee Goode.
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