Can we expect to see A.J. Brown on Thursday against the Cowboys? ‘Hell, yeah.’
Since the three-time Pro Bowl receiver was traded to the Eagles in 2022, Philadelphia has a 37-10 record when Brown is playing.
When the Eagles open the season at home against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday, A.J. Brown is expected to be suited up and ready to take the field.
The Eagles’ top receiver responded “hell, yeah” when asked on Sunday if he would be available to play in Week 1 after sitting out eight training-camp practices with a hamstring injury. Brown was participating in the early portion of Sunday’s practice open to the media, marking the Eagles’ first session of the week in preparation for the Cowboys.
Ahead of Thursday night games, NFL teams issue injury reports Monday and Wednesday, so the Eagles did not release one following Sunday’s practice.
Unsurprisingly, the Eagles are a better team with Brown on the field than they are without him. Since the three-time Pro Bowl receiver was traded to the Eagles in 2022, Philadelphia has a 37-10 record when Brown is playing. Without Brown in the three games he missed due to injury last season, the Eagles went 1-2.
Brown isn’t the only receiver trending in the right direction toward playing Thursday. DeVonta Smith, who dealt with a groin injury in camp, continued to practice in some capacity on Sunday, just as he had in the two practices last week.
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Meanwhile, Tanner McKee’s availability for the season opener remains in doubt as he works his way back from a fracture to his right thumb. The backup quarterback was present for the first official practice of game week, but he was not participating in the individual drills open to the media on Sunday.
McKee disclosed after practice that he injured his thumb when he hit a helmet after throwing on Aug. 18, forcing him to miss the last two days of training camp. He didn’t offer much about his status for Thursday’s game, but his lack of participation in practice leaves room for doubt.
If McKee isn’t available, Sam Howell would be expected to step in as the backup behind Jalen Hurts. That leaves Kyle McCord as the emergency third quarterback, but the Eagles would have to sign him to the active roster in order to give him that designation on game day without him counting as one of the 48 active players. McCord, the sixth-rounder out of Syracuse, was waived at the roster cutdown deadline on Tuesday and signed to the practice squad the following day.
While McKee may not be active for Thursday’s game, Landon Dickerson continues to make strides in his recovery from meniscus surgery as he works his way back for Week 1. The three-time Pro Bowl left guard continued to practice in some capacity on Sunday, just as he had last week. Coach Nick Sirianni was noncommittal about Dickerson’s status against the Cowboys when asked before practice.
“We’ll see how it goes,” Sirianni said. “I know he’s working really hard to get back. You’re always excited when you get really good football players back on the field, and Landon’s shown that he’s a really good football player for the past four years here. I know he is working really hard, and we’ll see where we are by the end of the week.”
Dickerson isn’t the only player working to get back on the field. Drew Mukuba, the rookie safety out of Texas, practiced for the first time since he suffered a hamstring injury on the second-to-last day of training camp.
Mukuba had been competing with Sydney Brown for the starting safety job alongside Reed Blankenship throughout training camp. The 22-year-old safety made his case for the job in his preseason debut against the Cleveland Browns, posting a pick-six and a fumble recovery.
However, injuries plagued Mukuba’s summer, as he first dealt with a shoulder injury early in camp and then the hamstring ailment at the end. It is unclear who will start at safety alongside Blankenship on Thursday, but internally, Sirianni said it’s a different situation. That goes for all three position battles that occurred on the defense this summer — safety, outside cornerback, and inside linebacker.
“I think it’s unsettled to the outside world,” Sirianni said. “We’ve got it pretty much settled in here. Just like injury information, and I’m not sharing that information quite yet.”
The Eagles also recently brought in a former starter at safety, signing Marcus Epps to the practice squad on Thursday. Epps, 29, spent four seasons with the Eagles from 2019-22, starting all 17 games in the season they went to the Super Bowl in 2022.
Epps was most recently with the New England Patriots, but he failed to make the team out of training camp. He spent the last two seasons with the Las Vegas Raiders, but his 2024 season was cut short when he suffered a torn ACL in the third week of the season.
Sirianni wouldn’t disclose whether Epps, who is new to Vic Fangio’s scheme, would be a part of the team’s plans on defense this early.
“We’ll see,” Sirianni said. “He is a really sharp guy. I’ve always thought that of Marcus. He’ll do everything he can do, and we’ve got great coaches with [defensive backs coach] Christian Parker and [safeties coach] Joe Kasper to help him get caught up. We’ll see where he is by the time we get here to this game and moving forward.”