Sources: Eagles’ Nakobe Dean expected to miss time with Lisfranc foot sprain

Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean was diagnosed with a Lisfranc left foot sprain and is likely headed to injured reserve, NFL sources said. NFL Network was first to report on Dean’s injury, which caused him to leave Sunday’s game against the Cowboys early.

Dean will seek further opinion, but the second-year linebacker is expected to miss extended time. It would be his second stint on IR. A Lisfranc sprain occurs in the middle part of the foot, the tarsometatarsal joint. Former Eagles guard Isaac Seumalo suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury in 2021.

Dean missed four games earlier in the season with a right foot injury. Nicholas Morrow replaced Dean in the middle alongside fellow off-ball linebacker Zach Cunningham. Dean returned four games ago and returned to his starting role, but he split time with Morrow.

The Eagles have only one other off-ball linebacker on the 53-man roster — Christian Elliss — but they called up rookie Ben VanSumeren from the practice squad for the first time Sunday. He played exclusively on special teams against Dallas.

While Dean had medical red flags that caused him to drop to the third round in the draft two years ago, he didn’t miss a game as a rookie. In fact, he recently told The Inquirer that he had never missed a game in his entire football career until Week 2 of this season.

But Dean, who has 30 total tackles and a half-sack this season, has now missed four games with more to come.