Eagles promote Greg Ward, place Rudy Ford on injured reserve

The Eagles promoted Greg Ward to the 53-man roster on Saturday, placing safety Rudy Ford on injured reserve.

It’s the second time Ward has been called up, the first time coming in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions. The roster move could signify that either Nelson Agholor or Alshon Jeffery won’t be able to play Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.

Agholor has been dealing with a knee injury suffered last week against the New England Patriots and wasn’t able to practice all week. Jeffery is recovering from an ankle injury sustained against the Chicago Bears on Nov. 3.

If neither can go, the Eagles will have Ward, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, Mack Hollins, and Jordan Matthews heading into the game.

Ward, 24, played just two offensive snaps against the Lions and 13 snaps on special teams. He was waived two days after the game and added back to the practice squad the following day.

The former Houston quarterback spent at least part of this week under center with the scout team, trying to help the Eagles’ defense prepare for the elusive Russell Wilson.

“It was pretty fun, reminded me of my old days,” Ward said. “I was trying to make some plays and give my defense a good look.”

After Friday’s practice, Ward said he hadn’t heard anything about a potential call-up, but said he’d “stay ready.”

Earlier this week, Eagles’ offensive coordinator Mike Groh said they had faith in Ward.

“Greg has done a terrific job for us at practice,” Groh said. “He makes a couple plays every day out there, and he’s certainly somebody that we have a lot of confidence in should we need to call on him. I don’t know when that might be, but he’ll be ready when it comes.”

Ford suffered an abdominal injury during practice this week. The Eagles acquired the 25-year-old safety in a trade with the Cardinals, sending Bruce Hector to Arizona in the middle of training camp. He was primarily a special-teams player, but played 15 snaps against the Patriots as an extra safety.