Eagles’ Nelson Agholor and Jordan Howard are ‘status quo’ ahead of Cowboys game

The Eagles head into a pivotal game Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys with a handful of starters in flux.

Eagles coach Doug Pederson said wide receiver Nelson Agholor and running back Jordan Howard were still “status quo” after both players missed Sunday’s game against Washington. Pederson said defensive end Derek Barnett and offensive tackle Lane Johnson were showing improvement with their respective ankle injuries.

“I’d say Derek is getting close. We’re going to progress him a little bit further this week and see where he’s at,” Pederson said. “Lane is getting better; again, we’ll see, it’s kind of a day-to-day. Nelly and Jordan are really status quo right now.”

Johnson is trying to make a speedy recovery from a high ankle sprain suffered against the New York Giants less than two weeks ago. Johnson missed the Washington game with the injury, which usually takes a handful of weeks from which to recover.

Agholor is dealing with a knee injury he said he suffered against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 6. He aggravated the hurt knee against the Patriots last month and has missed three of the last four games. Barnett left during the Dolphins matchup and hasn’t played in the last two games.

Howard has been sidelined with a shoulder stinger since Nov. 3, when he got hurt against the Chicago Bears late in the fourth quarter. The running back, who led the team in rushing at the time he went down, has been limited in practice since the team returned from its bye week last month, but hasn’t progressed enough to be cleared for contact.