Eagles vs. Panthers: Analyzing the edge rusher situation as Jaelan Phillips comes to Philly, and everything else to know for Week 6
The Eagles will host Carolina as they look to snap their three-game skid at Lincoln Financial Field. Here’s what you need to know.
Hindsight is 20/20. It’s easy to be a Monday Morning Quarterback. Yada yada.
OK, the necessary caveat is out of the way.
Seven months after Jaelan Phillips walked in free agency, it’s worth looking back on the decision and the fallout as the Carolina Panthers come to Philadelphia this weekend to play the Eagles.
It was easy to reconcile the move then, and maybe it is now. The Eagles needed a premier edge rusher in the offseason. Phillips, for whom they traded before the deadline last season, was near the top of the list of the best available players at the position. The Eagles wanted him back, but in the open market, you can’t always get what you want — especially at the price you’re shopping for.
Phillips signed a four-year, $120 million deal with Carolina, his highest bidder. The Eagles pivoted and punted to draft weekend, when they traded for Jonathan Greenard and then signed him to a contract that has him with the team for four years and nearly $100 million.
Again, easy to reconcile. Phillips signed a huge deal. If the Eagles signed him, maybe they wouldn’t have been able to afford Riq Woolen. Plus, they had dollars to allocate to Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis in the offseason and likely have upcoming extensions coming to Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean.
But five games into the season, and heading into a Week 6 game with the Panthers, the edge rushing situation has not gone as planned. Greenard missed all of training camp and the first two games with a pectoral injury he suffered while lifting weights. He returned in Week 3 on a limited snap count and then hurt his ankle in Week 4 and missed the next game.
Greenard will play on Sunday, but he enters the weekend having played just 37 snaps with his new team. Phillips, meanwhile, who is questionable with a hamstring injury, has two sacks through four games. His pressure rate of 15% is similar to Greenard’s and in line with his career average. More importantly, he’s been on the field for 94 pass rushes to Greenard’s 26, and the Panthers have played one fewer game than the Eagles.
The Eagles enter Sunday without Jalyx Hunt. It’ll likely be Greenard, Nolan Smith Jr., and Arnold Ebiketie as the only healthy edge rushers on the active roster (A.J. Epenesa is doubtful with a back injury). The Eagles likely will elevate rookie Keyshawn James-Newby from the practice squad.
It’s the theme of the season. Injury luck hasn’t been kind.
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How to watch Eagles vs. Panthers
The Eagles host their second of just four Sunday 1 p.m. games this season at Lincoln Financial Field. It is a rare CBS game between two NFC teams and will be called by Ian Eagle (play-by-play) and Ross Tucker from the booth, with Evan Washburn as the sideline reporter.
As usual, Merrill Reese and Mike Quick have the local radio call on 94 WIP.
Looking to watch the game somewhere in the city with fellow Eagles fans? Here’s our latest list of places to watch.
Final injury report
Some joked on social media Wednesday that the injury report looked like a CVS receipt. It was 24 players long.
Then, on Thursday, the Eagles announced that Jalen Hurts would miss Sunday’s game because of a blood clot, and it’s unclear how long the starting quarterback will be out.
But while the injury news hasn’t been working in the Eagles’ favor — Saquon Barkley remains out — they had some positive developments on Friday. DeVonta Smith is due to return from his two-game absence with a hamstring injury. Greenard is back. And Landon Dickerson is listed as questionable after missing the last four games. Dickerson remains on IR and would need to be activated ahead of Sunday’s game to play.
The Eagles on Friday also placed running back Will Shipley on injured reserve, clearing room to sign quarterback Joe Milton III.
Here’s the full, lengthy game status report for both teams:
Eagles
Out
RB Saquon Barkley, hamstring
DB Michael Carter II, abdomen
OLB Jalyx Hunt, knee/ankle
QB Jalen Hurts, calf (blood clot)
RB Will Shipley, foot
Questionable
CB Jakorian Bennett, knee
TE Grant Calcaterra, back
G Landon Dickerson, knee
C Drew Kendall, knee
TE Eli Stowers, quad
Doubtful
EDGE A.J. Epenesa, back
Panthers
Out
RB AJ Dillon, ankle
Questionable
RB Trevor Etienne, ankle
G Damien Lewis, elbow
T Taylor Moton, lungs (blood clot)
EDGE Jaelan Phillips, hamstring
DT Tershawn Wharton, neck
Doubtful
T Monroe Freeling, knee
Storylines to watch
Jordan Mailata called last week the “week from hell” after Lane Johnson retired and Cam Jurgens was traded. “I think I was a little early. I might’ve jumped the gun on that one,” he said Thursday, hours after the Eagles announced Hurts’ ailment.
Mailata sang the words of Mr. Probz’s “Waves” as he walked toward his locker stall after Thursday’s practice. When will the waves subside?
“Honestly, I can’t answer that,” he said. “I wish I could tell the future.”
Nick Sirianni did not elaborate on how long Hurts would be out, but he did express confidence in McKee on Friday.
McKee will have his first high-stakes moment with the Eagles. It comes only a few weeks after he was the third-string quarterback to start the season. “You have to be ready,” he said Thursday.
The defense will have a new rotation on Sunday. Vic Fangio thinks Jeremiah Trotter Jr. deserves more playing time, and Jihaad Campbell obviously hasn’t played well enough to hold off Trotter. The two will rotate, and Campbell said his focus is on “whatever it takes for us to win a football game.”
One person that’s excited for Trotter (among many)? His dad, of course. “If your number’s called, and we play a violent sport,” he said. “Guys go down all the time. And it’s his job to be ready. And I think he’s done a really good job of that.”
What is a superficial blood clot? The Inquirer’s health desk spoke with a vascular surgeon at Temple Health to learn more about them.
What we’re saying about the Eagles
Here’s what our columnists are saying this week, starting with Mike Sielski, who wrote that the Eagles have major questions to answer now after Hurts’ injury.
Sielski: “The Eagles’ mission has to be simple: Just survive. Calling this season stormy doesn’t quite do it justice. These are the kinds of conditions to which meteorologists assign obscure names.” Read more.
Marcus Hayes: “It might sound contradictory, but the Eagles defense that allowed the Jaguars 408 total yards of offense took a significant step forward in London. The numbers lied a little.” Read more.
Latest Week 6 odds
The pre-Hurts and post-Hurts numbers are much different. The Eagles were 1½-point favorites at most books, and as of Friday afternoon they were 3½-point underdogs at DraftKings and FanDuel. A five-point swing.
Check out more odds and player props for this week here.
Eagles-Panthers predictions
Jeff McLane: Panthers 24, Eagles 16
Jeff Neiburg: Panthers 24, Eagles 16
Olivia Reiner: Panthers 24, Eagles 13
Ryan Novozinsky: Panthers 35, Eagles 14
You also can check out the reasoning behind our writers’ picks and McLane’s keys to the game. As for the rest of the country, here’s a look at the national media predictions for Sunday.
What the Panthers are saying
Hurts’ absence won’t change the fact that the Eagles’ defense is going to need to be stout to win games right now.
Bryce Young and the Panthers bring to Philly an offense that has been prolific through four games. Fangio’s unit stymied Jacksonville for the vast majority of Sunday’s game, and played well in Week 4 before wearing out late in a loss to the Rams thanks partially to the 84 plays they were asked to defend.
“Everybody knows what that defense is capable of,” wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan said. “The Eagles are coming off a few losses, but that just means they’re hungrier to win.”
Young on Jalen Carter: “I have a ton of respect for his game. He’s dominated at every level. He’s an elite player, and we all have a ton of respect for him, and we are excited for the challenge, and it’s going to take everything.”
What the film is saying
The Eagles have played two games since allowing Case Keenum to carve them up in Week 3, and the defense seems to be turning the corner, especially Carter, who wore a smaller cast in Week 5 and will wear an even smaller one Sunday, according to Fangio.
The Inquirer’s Devin Jackson analyzed what’s going well and highlighted a few shortcomings in his latest film review.
What else we’re reading and watching
Thanks for reading. The weekly Eagles newsletter will be back in your inbox and online next Sunday, a day before the Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys in a Monday Night Football contest.
