Westbrook to have ankle surgery

Eagles running back Brian Westbrook will have his second operation of the off-season.

After reports by Comcast SportsNet and ESPN.com, the Eagles confirmed that Westbrook would have bone spurs removed from his right ankle on Friday.

The surgery will be performed by Mark Myerson in Baltimore.

A team source said the team was unsure of the recovery time. The Eagles open training camp on July 26 and the regular season on Sept. 13.

Coach Andy Reid said yesterday that Westbrook was visiting Myerson in Baltimore. Myerson is a foot specialist who operated on wide receiver Terrell Owens late in the 2004 season.

Westbrook participated in the Eagles' mandatory minicamp in early May, but Reid said Tuesday that the running back recently called trainer Rick Burkholder to tell him he was having a problem with his ankle.

Westbrook had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in February, and Reid said he had responded well to that procedure. Westbrook missed time last season because of the knee injury and a high sprain of his right ankle suffered against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3.

His production suffered a significant decline from that of the 2007 season, when he led the NFL with 2,104 yards from scrimmage.

Westbrook's agent, Todd France, who did not return a call from The Inquirer, told ESPN.com that this injury was not related to the ankle sprain of last season.

"It's just some bone spurs," France said, according to ESPN.com. "We talked about it when he was at the doctor's office and went through the options, and decided it was better to clean it up. The ankle has been bothering him since last year."

France said Westbrook probably would not have undergone surgery if the problem had occurred during the season.

Missing Johnson. Eagles president Joe Banner said the absence of defensive coordinator Jim Johnson from the team's current camp had been perhaps the most difficult thing the team had gone through during Jeffrey Lurie's time as owner.

Johnson took a leave of absence while he continued treatment for cancer.

"We're all just thinking about Jim every day, and we're all just hoping that soon he'll be back with us and rebound from this challenging illness and challenging treatment," Banner said.

"Things that touch your heart are different than the things in your everyday life and job," he said. "When you have worked as long with such a high-character individual like Jim . . . something like this is on a different level than anything else you do."