On Sunday, the Eagles were able to defeat the Bears 22-14 to move to 5-4. However, some bad news came from the game. WR DeSean Jackson re-aggravated his abdominal injury and had surgery on Tuesday to repair it. Philadelphia announced today that they have put the 32-year-old Jackson on injured reserve.
With Jackson out, the Eagles will be without their deep threat and their most dangerous wide receiver. For now, and barring any moves, the Eagles will have to go with the likes of Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor. Mack Hollins, and J.J. Arcega-Whiteside.
Against the Bears on Sunday, both Jeffery and Agholor were fairly quiet, and Jeffery struggled with drops against Chicago.
When asked to assess Jeffery and Agholor in 2019, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson has this to say.
“I think overall, they have been good, but I would say they haven’t been great,” Pederson said on Monday. “I think they would echo that. I think Alshon yesterday had some opportunity and had chances, and I believe he would own up to that to make some of the catches that he missed yesterday.
“So he’s a professional about it, and Nelly is the same way. I think, too, we just have to continue to work with these guys. Every week is a new week. Every week is a new set of challenges. As we put game plans together, we do think about these guys and putting them into positions and look, sometimes you get in the game, and I’m the one calling the plays and sometimes the game kind of steers a different direction than what you think during the week.
“But I think overall, these guys have been in a position to help and help us win, and have a lot of confidence in both those guys moving forward.”
Unfortunately, the Eagles are going to have to rely on Jeffery and Agholor, and if they are fortunate, maybe they can find a solid wide receiver off the street.
If we are talking just talent, Antonio Brown would be great, but who knows how soon his situation would be sorted out. Also, guys like former Eagles WR Jordan Matthews and Torrey Smith are available, which might work the best considering they are familiar with the system.
Philadelphia will need another receiver, and it should be fascinating to see who they find to replace Jackson for the rest of the season.
