In any sport, injuries have become a part of life as a Philadelphia sports fan over the last few years. The Eagles have been the most glaring as of late. Ever since the 2017-2018 season when Carson Wentz suffered a season ending injury, the Eagles have been plagued by the injury bug.

The “Underdog” mentality of these team just won’t go away. We witnessed it again last year again with a late season, practice squad run to the playoffs. If you look at 2019 and 2020 side by side, it’s only gotten worse this year.

After the Eagles loss to the Seattle Seahawks, there were 15 players injured for Philly. 9 of the 15 hurt for the Eagles were starters. 6 of which were on the offense – Carson Wentz, Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Brooks being the most notable.

This year 18 of the current 22 injured Eagles were starting at the time of their injury. Of those 18, 14 were original starters coming into the 2020 season. This is by far the worst injury outbreak in the NFL. The Eagles are currently missing 4 of their starting Offensive Linemen, their starting running back, 3 starting receivers, and both starting tight ends.

On Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, Carson Wentz finished the game without a single starter in the skill groups Jason Kelce was the only other starter on offense at Center.

The defense is no exception to the injury bug. Jim Schwartz’s group is missing 2 safeties, a corner, and a defensive tackle. Despite the offensive woes, Carson Wentz has continued to keep the offense rolling with Travis Fulgham leading the charge for the skill group. The O-Line hasn’t lost a step for the most part having 7 injuries and on their 12th linemen. Outside the linebacker position, the defense looks fantastic, especially up front. 

There is good news. The Eagles aren’t completely dead in the water. Right now it looks like 17 of the 22 injured players are eligible to return by Week 8 against the Dallas Cowboys. The only Eagles that are done for the season are Brandon Brooks, Andre Dillard, Josh Perkins, and Daeshon Hall. Zach Ertz is on the IR until week 10. 

With a crucial 3 game stretch ahead of Philadelphia it seems they might be getting healthy at the perfect time.

Mandatory Credit: Kate Frese Philly Voice