The Philadelphia Eagles moved to 10-1 on Sunday following an exhilarating walk-off win in overtime. It wasn’t a pretty win but it doesn’t matter. Jalen Hurts proved once again that he was born with the clutch gene. The team received some great news after the win that will only aid Hurts in weeks to come.
The MVP candidate might be getting two of his most explosive weapons back in the starting lineup next weekend when the team faces San Francisco.
Eagles TE Dallas Goedert
Dallas Goedert will “push to play” this week against the San Francisco 49ers, according to NFL Network’s James Palmer. The star tight end suffered a fractured forearm in Week 9 on what sure looked like a dirty tackle by Cowboys linebacker Markquese Bell.
The original prognosis called for surgery and put Goedert on the shelf for at least four weeks. Well, 22 days later, Goedert appears ready for a return and the timing couldn’t be better. The Eagles-49ers showdown at Lincoln Financial Field is a potential NFC Championship Game preview, arguably the biggest litmus test to date.
Jack Stoll has been taking on increased snaps in Goedert’s absence but the undrafted player cannot duplicate Goedert’s production. Stoll made one catch for 14 yards versus Buffalo on 36 snaps, with backups Albert Okwuegbunam (nine snaps) and Noah Togiai (seven snaps) seeing the field as well.
Meanwhile, Goedert had recorded 38 receptions for 410 yards and two touchdowns before getting hurt. He was the odd man out in the target rotation to start the year but came on strong over the five weeks prior to the injury, including a 117-yard outburst in Week 5 against the Rams. Goedert is a consistent presence over the middle and in the red zone, which could open up the playbook and ignite Brian Johson’s sometimes stagnant play-calling.
“Any time you lose a player to Dallas Goedert‘s capabilities, you have to compensate,” Sirianni told reporters on November 16, “and you have to — again, like I said, it’s never just one guy’s responsibility to take all the brunt of that work. It will be by committee. We just don’t have another guy like Dallas Goedert sitting around.”
Eagles RT Lane Johnson
The second player set to make a likely return is franchise right tackle Lane Johnson, who was a late appearance on the injury report and subsequently missed yesterday’s win over Buffalo.
Lane underwent an MRI on Monday morning following some groin soreness yesterday. According to Ian Rapoport, he has not been ruled out for the upcoming game against San Francisco and is considered day-to-day after the MRI scan.
Getting Johnson back would be huge. The Eagles really missed him against Buffalo’s rampant pass-rush and it’s safe to say that the Niners will be sending just as much chaos in the direction of Jalen Hurts.
On a Monday morning where the Eagles are 10-1, the news that two offensive stalwarts could be set to make their return is the cherry on a delicious cake.
Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
