Philadelphia Eagles: Status of injured players entering 2018 training camp

Last season the Philadelphia Eagles had many injuries, now they are looking to get back to full strength. With training camp starting how close are they?

2018 training camp is underway for the Philadelphia Eagles and many players are looking to rebound from injuries sustained last year. While some of the players can suit up and be ready to play immediately there are still some players that will be missing time on the field.

You may be wondering who is ready and who isn’t. After all, a Super Bowl defense could potentially depend on that.

With that, we’ll look at the injury status of key players on the Eagles roster as camp gets underway.

Jason Peters, LT

Nine-time Pro-Bowler Jason Peters was carted off the field in the Eagles’ Week 7 matchup against the Redskins. He sustained a torn MCL and ACL in his right knee that caused him to miss the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.

Many people thought that would be the last time we would see Peters in an Eagles uniform, but those people were wrong. After rehabbing the injury, the 36-year old tackle appears to be back to full strength and should be ready to resume his normal role immediately.

Darren Sproles, RB

The pass-catching specialist out of the backfield suffered one of the strangest injuries that happened all of last season. In Week 3 against the Giants, Darren Sproles broke his arm and tore his ACL all on the same play. With two injuries of that nature, it was enough to end his season.

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Fans of the 35-year old running back will be happy to hear that Sproles should be back in action at full-strength. Expect to see him share the backfield load with Jay Ajayi and Corey Clement.

Brandon Graham, DE

Brandon Graham’s injury was kept under wraps by him and the organization during the season. It wasn’t known by the public until he underwent ankle surgery on May 1. Luckily for the Eagles, he was able to play through the injury and make history when he forced Tom Brady to fumble the football late in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl.

It appears that Graham will start training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) List. Don’t expect him to play during the preseason either. Best-case scenario for Graham is to be healthy enough to play Week 1.

Chris Maragos, S

Team captain and special teams ace Chris Maragos was injured in Week 6 of last season against the Panthers. He tore his ACL and PCL ligaments causing his season to end prematurely. Maragos is still having some injury concerns as he’ll be on the PUP list as well. The other question surrounding him now is if he will make the team? He is returning from injury to a team with a lot of depth.

Alshon Jeffery, WR

Like Graham, Alshon Jeffery kept his injury woes out of the headlines. He played much of last season with a torn rotator cuff, and was still able to play at a high level. The injury forced him to have surgery shortly after the season ended in February. Jeffery’s timetable to return is still up in the air. He’ll likely miss training camp with the hope to be ready by Week 1. That still may be a stretch for the star wide receiver.

Jordan Hicks, LB

Jordan Hicks, the Eagles “QB of the defense,” was injured during a Week 7 victory over the Washington Redskins. He ruptured his Achilles in that game and was forced to watch the rest of the season from the sidelines. Hicks, like many of the other injured Eagles players is projected to make a full recovery. Expect to see him leading the defense once again when Week 1 rolls around.

Timmy Jernigan, DT

Timmy Jernigan was one of the few lucky Eagles to be able to play through his injuries to help guide the team to a Super Bowl victory. He couldn’t hold off surgery forever though. In late-April, he had surgery on a herniated disk in his back.

With initial reports that the recovery time was 4-6 months., it’s hard to tell exactly when he’ll be back. If he is able to recover in the four month timespan that will make him ready for Week 1. That is the optimistic view though, as it’s definitely a possibility that he’ll miss more time.

Sidney Jones, CB

The Eagles took a chance last year selecting Sidney Jones in the second round knowing that he had an Achilles injury that would hold him out for a considerable amount of time. He was only able to play one game at the end of the season before the Eagles decided to shut him down completely.

While he did miss some time during OTAs due to soreness, he’s expected to be at full strength this season. He’ll be someone to keep an eye on as many people believe he’ll be an opening day starter.

Carson Wentz, QB

Last but not least, we have Carson Wentz, the most watched and worrisome injury on the entire roster. Wentz tore his ACL and LCL in a Week 14 victory over the Rams. We all know what happened after that with Nick Foles leading the team to a Super Bowl victory.

While it was expected that Wentz would miss some games this season due to his injury, that may not be the case. Wentz’s goal is to be ready for Week 1, and all the videos surfacing online of Wentz moving around in a knee brace definitely makes Eagles fans optimistic. Yet it’s still too early to tell for Wentz. The Eagles may have to make a decision if getting him back for Week 1 is important enough to risk him further injuring his knee.

The good news for the Eagles is Foles is primed and ready to go when needed.