Eagles tight end Zach Ertz is expected to miss about a month, but the news is better for Miles Sanders, according to ESPN.
ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported Monday that Ertz will be out three or four weeks with the ankle injury he suffered on Sunday. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Sanders is expected to miss one or two weeks with the knee injury he suffered in the Ravens game.
ESPN also reported that defensive tackle Malik Jackson and rookie offensive lineman Jack Driscoll will miss a week or two.
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The Eagles face the Giants on a short week Thursday night and then the Cowboys a week from Sunday, both at the Linc, before their bye week. They return Nov. 15 to face the Giants again at the Meadowlands.
It’s already been a nightmarish season for Ertz, with 24 catches for just 178 yards and one touchdown through six games after he expressed his disappointment in September with the Eagles’ most recent contract offer to him.
With his four catches Sunday, Ertz increased his career total to 549 and passed Jeremy Shockey and Ben Watson (547 each) to move into 10th place in NFL history in catches by a tight end.
Ertz has missed only six games in his eight-year career.
NFL
Dallas Goedert, who had 13 catches for 138 yards and a touchdown before suffering a fracture in his ankle in the Bengals game, is eligible to come off Injured Reserve, but there’s been no word from the Eagles on if he’ll be ready to resume practicing on Tuesday.
Because of the NFL’s current roster management rules, any player the Eagles add on Monday would have to test negative for COVID-19 for six days before joining the team, so nobody they sign now would be able to play on Thursday night.
If the Eagles are without Ertz and Goedert, they’d be very thin at tight end.
Jason Croom caught a touchdown Sunday but is technically on the practice squad at the moment. Veteran Richard Rodgers and recent acquisition Hakeem Butler — who’s never played an NFL snap on offense — are the only healthy tight ends currently on the 53-man roster.
The news was encouraging for Sanders, who missed the opener with a hamstring injury that lingered from training camp but still ranks fourth in the NFL in rushing despite only 71 carries. Sanders leads all NFL running backs with 6.1 yards per carry and has a 74-yard run in each of his last two games.
That’s a lot of firepower the Eagles will be missing. Sanders’ backups have done very little this year.
Boston Scott has 21 carries but for just 67 yards and a 3.2 average. Corey Clement is 11-for-30 for a 2.7 average. Rookies Jason Huntley and Adrian Killins have one carry each.
In all, Eagles running backs other than Sanders have 34 carries and a 2.5 average. The Eagles also have Elijah Holyfield and Killins currently on the practice squad.
Jackson injured his quad Sunday and Driscoll his ankle.
Brett Toth, who just joined the Eagles last Wednesday, made his NFL debut at right tackle Sunday after Driscoll left the game in the fourth quarter, but Doug Pederson indicated that he's optimistic Lane Johnson will be able to play Thursday night after sitting out the Ravens game with his nagging ankle injury.
Jackson has played well as part of the Eagles’ defensive line rotation after missing most of last year. The Eagles still have Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave and Hassan Ridgeway.