Eagles safety Rodney McLeod (knee) has been ruled out for the team’s Week 2 game against the 49ers, head coach Nick Sirianni said on Friday.
McLeod, 31, is still recovering from an ACL injury that ended his 2020 season early.
While his initial goal was to be ready for the season opener, McLeod will now miss the first two weeks of the season. Over the last couple weeks, McLeod has been practicing but as a limited participant.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
So who starts in his place?
Well, Marcus Epps, who started in Atlanta, is still working his way through the NFL’s concussion protocol after exiting the opener after just eight snaps. Sirianni said the Eagles will find out more on Epps’s availability on Saturday morning. Epps enters the weekend listed as questionable.
If Epps can’t play, expect second-year player K’Von Wallace to start. But even if Wallace isn’t starting, he’ll still likely have a role in Jonathan Gannon’s defense.
The only player ruled out for Sunday so far is McLeod, which means second-round pick Landon Dickerson (knee) could be ready to make his NFL debut. Dickerson began training camp on the PUP list but has been practicing for a few weeks since then. He became a full participant in practice this week.
NFL
Will Dickerson have a role on Sunday?
“We’ll hold that close to us just for right now,” Sirianni said.
The Eagles are relatively very healthy as they enter Week 2. Every player who was limited in Thursday’s practice was on the field at the Linc for Friday’s session: WR J.J. Arcega-Whiteside (ankle), G Brandon Brooks (knee, resting player), S Marcus Epps (concussion), TE Zach Ertz (hamstring, resting player), CB Avonte Maddox (groin), S Rodney McLeod (knee).
Subscribe to the Eagle Eye podcast:
Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube