Eagles starting safety Rodney McLeod on Wednesday took a big step toward making his 2021 season debut.
McLeod, who hasn’t played yet this year as he comes back from an ACL tear, was a full participant in practice for the first time this year as the Eagles began preparations for the Chiefs.
Because of the short week, the Eagles held a walkthrough instead of a full practice, so the injury report is an estimation. But it means if the Eagles had a real practice, McLeod would have been full-go.
McLeod, 31, has been a limited practice participant since the season began and has missed the first three games after initially setting a goal to be ready for the opener. In the first three games, Marcus Epps and K’Von Wallace have been filling in as the other safety next to Anthony Harris.
“I think he's been doing good, is looking good,” head coach Nick Sirianni said on Saturday. “Again, he's day-to-day here, so he didn't have a setback, nothing like that. Just he'll play when he's ready.”
Here’s the full injury report from Wednesday:
Did not practice: Jordan Mailata (knee)
NFL
Limited: Landon Dickerson (hip), Marcus Epps (shoulder), Lane Johnson (ankle), Jason Kelce (foot/rest)
Full participant: Rodney McLeod (knee), Davion Taylor (calf)
Mailata sprained his MCL in practice last Thursday and might end up missing a second straight week if he can’t practice this week. Mailata was in Dallas as a spectator wearing a brace on his knee. In his place, former first-rounder Andre Dillard played and played well.
Dickerson is an interesting addition to the injury report and because of his lengthy injury history, that’s one to watch. The Eagles are already without their two starting guards — Isaac Seumalo and Brandon Brooks. They did promote Sua Opeta to the active roster on Wednesday.
Johnson’s being listed as limited with an ankle injury is also notable. He has been dealing with an injury to his ankle since 2018 and had another surgery that ended his season on that ankle last year.
Taylor missed the last game with a calf injury that dates back to training camp. The second-year player has struggled to stay healthy, but getting him back as a full participant is a good sign.
Wallace, who had been starting the last couple games in McLeod’s place, is on IR with a separated shoulder and now Epps is also dealing with a shoulder injury.
That’s why it should be no surprise that safety Elijah Riley is one of four protected practice squad players this week. The others are OL Kayode Awosika, WR John Hightower and RB Jordan Howard.
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