Jonathan Greenard will have to wait for his Eagles debut.
The edge rusher has been ruled out for Sunday’s season opener against the Commanders because of a pectoral injury, while tight end Eli Stowers is listed as questionable with a hamstring issue. The rest of the Eagles’ 53-man roster is set to go for Week 1 in Washington.
Greenard and Stowers were both limited throughout the week, but only one of them is officially unavailable for the opener. Greenard, 29, has been working his way back after suffering a pec strain a few days before training camp opened and missing the entire summer.
The Eagles never put him on the Reserve/PUP list at final cuts, which pointed to an expectation that he’d be back sometime in the first month of the season. That timeline still appears to be intact - just not for Week 1.
“They haven't told me anything,” Greenard said on Thursday. “I just know I've been getting right, going through the motions of just trying to get back into the swing of things before I get fully thrown out there.
But it's something every day. So I just listen to them.
I trust their judgment.
“I'm literally just trying to work day by day. Like, I literally am out there every second trying to just show what I can do.
And that's tough for them (to make a decision), but I feel pretty solid. … It’s not for me to decide.
I feel good, though. I will say I feel I'm in a good spot.
I know that I'm working every day to continue to try to get this thing stronger. We're close.
I know that.”
The Eagles brought Greenard in from Minnesota during the draft through a trade, then locked him up on a four-year, $98 million extension. He was supposed to headline the team’s edge-rushing rotation, but the summer reps told a different story.
Jalyx Hunt and Nolan Smith handled most of the first-team work, while Arnold Ebiketie and A.J. Epenesa lined up with the second unit.
When Greenard does get back, the Eagles don’t sound eager to throw him into the deep end right away.
“It's going to be a while before he's game ready for a full load,” defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. “It'll be a pretty good rotation.”
Stowers, meanwhile, is still on the fence officially, even though he said Friday he expects to play against Washington. The Eagles’ second-round pick picked up a hamstring injury late in camp, and it’s lingered into the regular season.
Even if he suits up, his role could be limited. Based on what the Eagles showed this summer, Stowers didn’t appear ready to be a major offensive piece yet.
Philadelphia’s tight end group also includes Dallas Goedert, Johnny Mundt and E.J. Jenkins.
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