As we near the start of the Eagles’ rivalry game with the Dallas Cowboys, the weekly announcement of players that won’t play was released by the team, and to somewhat of a surprise, starting RB Brian Westbrook (pictured)was among those to be named inactive for Week 9. The concussion victim missed last week’s contest to recover from the injury, and was said to be improving on a rapid pace throughout the past few days’ practice sessions. Head coach Andy Reid constantly expressed his belief that Westbrook would be on the field and contributing greatly against the Cowboys, but apparently the Eagles aren’t feeling it is the right decision to allow him to play. The official reasoning for naming Westbrook inactive was because of “post-concussion symptoms”. Although the absence of the veteran in the offense tonight is certainly not something to smile upon, the Birds have shown that they can win and succeed with the services of other players.

Starting OLB Chris Gocong has also been ruled out for this evening’s matchup, as he tends to a pair of leg injuries–a strained quad muscle and strained hamstring. Taking his place in the defensive lineup will be 7th-round Draft pick Moise Fokou, who saw a bit of playing time last week against the Giants as Gocong’s replacement.

Other players that have been confirmed to be listed as inactive and out of the game include: WR Kevin Curtis (knee injury), OG Mike McGlynn (roster unavailability), RB P.J. Hill (roster unavailability), OG Max Jean-Gilles (shoulder injury), DE Victor Abiamiri (knee injury), and CB Dimitri Patterson (quad muscle injury)