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The Philadelphia Eagles are placing Rodney McLeod on the injured reserve list, according to an official announcement from the team.
This news is not unexpected. McLeod suffered an MCL injury during the Eagles’ Week 3 game against the Indianapolis Colts. Doug Pederson then confirmed the report that McLeod had surgery on his knee.
Here’s what we previously wrote about the impact of losing McLeod:
This is a significant loss for Jim Schwartz’s defense. McLeod was off to a good start this season and now the Eagles are pretty thin on the back end. McLeod’s injury seemingly forces 33-year-old Corey Graham to see more playing time, which isn’t ideal because he’s best served as a role player in defensive subpackages. By extension, McLeod’s absence could limit the Eagles’ ability to move Malcolm Jenkins around the team’s defensive formations.
McLeod’s injury could also mean an elevated role for Deiondre’ Hall, whom the Eagles acquired in a trade with the Bears earlier this month. Hall has only logged special teams with Philly to this point. That could soon change with him becoming more involved on defense.
And here’s a list of 11 safety options the Eagles should consider adding to their 53-man roster.
McLeod joins Mack Hollins, Richard Rodgers, and Mike Wallace as notable players to go on the injured reserve list this season. Per NFL rule, the Eagles will only be able to activate two of those players from IR.
In a corresponding roster move, the Eagles promoted wide receiver DeAndre Carter from the practice squad. Carter made Philadelphia’s original 53-man roster and spent the first two games with the team before being waived leading up to the Eagles’ Week 3 matchup. The Eagles have now the following six receivers on their roster: Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor, Kamar Aiken, Jordan Matthews, Shelton Gibson, and Carter.
It’s a little curious to see Carter, a receiver, promoted instead of Tre Sullivan, a safety. Maybe this is being done in case Jeffery (battling with an illness) can’t play. Or maybe it’s just to help give the team a much-needed boost in the return game.