Eagles open up roster spot by officially placing Cre’Von LeBlanc on injured reserve

The Philadelphia Eagles placed Cre’Von LeBlanc on the injured reserve list, according to an official announcement from the team. (Yes, the same Cre’Von LeBlanc the team signed to a one-year contract extension earlier today.)

This news was expected and it doesn’t mean LeBlanc’s season is necessarily over. He’s eligible to be activated back to the 53-man roster after Week 8.

LeBlanc suffered a foot injury early in training camp this year. It was originally reported that he might be able to play in September but then a new report emerged suggesting Strap could be out until November.

NFL teams are permitted to return two players from injured reserve each season so we’ll eventually see if the Eagles use one of those two designations on Strap.

Had he not gotten hurt, Strap likely would’ve entered the Eagles’ 2019 season as a key special teams contributor and the backup nickel cornerback. He could resume those roles provided he gets healthy and activated from IR.

The Eagles placing Strap on injured reserve means they now have an open roster spot to work with. So, how are they going to fill that vacancy?

It’s possible the Eagles could call up one of the two tight ends currently signed to their practice squad: Joshua Perkins or Alex Ellis. Philadelphia could afford to add a third tight end behind Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert on the 53-man roster. Doug Pederson suggested the team could just utilize Andre Dillard as a (blocking) third tight end, though.

The Eagles could look to add a corner to their roster since Ronald Darby (coming off an ACL injury), Sidney Jones, Avonte Maddox, and Rasul Douglas are the only four players at that position. The team reportedly brought free agent corner Craig James in for a workout. [UPDATE: The Eagles signed James to their practice squad.]

Another possibility involves the Eagles signing veteran safety and special teams ace Chris Banjo, whom they also reportedly brought in for a workout.

It shouldn’t take long before we see what the Eagles decide to do with their open roster spot.