Official: Eagles place Alshon Jeffery on PUP list

The Philadelphia Eagles placed Alshon Jeffery on the active/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, according to an official announcement from the team.

This news hardly qualifies as a shocking development. There’s been doubt about Jeffery’s early season availability since he suffered a Lisfranc injury in December 2019. Here’s what we previously wrote about his 2020 outlook:

Early in the offseason, there was buzz that the Eagles were going to either trade or cut Jeffery. And, yet, here he is, still on the roster.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean the Eagles are counting on Jeffery to be a big contributor in 2020. As recently as May 31, the Inquirer wrote that they “still can’t imagine [Jeffery] playing in midnight green again.” My BGN Radio co-host Jimmy Kempski took the under on 0.5 snaps played by Jeffery for the Eagles this upcoming season.

Even if Jeffery remains on the team, his availability is in question. Jeffery suffered a Lisfranc injury in mid-December last year. While some have suggested he could be ready for September, others remain skeptical. A doctor I talked to explained why he’s bearish on Jeffery’s 2020 outlook. One must also consider Jalen Mills took a full 12 months to recover from a foot injury similar to the one Jeffery suffered. There’s a real chance Jeffery begins the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, which would cause him to miss six games at least.

And even if Jeffery does get healthy enough to play, just how effective can he be? He looked pretty slow last year as he posted a career low 11.4 yards per reception mark. What’s the 30-year-old going to look like as he comes off a major injury? And can the Eagles trust him to not anonymously bash the team’s starting quarterback for the third season in a row?

It’d be great if Jeffery could get back to being an effective contributor. The Eagles need an X receiver and he could fill that role. It’s just hard to count on it happening.

The Eagles placing Jeffery on the PUP list means he will not be able to practice until the team deems him healthy enough to participate. The Eagles can take him off the active/PUP list at any time before roster cuts. However, Jeffery will no longer be eligible for the reserve/PUP list (AKA the regular season PUP list) once he participates in a single practice.

Players on reserve/PUP are required to miss at least the first six games of the regular season. Players on the active/PUP list, meanwhile, do still count against the Eagles’ offseason roster limit (currently set at 80 with COVID precautions). Jeffery will NOT count towards the 53-man roster if/when he goes on the reserve/PUP list.

With Jeffery sidelined and Marquise Goodwin opting out of the 2020 season, the Eagles are left with the following nine players for Eagles training camp practices: DeSean Jackson, Jalen Reagor, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, Greg Ward, Quez Watkins, John Hightower, Robert Davis, Deontay Burnett, and Manasseh Bailey.