SATURDAY UPDATE: The Saints have downgraded quarterback Taysom Hill (chest injury) from questionable to doubtful for Sunday's game. New Orleans already ruled out defensive tackle Khalen Saunders (calf injury).
The Eagles departed Philadelphia for New Orleans on Saturday. The trip to the city known as the Big Easy will be quite a challenge as the Saints are 2-0 to start the season and will be playing in front of a fired-up Superdome crowd.
DeVonta Smith
Jalen Hurts
Ben VanSumeren
Thomas Booker
Boarding the plane for New Orleans.
Cam Jurgens
Reed Blankenship
Parris Campbell was elevated from the practice squad for Sunday's game.
Britain Covey
Mekhi Becton
Jordan Mailata
Josh Sweat
Jalyx Hunt
Eli Ricks
Jake Elliott, Rick Lovato, Dallas Goedert, and Jack Stoll
Saquon Barkley
The Eagles will be without All-Pro wide receiver A.J. Brown this Sunday against the New Orleans Saints. The team ruled out Brown with a hamstring injury. Brown did not practice all week.
Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore expressed confidence in the team's ability to generate explosive plays despite missing someone of Brown's caliber.
"Yeah, no doubt. No doubt, obviously," Moore said. "I think we still have guys who can separate and give us some vertical components to our offense, obviously something that we've just got to keep aware of, how can we continue to find those opportunities.
"I think a big thing around the NFL right now is trying to find explosive plays. I think obviously the numbers are all down. We're trying to find it. Defenses are doing an excellent job, and we've just got to keep finding them, not necessarily just on third down but first and second down, as well."
Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson also did not practice on Friday after he "tweaked something" in his foot on Thursday, according to Head Coach Nick Sirianni. There is some hope for Gardner-Johnson, as he is listed as questionable. Gardner-Johnson was originally drafted by the Saints in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft before being traded to Philadelphia prior to the start of the 2022 regular season.
"I love his emotion. I love his energy," Sirianni said of Gardner-Johnson. "He's got such an awesome personality that use that personality to always bring people together. Be yourself. Have fun out there. Show your emotion. I would be crazy to tell him not to show his emotion because I show my emotion. Show your emotion. Do everything within the rules of the game because people feed off of that. Again, love his energy and his personality."
Good news for the Eagles is that rookie wide receiver Johnny Wilson, who did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday with a hamstring injury, returned to action on Friday and is good to go for the Saints game.
The Philadelphia Eagles travel to New Orleans to battle the 2-0 Saints this Sunday. Check out Photography Director Kiel Leggere's exclusive shots from this week's practice.
WR DeVonta Smith
Sunday's kickoff will be here in a blur.
Slay
RB Will Shipley and CB Avonte Maddox
LB Oren Burks
What are Lane Johnson and Mekhi Becton talking about?
CB Avonte Maddox
DT Thomas Booker
TE E,J, Jenkins
Slay
DT Jalen Carter
OLB Nolan Smith
Wide Receivers Coach Aaron Moorehead with his crew
DT Thomas Booker
CB Isaiah Rodgers
TE Grant Calcaterra chats with
CB Quinyon Mitchell
OLB Jalyx Hunt
DE Bryce Huff
QB1
RB Kenneth Gainwell
S Reed Blankenship
Getting in that work at the NovaCare Complex.
DT Gabe Hall
TE Dallas Goedert
Pass rush work with Bryce Huff and Brandon Graham
DT Moro Ojomo
Special teams coverage
OLB Jalyx Hunt works with Defensive Ends/Outside Linebackers Coach Jeremiah Washburn
Smitty doing Smitty things.
LB Nakobe Dean
DBs getting loose.
Sunday is supposed to be a homecoming for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, a fourth-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2019.
However, Gardner-Johnson did not practice on Thursday due to a foot injury. He was not on Wednesday's injury report.
Other than the addition of Gardner-Johnson, there are no changes, but wide receiver A.J. Brown did not practice again due to the hamstring injury that kept him out of Monday night's game against the Falcons. Wide receiver Johnny Wilson also did not practice with a hamstring injury.
Thursday marked the Eagles' first full practice of the week as they held a walkthrough on Wednesday.
DID NOT PARTICIPATE
• WR A.J. Brown (Hamstring)
• S C.J. Gardner-Johnson (Foot)
• WR Johnny Wilson (Hamstring)
There are only two players on the injury report to start the week for the Eagles, but they are both at the wide receiver position.
DID NOT PARTICIPATE
• WR A.J. Brown (Hamstring)
• WR Johnny Wilson (Hamstring)
Note that the Eagles only held a walkthrough on Wednesday in advance of Sunday's game against the Saints. Wednesday's injury report is simply an estimation if there was a full practice.
Both Brown and Wilson landed on the injury report during the week of practice leading up to the Falcons game. Brown did not play, while Wilson was able to suit up.
Head Coach Nick Sirianni explained on Wednesday what it means to not have Brown in the offense.
"Well, A.J. is a phenomenal player, so of course you lose some of the big-play ability that he brings. But you try to move guys around, whether you're running a different play or whether you're running a different person in the play that A.J. would have run, those are all different things," Sirianni said.
"But yeah, anytime you lose a player like A.J. Brown, it's going to affect you. But again, I thought the efficiency of the offense – now, it wasn't as good as we needed to be in the red zone, but the guys that had to step up and make plays in the absence of A.J. did a good job."
