Cam Jurgens expected to miss multiple weeks, Sua Opeta next man up

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Cam Jurgens expected to miss multiple weeks, Sua Opeta next man up

By Reuben Frank, Eagles Insider • Published October 2, 2023

 

Nick Sirianni said Monday right guard Cam Jurgens is "week-to-week” with a foot injury suffered in the second quarter of the Eagles’ overtime win against Washington Sunday.

In Eagles' medical parlance, "day-to-day" means a player is expected to miss one game at most, and "week-to-week" means a multiple-week injury.

"It’s still early in the week,” Sirianni said. "So we’ll see there.”

Jurgens, seen leaving the locker room wearing a boot, started the Eagles’ first four games this year after playing only 35 offensive snaps as a rookie last year.

Veteran Sua Opeta replaced Jurgens when the Eagles came out for the second half, and Sirianni said it will be Sua and not Tyler Steen – the Eagles’ rookie 3^rd-round pick – who will start against the Rams Sunday.

"I don't think there's any secret,” Sirianni said. "I think you see where we lie right now between Sua and Tyler. Sua has been up, Tyler has been inactive.”

Steen, who split time between right guard and left tackle in training camp, has been inactive for all four games so far this year.

Opeta, undrafted out of Weber State in Ogden, Utah, has been with the Eagles since 2019. He’s been released four times, including as recently as this past January, and has been on and off the practice squad and active roster many times.

Opeta has started five games – at left guard for both Giants games in 2020, at left guard for the first Washington game and second Dallas game in 2021 and at right guard for the 2021 wild-card game in Tampa.

Sirianni didn't say whether Jurgens will be placed on Injured Reserve. Players on IR must miss at least four games. If Jurgens were placed on IR this week, he’d be eligible to return for the first Cowboys game on Nov. 5.

As for Opeta, the Eagles were encouraged by his 43 snaps Sunday in his most extensive playing time since he got 47 snaps at left guard against the Cards last October when Landon Dickerson got banged up.

Obviously, there are many factors that affect this, but the Eagles averaged 2.5 points and 36 yards per drive in the first half and 3.8 points and 45 yards per drive in the second half and overtime.

"I thought he played outstanding yesterday,” Sirianni said. "I mean, outstanding. I think we all felt that in the game, and then you watch it on tape, and you verify that and confirm that, and even Lane (Johnson) came up to me in the locker room after the game … and was singing the praises of Sua. 

"We recognized it as coaches when we got to watch it, and I know his teammates recognized it in game. So excellent job by him to come in and play a great game. That's a hard (and) very necessary thing to be able to do because injuries are part of this game and to be able to step in and not miss a beat. 

"These guys don't get enough credit for when they do that and so he was outstanding and that's not easy to do against a very good front. That's a very good front we played yesterday and Sua was outstanding.”

With Jurgens unavailable and Opeta starting, the Eagles would have three healthy back-up linemen on the 53-man roster – veteran Jack Driscoll, who can play guard or tackle, as well as Steen and Fred Johnson, who is exclusively a tackle.

The Eagles have four offensive linemen on the practice squad – recent addition Tyre Phillips, veteran Le’Raven Clark, perennial training camp body Brett Toth and undrafted Julian Good-Jones. Clark is a tackle, Phillips and Toth are guard-tackles and Good-Jones is a center-guard. Of that group, Good-Jones had a solid training camp and could be a game-day call-up for depth.

https://www.nbcsportsphiladelphia.com/nfl/philadelphia-eagles/eagles-cam-jurgens-expected-to-miss-multiple-weeks-sua-opeta-next-man-up/538698/