Some encouraging injury news on Reed Blankenship

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Some encouraging injury news on Reed Blankenship

By Reuben Frank • Published January 13, 2024

 

The injury news wasn’t all bad Saturday morning.

The Eagles ruled star wide receiver A.J. Brown out for the playoff game in Tampa, but head coach Nick Sirianni was optimistic about Reed Blankenship’s chances to play Monday night against the Bucs.

And that’s great news considering how thin the Eagles are right now at safety.

Blankenship suffered a groin injury during the loss to the Giants in the regular-season finale on Sunday and didn’t practice Thursday or Friday.

"He's progressing,” Sirianni said Saturday morning. "He's got a chance. It’ll probably be a little bit more of a game time decision with him. But he's going to go out there and work today (and) we'll see how he feels.”

Blankenship was at practice Saturday morning in the Bubble but did not appear to be participating during the brief period open to the media. The Eagles could have changed their mind about Blankenship participating when rain and wind forced practice indoors. Or that "work” could have been an individual session on the side during or after practice.

Either way, the Eagles are hopeful they’ll have the 24-year-old for Tampa.

"We'll work him again (Sunday) and probably work him out on the field on Monday night (before the game),” Sirianni said. "And so we're hopeful that he can go, but we'll see.”

With rookie safety Sidney Jones out for the year with a torn ACL, the Eagles are down to Kevin Byard as the only full-time safety who’s healthy.

The season began with Justin Evans, Terrell Edmunds, K’Von Wallace and Brown competing for a starting spot opposite Blankenship. Evans is out for the year with a knee injury, Edmunds was traded to the Titans in the deal that brought Byard to the Eagles in October and Wallace also finished with the Titans after beginning the season with the Cards.

If Blankenship were unable to play Monday, the Eagles’ options opposite Byard would be moving slot corner Avonte Maddox to safety or playing a rarely used practice squad defensive back like Tristin McCollum or Mekhi Garner.

McCollum got his first career snaps on defense Sunday in East Rutherford and played 17 snaps at safety. Garner has also played 17 snaps at safety this year – 13 vs. the Jets and four vs. the Dolphins. He hasn’t played any defensive snaps in the last 10 games.

Blankenship missed the Vikings game Week 2 with a rib injury. He led the Eagles with three interceptions this year, the most by an undrafted Eagle since Dimitri Patterson had four in 2010.

https://www.nbcsportsphiladelphia.com/nfl/philadelphia-eagles/eagles-injury-report-encouraging-news-reed-blankenship/558315/