Jalen Reagor Returns to Headline New-Look Eagles Offense
When Jalen Reagor was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles 21st overall in the 2020 NFL draft, Eagles fans hoped that he would represent a turning of the page from the wide receiver woes of the last several years.
After yet another injury-plagued season from veterans Alshon Jeffery and DeSean Jackson, the Eagles and quarterback Carson Wentz were desperate for young, hungry talent to reshape the position and spark some life into an offense that had become bloated and stale in the years since Super-Bowl OC Frank Reich left for the Colts.
Training Camp
Photo: Chris Szagola-Pool/Getty Images
After a promising, if stunted offseason and Training Camp due to the COVID-19 pandemic and despite suffering a minor shoulder injury, Reagor ended up being ready to make his debut for the season opener and in the first 2 weeks roped in 5 receptions on 9 targets for 96 yards. A solid, if not world-beating start for the first-round rookie. On an anemic, uninspired offense ravaged by injuries and poor quarterback play, Reagor remained as one of the fans only hopes to help turn things around. And then, after the Week 2 loss against the LA Rams, it was revealed by Head Coach Doug Pederson that Reagor had torn the UCL ligament in his right hand and would be out for “several weeks.” He was placed in IR a week later.
In the meantime, however, while most fans and viewers around the NFL wrote off the listless and decimated 0-2-1 Eagles, who never seemed to be able to get in front of the injury train (additionally losing T’s Jason Peters and Lane Johnson, TE’s Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz and RB Miles Sanders over the course of 3 weeks), the team managed to instead find a couple of diamonds in the rough, namely young rookie contributor John Hightower, 2nd-year fan-favorite Greg Ward, and overnight phenom Travis Fulgham (Long May He Reign). These unlikely heroes, along with massively improved QB play from Wentz, have helped the Eagles to 2 wins and down-to-the-wire slugfests against the AFC defensive powerhouses Ravens and Steelers.
Travis Fulgham
Fulgham, a former late-round pick for the Lions and last-second callup for the game against the 49ers (to fill Reagor’s spot, go figure), has become a favorite target for Wentz, roping in 23 receptions for 357 yards and 3 touchdowns in his first 4 games, including an explosive 152 yards against the Steelers in Week 5.
Ward has quietly found himself with 233-yard of his own, 3 touchdowns, and has remained a quick and reliable target out of the slot. And rookie John Hightower, after getting over a case of the dropsies, has had back-to-back weeks with a 50-yard reception, including a 59-yard catch-and-run against the Giants to set up Boston Scott’s game-winning touchdown. Now Reagor now seems poised to rejoin this new young, promising group.
After opening his 21-day Activation Window from IR and participating in practice all week, it was announced yesterday that Reagor had been medically cleared by team staff and would, barring a freak accident, be ready for this weekend’s SNF showdown against the lowly Dallas Cowboys.
NFC East
Dallas, once thought the odds-on favorite to win the NFC East, has been a shell of itself since losing QB Dak Prescott to a horrific ankle injury and has been embarrassed now in back-to-back losses, including a devastating 25-3 battering by Washington that saw backup Andy Dalton knocked out with a concussion. With Dalton most likely not ready to go on Sunday night, 7th round rookie Ben DiNucci out of JMU is slated to make his first career start and try to make something out of a Cowboys team that has all but completely given up on the season.
Regardless of who’s under center though, it’s Dallas’s defense that tells the true story. According to The Football Database, Dallas has given up 408 Yards/Game, good for 6th worst in the NFL, including 178 Yards/Game on the ground, good for dead last. They’ve also given up 34.7 Points/Game, also last in the NFL, and have given up more than 30 points in every game this season until last week against Washington. High-priced former stars Jaylon Smith and DeMarcus Lawrence have been almost nonexistent, and Leighton Vander-Esch simply can’t stay healthy.
This abysmal Dallas defense has little hope of stopping anybody, which bodes well for the inexperienced yet talented offensive group Reagor will be rejoining this week. He will be walking back into an Eagles offense that has a whole new combination of youth, athleticism, and some of that good old fashioned hunger you like to see out of young players that we haven’t really had in the post-Super Bowl years, against a terrible defense that’s well on the ropes and has little to play for.
Hopefully, he brings his appetite.
Featured Image: Chris Szagola-Pool/Getty Images
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