An early bye week is normally not something NFL teams want. They’d rather it be towards the end of the season so the guys can get some R&R in preparation for the home stretch. It’s often wasted early in the season. But not for the Carolina Panthers this year. Training camp through the first four weeks of the season was rough on the roster, and guys were dropping like flies. But the week off has done some good. Players that had been out are back at practice, so it’s looking like we’ll get closer to what this roster is supposed to look like.
Panthers Injury Report
- Monroe Freeling – DNP – Knee
- AJ Dillon – DNP – Ankle
- Damien Lewis – LP – Elbow
- Jaelan Phillips – LP – Hamstring
- Tommy Tremble – LP – Ribs
- Darren Waller – LP – Toe
- Taylor Moton – FP – Lungs
- Tershawn Wharton – FP – Neck
- Jalen Coker – FP – Quadriceps
- Bryce Young – FP – Knee
- Trevor Etienne – FP – Ankle
- Thomas Incoom – FP – Ribs
The highlights here are in bold. Taylor Moton immediately jumped back into a full practice after a scary bout with a blood clot in his lungs that kept him out in training camp and the first few weeks of the season. The timing couldn’t be better, as rookie right tackle Monroe Freeling has been taking a beating while taking his lumps as a rookie, and he wasn’t at practice to start the week. On the other side of the ball, Tershawn Wharton is back after undergoing neck surgery in the offseason. He’s been plagued by injuries since signing with Carolina. Hopefully he’s fully healthy and able to build some momentum.
It’s nice to see Damien Lewis and Jaelan Phillips back at practice, even in a limited fashion. It’s possible either could already be back this week, though I’d guess it’s more likely for Lewis than for Phillips given the nature of their respective injuries.
Trevor Etienne and Thomas Incoom will also be making their returns from injured reserve, which gives the Panthers more depth and bodies for special teams. Etienne will probably get some carries as well if AJ Dillon is unable to give it a go. And Jalen Coker seems to be all good to go after getting banged up a couple times in the weeks leading up to the bye week.
Eagles Injury Report
- Saquon Barkley – DNP – Hamstring
- Devonta Smith – DNP – Hamstring/toe
- Michael Carter II – DNP – Abdomen
- Will Shipley – DNP – Foot
- Drew Kendall – DNP – Knee
- Jalyx Hunt – DNP – Knee/ankle
- Jakorian Bennett – LP – Unspecified
- Marquise Brown – LP – Ankle
- Grant Calcaterra – LP – Back
- Landon Dickerson – LP – Knee
- AJ Espenesa – LP – Back
- Marcus Epps – LP – Groin
- Jonathan Greenard – LP – Ankle
- EJ Jenkins – LP – Toe
- Tyler Steen – LP – Shoulder
- Eli Stowers – LP – Quad
- Dontayvion Wicks – LP – Hamstring
I left out the full practice participants because this list seemed plenty. It almost would have been shorter to list out the Eagles that are not on the injury report. Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni had expressed hope that their two offensive stars Saquon Barkley and Devonta Smith would be back this week, but the fact that neither practiced at all to start the week makes their status more questionable than he maybe let on. Starting center Drew Kendall is going to be out, which means starting left guard Willie Lampkin will move to center while Landon Dickerson will make his return from his knee injury to start at left guard on a suddenly depleted Eagles offensive line.