It's been a relatively quiet season for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver/returner Britain Covey. The veteran special teams specialist has spent most of his second Eagles stint on the practice squad, having not been elevated to the game-day roster until the Week 13 clash vs. the Chicago Bears, culminating in kick and punt returns of 22 and nine yards, respectively.
Covey's elevation and subsequent performance were a long time coming for Eagles fans, who've been dying to see more of him and less of Xavier Gipson. Fortunately, that could be exactly what's in the Philadelphia special teams unit's future, now that the Eagles waived Gipson on Sunday afternoon and will be "going with Britain Covey as the returner," per The Athletic's Zach Berman.
Gipson's release is only a surprise in the fact that it took this long to happen. The Dallas, TX native has underwhelmed since being claimed from the New York Jets in September, averaging just 11.2 yards on six punts and 24.3 yards on seven kick returns while fumbling the ball twice. That just wasn't reliable enough to cut it, especially at this stage of the season.
Now, with Gipson officially out of the picture, all eyes are back on Covey as he prepares to play for his Eagles future.
Britain Covey Must Capitalize on Xavier Gipson's Eagles Exit
In his brief time with the Eagles, Gipson averaged 2.6 punt and kick returns on 7.8 special teams snaps per game. Those opportunities will now be transferred over to Covey, who's playing for his future in the City of Brotherly Love in the coming weeks.
After all, Covey is playing the 2025 season on a one-year contract, and a return to the Eagles isn't guaranteed. The front office already showed that they were willing to part ways when the ex-Utah Ute signed with the Los Angeles Rams back in May. At the same time, the Eagles' reunion with Covey two days after his Rams release shows that they realized letting him go was a mistake.
Now, the ball is in Covey's court to prove that he deserves an extended stay in Philly. The good news for him is that there's nowhere for the Eagles' return units to go but up, as they average 23.4 kick return yards (31st) and 10.3 punt return yards (16th) as of Sunday afternoon. Helping improve those averages down the stretch would certainly help Covey convince general manager Howie Roseman that a re-signing is mutually beneficial.
The Provo, UT native proved what he could do for the Eagles in 2023 when Covey led the NFL with 417 punt return yards on 29 attempts. Injuries held him to five games in 2024, forcing him to lose his job, so it's interesting to see that he's now in a spot to regain the role at such a crucial point in the season.
Nevertheless, it's the time of the season when surprise heroes step up to help their teams when they need it the most. Not only would a strong end-of-season performance help turn one of the Eagles' weak spots into a strength, but it would also go a long way to cement his future with the franchise.