The Philadelphia Eagles are 3-0 on the season after a thrilling Week 3 win at home against the Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles will hope to move to 4-0 this week against the also undefeated Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-0), but it might be tough given a couple of injuries at the cornerback spot.
On Monday evening, Jason Dumas of 6ABC reported that cornerbacks Adoree’ Jackson and Jakorian Bennett are dealing with injuries that could keep them sidelined for Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jackson sustained a groin injury in Sunday's win and was questionable to return.
If you’re the Eagles, this isn’t the greatest news to hear, as you didn’t have a bunch of quality depth at cornerback to begin with. Furthermore, the Buccaneers have one of the better scoring offenses in the league (24.0 points per game), led by veteran quarterback Baker Mayfield and star wide receiver Mike Evans.
Now, the Eagles might catch a break with Evans reportedly missing 3-4 weeks with a hamstring injury he suffered in Week 3, per Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports. That said, Tampa Bay has a terrific rookie WR in Emeka Egbuka and Sterling Shepherd, plus Bucky Irving out of the backfield.
Eagles Might Need Kelee Ringo, Mac McWilliams in Week 4 with CB Injuries
Without Evans for Sunday’s game, that should help out whoever is at CB2, as Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean will likely be matched up against Egbuka. However, Egbuka isn't an easy cover, as he plays like a polished NFL veteran.
At the same time, whether it's Kelee Ringo or rookie Mac McWilliams, they need to make sure they are ready to play.
For Ringo, this could be a prime opportunity for him to show that he deserves more defensive snaps. The third-year cornerback was viewed as a contender for the CB2 job this summer, but after a disastrous showing in the preseason opener, he lost momentum in the competition.
It also didn’t help that the Eagles traded for Bennett during the week of the preseason opener, which was a direct reflection of Ringo’s and Jackson’s performances.
Through the first three games of the season, Ringo has spent all of his time on special teams with 62 snaps.
The last time he started in a game on defense was in Week 18 against the New York Giants. Ringo had five combined tackles and a pass deflection, along with only allowing one catch on three targets for six yards.
As for McWilliams, the rookie cornerback has played sparingly to start the season on special teams. The fifth-round pick has the versatility to play the slot or on the outside and can be used as a blitzer off the corner.
It’s unlikely that Fangio would throw McWilliams into the fire on Sunday, but if the Eagles are down Jackson and Bennett, he might have no choice but to.