PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles faced a setback after linebacker Nakobe Dean sustained an injury to his left knee during the wild-card playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. His availability for the rest of the postseason appears to be in doubt.
After securing a 22-10 victory over the Packers and advancing to the divisional round, Dean was spotted using crutches and wearing a brace on his injured leg. While head coach Nick Sirianni did not provide updates on Dean’s condition during the post-game briefing, his teammates are well aware that they may be without one of their key defensive contributors in the upcoming games.
“We’re definitely playing for him out there,” remarked Oren Burks, who stepped in for Dean on defense. Burks had made a significant impact by forcing a fumble during the opening kickoff in special teams. “We’re going to miss him. We don’t know what the situation is, but this is a next man-up mentality.”
Dean’s injury occurred in the second quarter; he limped off the field and was subsequently carted away, being ruled out for the remainder of the match. All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun mentioned, “I saw him in the locker room after, yeah. I don’t know what happened. I don’t think he knows what happened yet.”
Prior to this game, Dean had already missed the final two regular-season contests due to an abdominal injury incurred during a matchup against Washington on December 22. He managed to record six tackles, including two that resulted in a loss before his exit against Green Bay.
Burks emphasized Dean’s importance to the team: “We don’t know what, exactly, the situation is, but he’s been our leader from the middle the whole year just commanding everything and keeping everybody accountable from the top down.”
While the Eagles dealt with Dean’s injury, the Packers also suffered notable losses during the game. Starting left guard Elgton Jenkins and defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt both left the field with injuries in the first quarter. In the fourth quarter, wide receivers Romeo Doubs (concussion) and Jayden Reed (shoulder) were sidelined before center Josh Myers was carted off with a left leg injury.
Green Bay’s head coach Matt LaFleur acknowledged the need for better adjustments from the coaching staff, as they failed to adequately position replacements for success. “It’s unfortunate and I hate it for our guys that have to battle through that, but it’s football,” LaFleur expressed. “There’s a standard of performance that you have to go out there and we have to hold that standard no matter who’s in.”
