Dr. David Chao, better known as “Pro Football Doc,” delivers injury insights and analysis at SICscore.com [sicscore.com]. A former NFL head team physician at the Chargers, Chao applies over 17 years of sideline experience to deliver his trusted breakdowns you won’t find on the injury report. Health scores and injury insights are powered by Sports Injury Central’s SIC Score model, giving Eagles fans and bettors a sharper edge all season long. Follow his trusted injury breakdowns on X @ProFootballDoc [x.com] for real-time Eagles updates.
Injuries play a huge part of the NFL season. Dr. David Chao is the foremost authority on how they impact teams and how they could affect betting lines, future’s bets and how a team will look this season.
In 2025, Dr. Chao feels the Eagles will have another strong season ahead, though it may not result in repeating as Super Bowl champions. The Detroit Lions have healed and though the team underwent coordinator changes, offensive coordinator John Morton will be running the same system as previous Lions’ OC, Chicago Bears’ head coach Ben Johnson, as will new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, who replaced Aaron Glenn, the New York Jets head coach whom Sheppard worked under as the Lions’ linebackers’ coach.
Dr. Chao is a little concerned with the Eagles’ offensive line and has more concerns about AJ Brown’s chronic knee issues than the hamstring problems he was experiencing during training camp. Jordan Mailata should be okay recovering from a concussion in training camp, though the larger problem looming is if he should suffer another one during the season, Dr. Chao noted, he would be out for a month. On defense, Nakobe Dean will obviously not be ready, but when he does return, according to Dr. Chao, he will not be dynamic until at least the second half of the season.
Dr. Chao feels anyone thinking of placing prop bets on superstar running back and potential 2025 NFL MVP Saquon Barkley should seriously think about placing their wagers on the unders. Dr. Chao does not see Eagles’ head coach Nick Sirianni running Barkley into the ground as he did last year, when Barkley reached career-bests in carries (345), yards (2,005), touchdowns (15) and touches (378). Dr. Chao expects Will Shipley to be used considerably more, he believes, since the Eagles are in a “Super Bowl-or-bust” season.
The Eagles are a marque team that will play an uneven schedule, with five primetime games, two Thursday night games, and NFC East matchups against the New York Giants and Washington Commanders, playing each twice within a three-game span.
The Eagles had a very healthy 2024 season. What the NFL always bares out, according to Dr. Chao, is a regression to the mean. In other words a team like the Lions who were riddled by injuries last season usually average out to have a healthier season the following year. Expect the Eagles to regress to the mean this season, dealing with more injuries in 2025.
Dr. Chao can see the Eagles repeating as Super Bowl champions, though overall, feels the Eagles could meet and lose to the Lions in the NFC Championship.
Here is his breakdown of what could be ahead for the Eagles this season:
Eagles Offense
Jalen Hurts (QB): Hurts sustained a concussion in Week 16, which saw him miss the final two regular-season games. With his concussion history, the next one could lead to a stint on injured reserve, which could cost him at least four games if he sustained another one this season. He then sustained a knee injury during the divisional round of the playoffs but was not listed with an injury designation for the conference championship, nor the Super Bowl, where he played very well in both games.
Saquon Barkley (RB): He dealt with back tightness in early November, otherwise a fully healthy season that saw him rush for 2005 yards in 16 games, resting during Week 18, and scoring 13 TDs. We see no issues for Barkley to start the season; however, he had extremely high usage last season (345 carries), and we expect a regression in production, in addition to a higher likelihood of injury this season.
AJ Brown (WR): WR1 AJ Brown missed Weeks 2-4 with a hamstring injury, and had a knee injury around Week 9, but missed no games from that injury. At this stage of his career, age is a concern. There may be times during the season where he could miss practice time, but a history of knee injuries could be an issue this season. *Aug 5th Update*: Currently dealing with a hamstring injury and has been observing practice, all indications are that the Eagles are simply taking a cautious approach to the star wideout’s health.
Dallas Goedert (TE): Goedert dealt with a hamstring injury in mid-October of last season that saw him miss Weeks 7-10. He also sustained a PCL injury that cost him Weeks 14-17. He came back for his regular rotation for the playoffs, then was used sparingly in the Super Bowl, when he had no injury designation.
Lane Johnson (OL): Lane Johnson missed some time in September with a concussion but otherwise was healthy in 2024. We expect the right tackle to be healthy to start 2025 as a veteran presence on the Eagles’ offensive line. He still plays at a very high level, but age is a definite concern for the veteran leader of the Eagles’ O-line.
Landon Dickerson (OL): He played through a knee injury at the end of the 2024 season that he underwent surgery for in February. The severity of the knee injury is unknown, but the guard is likely to miss some offseason time as well as training camp. He suffered a torn meniscus during an open practice two weeks ago. The Eagles’ spin was that Dickerson underwent minor meniscus surgery in his right knee. The only minor surgery is when it is done on someone else. Dickerson may start the opener, though he may not be 100-percent until the fourth game of the season.
Eagles Defense
Jihaad Campbell (LB): The rookie linebacker underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in March. His timeline of recovery had him ready for training camp, where the 31st overall pick in the 2025 draft has won a starting role.
Nakobe Dean (LB): Dean tore the patellar tendon in his left knee during the Eagles’ wild-card win over the Packers back in January and is still working through a lengthy recovery process. He will miss the start of the season. Once he does come back mid-season, we don’t expect him to be at 100% and will not be as effective.
Nolan Smith (LB): Smith sustained a torn triceps during the Super Bowl victory over the Chiefs. He underwent surgery to repair the ligament in mid-February. Otherwise, he had a fully healthy 2024 season up until the very last game of the season.
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