The Philadelphia Eagles officially announced one roster move prior to the team’s Week 8 home game against the New York Giants:
- WR Darius Cooper was activated from injured reserve.
Note that the team had an open roster spot that hadn’t been filled since Za’Darius Smith retired (Brandon Graham has a two-week exemption period from when he re-signed earlier this week).
Cooper originally went on IR after suffering a shoulder injury during the team’s Week 3 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Eagles opened Cooper’s 21-day window to return from IR on October 23, which allowed the undrafted rookie wide receiver to practice on Thursday and Friday.
Cooper’s return comes at a time where A.J. Brown will miss Week 8 due to a hamstring injury. The Eagles now have five healthy wide receivers for Sunday’s game:
- DeVonta Smith
- Jahan Dotson
- Darius Cooper
- John Metchie III
- Xavier Gipson
Smith and Dotson are locked in as the top two. Metchie has more NFL experience than Cooper but Cooper played more often than Metchie (14 snaps to 12 snaps) when the two were healthy in the first two games. Metchie has played just two offensive snaps in the Eagles’ last three games combined.
And so Cooper could be WR3 against the Giants. Even if that’s the case, the Eagles might go light on three wide receivers sets.
But the Eagles should really give Cooper a chance or two to get the ball. He shined during offseason practices and preseason games, even building a bit of a rapport with Jalen Hurts.
To be determined if he’ll touch the football. At the very least, Cooper figures to serve as a blocker and play on special teams. Dirty work role.
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