It seems the bye week was a boon to the injured members of the Philadelphia Eagles.
The team got defensive ends Trent Cole and Brandon Graham back at practice Monday as the team reconvened after their time off. Both players participated fully in the short Monday session, according to Jonathan Tamari of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Jason Babin and Juqua Parker worked with the first team defense, but both returnees got snaps with the first unit. Cole has missed two games after hurting his calf in the Week Four loss to the 49ers.
Graham has been on the PUP list all year following offseason knee surgery, which means the team has a three-week roster exemption that allows him to practice before putting him on the active roster. Graham said Monday that his knee feels strong, but that he isn’t in game shape yet. He hopes to play Sunday, but that remains up in the air.
Offensive tackle Jason Peters, who hurt his hamstring in the San Francisco game and hasn’t played since, also made his return to practice. That means Todd Herremans will move back to right tackle if Peters is able to play against Dallas on Sunday night. With the Cowboys improving to 3-3 against the Rams, that game will be a key one for Philly’s hopes of climbing back into the playoff race after their 1-4 start. A loss would leave them two games back of the Cowboys and at least that far behind the division-leading Giants.
There was one more player back at practice for the Eagles, but Ronnie Brown isn’t coming back from an injury. Brown was traded to the Lions before last week’s trading deadline, only to find himself back with the Eagles after Jerome Harrison’s brain tumor was discovered. Brown figured to see more time in Detroit with Jahvid Best’s status unclear thanks to a concussion, but he was diplomatic about the turn of events.
“You realize, I’ve been around, this is my seventh season, so there’s a business side of this, unfortunately these are some of the things you’ve got to deal with,” Brown said. “I’m going to be a professional, I’m going to be where I’m supposed to be, do the things I need to do and try to see how I can get better each day.”