The Eagles will have quarterback Carson Wentz back in the lineup this weekend, but they are running low on players to share the backfield with him.
The team has ruled out running backs Jay Ajayi and Darren Sproles. Ajayi hurt his back in last Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers and missed practice all week. Sproles sat out that game with a hamstring injury and missed all of this week’s work as well.
On top of those absences, Corey Clement is dealing with a quad injury that earned him a questionable tag. Multiple reports indicated that Clement should be able to play, but the Eagles would be down to Wendell Smallwood and Josh Adams if he can’t go.
During a Friday press conference, head coach Doug Pederson addressed how the injuries would affect the team’s approach against Indianapolis.
“It doesn’t affect play calling, it just affects personnel in the game, because like you said, we’re down some bodies,” Pederson said. “Look, we don’t make excuses for it. It’s part of the National Football League. Injuries are going to happen each and every week, and we’ve got to get the next guy ready to go. We’re blessed to have three good tight ends. We get them in the mix. We’ve got receivers that we can move around all over the field and just try to create some matchups. But best we can to keep defenses off balance, we can do that, and just get our guys ready to go.”
The Eagles also listed linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill, wide receiver Alshon Jeffery and left tackle Jason Peters as questionable. Pederson said Friday that Jeffery has not been cleared for contact yet while Peters was a full participant in practice.