The Eagles knew they were drafting a project when they took Jordan Mailata in the seventh round.
Now that project will go an entire year before they have a chance to find out if it works.
The Eagles announced they put the rookie tackle on injured reserve, and promoted linebacker B.J. Bello from the practice squad.
Mailata wasn’t active for any games this year, but they were impressed enough with his work in the preseason to carry him on the 53-man roster.
He popped up on the injury report yesterday with a back injury, and either it was significant enough to end his year or they saw it as a good chance to stash him for later.
He has now played as many snaps of football as he did before they drafted him, as the Australian native had no experience at the American version of football before he was spotted through the league’s international pathway program.