There was word early in the offseason that wide receiver Alshon Jeffery was looking for a trade away from the Eagles as well as word that the team discussed trading him in the past, which led to a feeling that Jeffery might not be back in Philadelphia for the 2020 season.
The Eagles added wideout Jalen Reagor in the first round of the draft and traded for Marquise Goodwin, but Jeffery remains on hand. It appears that will remain the case as head coach Doug Pederson called the veteran “a big part of the process” on a Tuesday conference call.
When Jeffery will be fully involved in that process remains less clear, however. He’s still making his way back from the Lisfranc injury that ended his 2019 season.
“Alshon has done extremely well this off-season with his rehab. . . . The dialogue that he’s had in the receiver room, being able to converse with some of the young players that we have on our roster and just getting themselves back healthy and obviously there’s no timetable for him right now,” Pederson said. “I just want him to focus on his rehab and get strong, but the second part of your question is, he’s a big part of our offense, and we do plan to have him in the offense at some point. But if there’s a couple games there where he’s not ready, then, we’re not going to put him out there and just wait for him to get healthy.”
Pederson said that the plan is for Reagor to begin his NFL career playing behind DeSean Jackson, so the team might have to change course if Jeffery isn’t available for the start of the regular season.