The Philadelphia Eagles have seen key players deal with significant injuries. And they’ve struggled recently with setbacks at the running back position. And not surprisingly, the Eagles’ playoff odds have gotten iffy after the appalling collapse against the Rams, according to BetOnline.
The Eagles will go into Week 5 with minus-120 odds to make the playoffs. They are minus-110 to miss.
It’s interesting to note that the Eagles may have traded places with the Rams. If the Rams hadn’t rallied for the win, they would have been the subject of a questionable playoff situation. As it stands, they are minus-350 for yes, and +275 for no.
Will the Eagles get things turned around?
It's a tough question, according to ESPN.
“For most of the early Sunday window, it looked as if the Rams would be the subject of this particular write-up,” Dan Graziano wrote. “The Eagles led the Super Bowl favorites 20-10 with four minutes left in the game, and the Rams were in danger of dropping to 1-3 after all that preseason hype. But L.A. scored 14 points in those final four minutes against a Vic Fangio defense that ranks among the most disappointing units (relative to expectations) in the NFL this season.
Article Continues Below“As a result, the Eagles are 2-2 and tied for second in the NFC East with the Cowboys, who won a last-minute thriller in Houston thanks to Lamb's performance. They're one game behind the 3-1 Giants, who held off Arizona thanks to three Jameis Winston touchdown passes. We love it when the NFC East gets loopy.”
Getting running back Saquon Barkley back from injury would be a good starting point. He is considered week-to-week with his hamstring injury. Those are notoriously tricky injuries, so the Eagles will have to use caution. Also, backup Tank Bigsby will undergo core muscle surgery and is headed for IR, according to NFL.com.
Will Shipley is the lone man standing in the backfield. The Eagles have Dameon Pierce, Carson Steele, and Jaydon Blue on their practice squad. Whether Barkley can return this week remains to be seen, according to ESPN.
“I know he'll do everything he can do to get himself back,” Sirianni said. “Obviously, he's a great player and a great teammate, and we always need him on the field.”