By Zach Gershman, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 
Last Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles were handed their first loss in Detroit by the Lions. As much as that loss shattered the hearts of Eagles fans everywhere, the news received earlier this week was more worrisome, particularly for a team striving to be a playoff contender still come December.
On Monday, Eagles offensive lineman Lane Johnson had his 10-game suspension upheld by the NFL. After a month of waiting for the appeal, Johnson will not be allowed to return to the Eagles until Week 16.
The offensive line has been doing an outstanding job protecting rookie quarterback Carson Wentz. In his first preseason game, Wentz suffered fractured ribs on a blowing hit from behind a weak offensive line and that injury kept him out for the rest of the preseason.
Since then, the priority has been to keep Wentz healthy and not allowing him to get hit. Wentz has been sacked only seven times on 137 throwing attempts. According to Sporting Charts, the Eagles are tied for second in least number of sacks allowed thus far, only training the Raiders.
Johnson’s suspension leaves us with this question of who will be protecting Wentz instead of the former first-round pick? The answer is a challenging one to pronounce. Halapoulivaati Vaitai, known more easily as 'Big V,' will step in and be the starting right tackle on Sunday when the Eagles face their NFC East rivals, the Washington Redskins.
'Big V' is an all-purpose offensive tackle. Drafted in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, the All-Big 12 second team honoree anchored the TCU Horned Frogs offensive line in 2015, starting in 11 of 12 games.
When Vaitai was drafted by the birds, Eagles Executive Vice President of Football Operations Howie Roseman spoke of his skill set as a reason for his potential to succeed in the NFL.
"'Big V' has tremendous size and length. He’s got all the tools," Roseman said. "He’s a guy that when you talk to our coaching staff, they would take him anywhere in the draft because of the rare tools that he possesses. He’s got all the tools in his body to be a good player."
Fellow offensive lineman Brandon Brooks has added that 'Big V' has a "nasty demeanor."
Now that Johnson is suspended, this opens up a new set of doors for the Polynesian rookie out of Texas Christian University. Let’s hope he’s as difficult to get around as pronouncing his name is.
