Eagles Update: Darby returns to practice, Maragos on IR, Wentz receives praise from the opponent

By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly editor 

As the Eagles prepare for their Monday night contest with the rival Washington Redskins the team got both good and bad news on Wednesday. 

Starting with the bad, safety and special teams ace Chris Maragos has been placed on injured reserve – ending his season. Maragos suffered a knee injury against the Carolina Panthers last Thursday night. According to Pro Football Talk it is believed that Maragos was fortunate enough to not tear his ACL, but he did tear his PCL. 

With one of the Eagles' team captains now done for the season the team added S/LB Nate Gerry to the 53-man roster in his place. Gerry was the team's fifth round selection in the 2017 draft. Gerry was added to the practice squad after the preseason ended and was one of the team's final cuts. 

Head coach Doug Pederson said that Corey Graham, Jaylen Watkins, and Corey Clement will be leaned on to help make up for Maragos's absence on special teams. 

The good news for the Eagles was that cornerback Ronald Darby practiced on Wednesday for the first time since he dislocated his ankle back in week one against the Washington Redskins. Pederson did not say whether or not the expectation is for Darby to suit up on Monday night. Pederson said the "stars have to align" for Darby to make his return in week 7. 

After missing the game against Carolina right tackle Lane Johnson and running back Wendell Smallwood continued to be participants in practice, as did linebacker Jordan Hicks who left the Panthers game with an ankle injury and did not return. 

Darby, Hicks, and defensive tackles Beau Allen (foot), and Tim Jernigan (ankle) were all limited in Wednesday's practice.

While the Eagles did not have any member of the 53-man roster sit out of practice, the Washington Redskins were not so lucky as they prepare to come to Philadelphia on Monday night. 

All-pro left tackle Trent Williams missed Wednesday's practice with a knee issue. That same knee issue nearly caused Williams to miss the Redskins matchup with the San Francisco 49ers last week. 

Williams anchors the Redskins' offensive line and him not being at 100 percent could be a huge advantage for an Eagles front four that is arguably the best in the NFL. Backup tackle Ty Nsekhe also missed practice today leaving the Redskins very thin along the offensive line. 

The Redskins top two cornerbacks Josh Norman and Bashaud Breeland both were limited in practice. Norman is an elite cornerback in the NFL and he is considered to be a longshot to play on Monday night as he recovers from a fractured rib. 

Breeland is dealing with a lingering knee issue that may keep him out of this Monday's game as well. Liz Clarke, a Redskins beat writer for the Washington Post, reported from Redskins practice today that Norman could not participate in 1-0n-1 drills and Breeland is trying to push his limits, which the coaches are keeping a close eye on:

#Skin CB J Norman didn't do 1-on-1 drills; Breeland tried (maybe shouldn't have) on sore knee, covering WR J Crowder b4 coaches yelled STOP

— Liz Clarke (@lizclarketweet) October 19, 2017

Linebacker Ryan Anderson (back), running back Rob Kelley (ankle), guard Tyler Catalina (concussion), and safety Stefan McClure (knee) joined Norman and Breeland as limited participants. 

In Redskins' head coach Jay Gruden's preparation for this week's game one Eagles' player has stood out to Gruden. "He's progressed at a rate as fast as anybody I've seen, really," said Gruden of Eagles' quarterback Carson Wentz. "His ability to make plays in the pocket, his ability to stand in the pocket in the face of a rush and deliver balls accurately. I think he's already proven this short in his career that he's one of the top quarterbacks in the league, quite frankly. and he's going to be for a long time."

At the time that this post was written Chris Long's "Pledge 10 for Tomorrow" campaign has raised $178,216.00 since being unveiled on Tuesday.  You can donate to Chris's cause here: https://pledgeit.org/matchup/pledge10.

 You can hear Sportstalkphilly.com staff members Denny Basens, Tucker Bagley, and Jesse Larch discuss the state of the team, and what to expect heading into this Monday's matchup below on the weekly K-Lot Podcast.