Eagles-49ers NFC Championship Game inactives, with analysis

Eagles slot CB Avonte Maddox is good to go for the NFC Championship Game against the 49ers.
Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Eagles may be as healthy as they have been all season heading into the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers. The Niners, meanwhile, have some important players who missed practice time this week. 

Here's the Eagles-49ers injury report, with analysis.

The Eagles only listed three players on their injury report this week. RT Lane Johnson and CB Avonte Maddox were limited participants on Wednesday and Thursday, but they practiced in full on Friday. LB T.J. Edwards popped up late on the injury report on Friday with an ankle injury. They will all play on Sunday, as none of them were listed with an injury status (questionable, etc.) for this game.

The Eagles' inactives:

• QB Ian Book: No. 3 quarterback.

• RB Trey Sermon: No. 4 running back.

• OL Josh Sills: Andre Dillard will likely back up Jordan Mailata at LT and Landon Dickerson at LG, Cam Jurgens will back up Jason Kelce at C, and Jack Driscoll will back up Johnson at RT and Isaac Seumalo at RG.

• LB Kyron Johnson: The Eagles like Johnson on special teams, but there really aren't any better options for the inactive list.

CB Josiah Scott: With Maddox back and Chauncey Gardner-Johnson capable of playing the slot if need be, Scott isn't an essential depth player.

• S Anthony Harris: The Eagles called up Harris from the practice squad for this game, but he's inactive anyway. They're probably just getting Harris an extra game check.

Notable players on IR, PUP, suspension, etc.

P Arryn Siposs (IR - Week 15): Siposs collected a loose ball after a blocked punt and was injured while trying to run for a first down Week 14 against the Giants. The Eagles signed 15-year vet Brett Kern to replace him. 

• DE Derek Barnett (IR - Week 2): Barnett tore his ACL Week 1 against the Lions, and his season is over. After a 2021 season in which he had 8 penalties vs. 2.5 sacks, Barnett lost his starting job, but remained a depth player poised to get his share of snaps in 2022.

DT Marlon Tuipulotu (IR - Week 11): Tuipulotu has 16 tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery in a rotational role this season.


The 49ers' injury report this week looked like so:

Player Injury Wed*ThursFriStatus 
QB Jimmy GaroppoloAnkleDNPDNPDNPOut
RB Christian McCaffrey  Calf  DNP  DNP  Full  -
RB Elijah Mitchell  Groin  DNP  DNP  DNP  Questionable
 WR Deebo Samuel Ankle  Limited  Limited  Full  -
DE Charles Omenihu  Oblique Limited  Limited  Full  -
CB Ambry Thomas  Ankle Limited  Limited  Limited Questionable

McCaffrey was shown stretching out his calf muscle during the Niners' win over the Cowboys in the divisional round. It's noteworthy that on the 49ers' final drive, McCaffrey was only on the field for two of the six plays. He played the first snap of that drive, and then Mitchell got four straight carries, and then McCaffrey came in on third down and caught a quick screen pass for a loss of a yard. It would seem nuts to not have the best running back on the field in that situation, unless of course McCaffrey was hurting. 

McCaffrey's non-participation in practice on Wednesday and Thursday probably confirms that he is not 100 percent. Mitchell, meanwhile, is nursing a groin injury. He is the No. 2 back. He previously missed Weeks 2-9 and Weeks 13-17 with an MCL sprain.

We'll have the Niners' inactives when they are made available.

Update: Mitchell is out. 

Notable players on IR, PUP, suspension, etc.

QB Trey Lance: The 49ers' Week 1 starting quarterback was Lance, a dual threat who the Niners traded a bounty of picks for in the 2021 NFL Draft. Lance suffered a season-ending ankle injury Week 2 against the Seahawks, and Jimmy Garoppolo, a player the Niners were open to trading, took over.

They started out with a 3-4 record, but eventually got hot and haven't lost since. They are currently riding a 12-game winning streak, the longest in the NFL. Five games into that streak, Garoppolo suffered a broken foot and the Niners were forced to turn to their No. 3 quarterback, rookie Brock Purdy, who was the 262nd and final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft. Purdy guided the Niners to a 5-0 record to close the regular season, and two playoff wins.

CB Emmanuel Moseley (IR): The Niners' starting outside cornerbacks to begin the season were Charvarius Ward and Moseley. They also have Jason Verrett, who has missed 105 games over his nine-year career. Verrett tore his Achilles this season and never played a game. Moseley tore an ACL Week 5 against the Panthers. With Moseley and Verrett's seasons both over, second-year corner Deommodore Lenoir has been the CB2 for most of the season. He is likely to be targeted by the Eagles more frequently than Ward.

CB Jason Verrett (IR): As noted above.

DT Hassan Ridgeway (IR): Ridgeway got a fair amount of playing time for the Niners as a rotational DT this season, playing in 12 games, and starting 7. He had 28 tackles, a sack, and 4 QB hits. He suffered a pectoral strain Week 13 against the Dolphins, and landed on IR. The Niners have good defensive line starters, but they are thin on depth.


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