September 08, 2025
Bill Streicher/Imagn Images
Philadelphia Eagles fullback Ben VanSumeren (43) is carted off the field after an injury during the first quarter of the game against the Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field.
The Eagles were off over the weekend as most of the rest of the NFL opened its regular season, but it wasn't an uneventful time, as the team announced several moves in the hours following their 24-20 win over the Cowboys on Thursday night.
They placed one player on injured reserve, signed another player, waived a player, examined some players injured against the Cowboys, and reportedly are working out a player. They also still have an open roster spot.
Let's put all the moves in perspective:
Never mind that the Eagles might have had a creative plan for Ben VanSumeren. His main job as a fullback was to provide extra blocking for the Eagles in the absence of a No. 2 tight end who can also block well.
Instead, VanSumeren went down on the opening kickoff and was carted off the field, later determined to have sustained a torn patellar tendon, which is a bummer for the kid who had just come back from ACL surgery. It's also a major setback for the rushing offense, which already took a hit when wide receiver Johnny Wilson went down for the season in training camp with season-ending knee and ankle injuries from one play in practice.
The 6-foot-6 Wilson was an impressive blocker and was often used for that assignment last year as a rookie. When Wilson was on the field with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, the Eagles were in 11 personnel – a three-wide formation that typically forecasts a pass – and defenses would usually counter in nickel, subbing in a cornerback for a linebacker. But the Eagles would frequently hand off to Saquon Barkley from this personnel grouping, using Wilson's size advantage in the run game against a nickel corner to help the blocking.
Similarly, the Eagles were banking on VanSumeren to give a little juice to the run game in certain situations, like first downs, short yardage and goal line, when the extra blocker really helps. But with no backup fullback to use against Dallas, the Eagles were forced to play more 12 personnel – two tight end formations – and try to make it work with Grant Calcaterra or Kylen Granson.
Barkley averaged just 3.3 yards per carry against a Cowboys team infamous for being loose against the run in past years, and even his longest gain – a 16-yarder – came from a misdirection design away from the strong side that caught the Dallas defense off guard.
Here's just one of Barkley's runs that were doomed from the start because of blocking:
Calcaterra got tossed around by 90 (DL Solomon Thomas) and LG Landon Dickerson couldn't cover up 59 (LB Kenneth Murray), as both Cowboys swarmed Barkley for a loss. Dickerson later limped off the field with a back injury that's been bothering him, another potential setback for the run game and overall offense.
Calcaterra has proven time and time again that his blocking isn't dependable. The Eagles used Granson in a hybrid fullback/H-back/TE role, and he played 13 offensive snaps, nine of which were runs for Barkley or A.J. Dillon. He did OK, although in more than a few of those snaps he wasn't majorly involved in the blocking scheme.
The Eagles need to find a better backup "Y" tight end like they once had in Jack Stoll. Their experiment with C.J. Uzomah last year didn't really work out. Practice squad TE E.J. Jenkins is their best non-Goedert blocker, but his struggles with separation make him a difficult addition to the 53.
The Eagles had hoped Azeez Ojulari would be a nice part of their EDGE rotation when they signed the former Giant to a one-year deal worth up to $4 million – a much more lucrative one-year deal than Josh Uche's 1-year pact for just $1.25 million guaranteed. So even after a meh camp, it was mildly surprising to see Ojulari inactive for the season opener.
Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has made two things clear since joining the team last year – he doesn't care what contracts say, and he typically relies on a three-man EDGE rotation, with just one backup behind the starters. Hence, the inactive designation for both Ojulari and Ogbo Okoronwko. (Patrick Johnson's elevation as a fourth EDGE was mainly for special teams.)
Over the weekend, the Eagles added veteran pass rusher Za'Darius Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler who was signed by the Lions midway through last season and produced well in just eight games, with 4 sacks and 10 QBHs. In total, with Cleveland and Detroit, Smith produced 9 sacks and 17 QBHs. It might not be this Sunday, but eventually Smith will join the EDGE rotation, which means Ojulari and Uche will face questionable futures.
Is it possible the Eagles just cut Ojulari and eat $3 million guaranteed? Last year, when it was clear going into Week 1 that Fangio wasn't going to play LB Devin White, the Eagles made White inactive for the first four weeks before finally releasing him after he and the team came to a contract resolution, per ESPN, that could "provide Philadelphia possible financial savings."
In other words, White wanted to find a new home before the trade deadline, so he agreed to some financial concessions on the 1-year, $4 million deal he signed to get into free agency. He eventually landed with the Texans.
If Ojulari isn't going to be in Fangio's long-term plans, he might need to go the same route that White did.
The Eagles are reportedly working out free-agent cornerback Mike Hilton on Monday, per a report from Jordan Schultz. Hilton has played for the Steelers and Bengals, starting 56 of his 123 career games. He weirdly has way more sacks in his career (11.5) than interceptions (1).
This comes after Adoree' Jackson and Jakorian Bennett each took turns getting abused by CeeDee Lamb, whose toughest opponent Thursday night was his own hands. Unless they make another trade, the Eagles don't have a bunch of great options. It's also worth noting that Hilton has mostly played the slot in his career, which is the position Cooper DeJean plays really well and most often for the Eagles.
But it's possible that Fangio has reached the point where he's ready to move DeJean outside and fill the slot role with someone else – like Hilton. Just the fact that the Eagles are working out a veteran slot corner sounds an alarm.
When the Eagles have a player they'd like to keep working with but who is also far from seeing the field, they routinely do this transaction dance. Offensive guard Kenyon Green is the latest example.
Green, the former first-round pick of the Texans, who came over in the C.J. Gardner-Johnson salary dump trade, didn't have a great camp and clearly needs much more development under OL coach Jeff Stoutland. The Eagles waived him at the August roster cutdown, re-signed him to the practice squad, signed him back to the 53-man roster a few days later only to make him inactive against Dallas and then waive him again Saturday.
Saturday is a great day to waive a player you're trying to stash on the practice squad because most NFL teams have their rosters already settled and their GMs are swept up in, say, preparing for Sunday's game. The waiver wire process doesn't pick up until Monday at 4 p.m., so guys who get waived over the weekend can slip through the cracks easier.
Either way, the optimism from the offseason about landing an interior offensive lineman who was picked 15th overall in 2022 has completely faded. The Texans got the better of that deal, which is usually the case in a salary dump, but still, not a great outcome for the Eagles.
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