The Philadelphia Eagles will be without Darius Slay in their Monday Night Football matchup against the Seattle Seahawks after the five-time Pro Bowl cornerback underwent an arthroscopic procedure on his knee.
Darius Slay Injury Update
Slay appeared on the Eagles’ injury report with a knee issue earlier this week and did not practice on Thursday. Head coach Nick Sirianni announced Saturday that Slay will miss Monday’s matchup.
“We’ll see,” Sirianni said when asked how long the team expects to be without Slay.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Slay is expected to return by the end of the regular season.
Sirianni also declined to name a replacement for Slay in the starting lineup, saying, “We’ve got the right guys in place,” but he did note the team won’t place him on injured reserve.
Even though Slay was able to play against the Dallas Cowboys last week, he only played 82% of the defensive snaps. It was his lowest percentage of snaps in a game he’s played since Week 14 last season against the New York Giants.
The Eagles have some options to step in for Slay in Kelee Ringo, Josh Jobe, and Eli Ricks. Last week, Ringo played 22 defensive snaps — it appeared that he was ahead of Jobe on the depth chart at outside cornerback.
According to Jeff McLane of The Inquirer, the former Georgia All-American cornerback will start in place of Slay. This would be Ringo’s first start in his NFL career.
Ringo was a fourth-round pick out of Georgia in the 2023 NFL Draft. He played 22 snaps against the Cowboys.
Jobe is in his second season with the Eagles after going undrafted out of Alabama in 2022. He has primarily played on special teams and has five snaps with the defense since Week 7.
Ricks is an undrafted rookie who has found himself in the secondary rotation since Week 5. He played a season-high 47 snaps in the first game against the Cowboys on Nov. 5.
MORE: Philadelphia Eagles Playoff Scenarios
Slay has been the best player for the Philadelphia secondary, posting two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown, and 14 pass breakups.
The Eagles rank 28th in pass defense and have given up 29 touchdowns through the air, the second most in the NFL.
This is a tough week to be without Slay as the Seahawks have a strong trio of receivers in DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and rookie Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
While the Eagles have clinched a playoff spot this season, they are still in the hunt for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
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