The Eagles’ push to the playoffs has some new life after their win over the New Orleans Saints last Sunday, and now, they might be getting some reinforcements for their final few games.
According to a report from John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia, wide receiver DeSean Jackson ran some routes on Thursday prior to the Eagles’ practice and is working to return before the end of this season.
Jackson has missed the Eagles’ last six games with a fractured ankle, and won’t play this Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. That would leave Jackson with two games remaining to return — unless the team were to make the playoffs.
This is the second season in a row that Jackson has suffered a major injury and tried to make a late-season comeback. Had the Eagles beat the Seattle Seahawks last season in the playoffs many believe Jackson would have played the following week.
The Eagles would likely welcome back Jackson this season and put him on the field as a starter if he were able to play considering they have been putting Alshon Jeffery on the field each week since he returned.
The other interesting part of the report? Clark states pretty definitively that Jackson will not be back next season. It is assumed Jackson won’t be back, but the idea of the Eagles offering Jackson a spot on the roster next year if he takes a massive paycut felt like a possibility. Jackson likely won’t get much as a free agent, and would probably welcome a return to the Eagles for less money if they would give him a chance.
Perhaps that will still happen, but Clark has been spot-on with all his reporting around Jackson the last few seasons — and it sounds like if Jackson doesn’t make it back on the field this season, his days with the Eagles are over.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
