Cooper, Anderson Ruled Out Vs. Browns
The only two players who have been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Browns are wide receiver Riley Cooper and safety Colt Anderson.
Cooper fractured his collarbone at training camp, had surgery and continues to rehab. He could return in Week 2 against the Ravens.
Anderson tore his ACL last December against the Seahawks, but the Eagles were confident enough in his recovery to put him on the 53-man roster and not the PUP list.
The injuries create opportunities for others to step in and play right away in the opener. One of those guys is undrafted free agent Damaris Johnson. Johnson had a strong preseason with 12 catches for 195 yards and a touchdown. According to the Football Outsiders Almanac, the Eagles went with four wide receivers 9 percent of the time last year, fifth-most in the league. Johnson will be the man in those packages on Sunday.
“I’m excited,” Johnson said “I think they have a lot of confidence in me. That’s why they kept me. So I’m just trying to go out and prove them right, just to show them that they made a good choice.”
Johnson will also be called on should DeSean Jackson or Jeremy Maclin get injured. In the preseason, offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg talked about Johnson needing to reach a certain level of consistency.
“Just going through training camp and OTAs, I had a lot of mistakes,” Johnson said. “But just getting settled, just feeling comfortable with the offense, guys taking me under their wing, just staying after, working on different things, I think it helped out, and right now my mind is focused.”
The Eagles could look to use more two tight-end sets, instead of going four-wide against Cleveland. Clay Harbor has had an outstanding summer and caught a pair of touchdowns in the preseason.
Meanwhile, Anderson’s loss will be felt mostly on special teams. At safety, should Nate Allen or Kurt Coleman go down, it’ll be second-year player Jaiquawn Jarrett filling in. The only other option the Eagles have is David Sims, who was acquired Friday from the Browns. Sims could be a factor on special teams right away.
Other injuries: The following players were listed on the injury report, but participated fully in today’s practice: Safety Nate Allen (hamstring), defensive end Jason Babin (calf), linebacker Jamar Chaney (hamstring), running back Dion Lewis (hamstring), linebacker Casey Matthews (ankle), offensive lineman Nate Menkin (shoulder), defensive tackle Cedric Thornton (knee).
Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.