Eagles Make Surprising Moves With Inactives Vs. Cowboys

The Philadelphia Eagles sat down a pair of edge rushers among the seven players they decided to sit for their season opener.

Azeez Ojulari meets with reporters after signing a one-year free agent deal with the Eagles. | Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles elevated one edge rusher and sat two for Thursday night’s season opener against the Dallas Cowboys.

Patrick Johnson was called up from the practice squad, and in somewhat of a surprise move, they chose to make Azeez Ojulari and Ogbo Okoronkwo inactive. That leaves Josh Uche and Johnson as the backup edge rushers to starters Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt.

This could be how the Eagles feel about their edge rushing group. A report earlier in the day indicated the Eagles tried to trade for Cowboys pass rush star Micah Parsons this summer. There was no report on whether that interest made it to the compensation stage or if Dallas owner Jerry Jones shut down those talks quickly because he didn’t want to trade Parsons inside the NFC East.

A Name To Watch On The Eagles' Edge

Jul 30, 2025; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints defensive end Isaiah Foskey (55) during training camp at Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

With just four edge rushers active, perhaps defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has a plan in place to move some of his interior tackles to the outside. Gabe Hall was used on the edge a bit in preseason, and maybe Moro Ojomo sees some snaps on the outside, along with perhaps Jalen Carter.

A name to watch this week is Isaiah Foskey, a 6-5, 275-pound defensive end who is scheduled to work out with the Eagles next week. The second-round pick of the Saints in 2023 out of Notre Dame was released at the end of the summer by New Orleans.

The Eagles’ other inactive players were backup quarterback Tanner McKee, who was ruled out of the game on Wednesday’s injury report, rookie offensive linemen Drew Kendall and Cameron Williams, offensive lineman Kenyon Green, and rookie defensive tackle Ty Robinson. That’s three members of this past spring’s draft of 10 players that are inactive in Week 1.

The Cowboys’ inactives are rookie running back Jaydon Blue, linebacker Shemar James, defensive tackle Mazi Smith, the 26th overall pick in 2023, offensive tackles Ajani Cornelius and Hakeem Adeniji, guard Trevor Keegan, who was the Eagles fifth-round pick last year, and defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey.

More NFL: Eagles-Cowboys: Countdown To Kickoff