Eagles Send Edwards, Ford to IR

PHILADELPHIA - The Eagles placed two more players on injured reserve before Thursday's practice, linebacker T.J. Edwards and special-teams stalwart Rudy Ford.

Edwards and Ford both left the Week 4 win over San Francisco Sunday night with hamstring injuries and will miss at least the next three games.

Their roster spots were not immediately filled, although LB Dante Olson, an undrafted free agent out of Montana who was with the team this summer, was brought back to the practice squad on Thursday and could be in the mix to be called up for Sunday's game against Pittsburgh.

Edwards has been the team's starting Mike LB in the base defense and has mixed and matched with Duke Riley as the second LB in the nickel package next to Nate Gerry based on game plan.

To date, he's been the clear No. 3 in the pecking order, however when it comes to snaps. Gerry leads the way at the position with 281, Riley has 161 and Edwards has 119, a number somewhat hampered by leaving early against the Niners.

According to ProFootballFocus.com, however, Edwards has shown the most efficacy being as No. 26 of the 79 LBs graded. Riley is No. 50 and the much-maligned Gerry is 60.

Edwards is regarded as the Eagles' top-run stuffing option while Gerry and Riley are speedier and more athletic. Former CFL Defensive Player of the Year Alex Singleton replaced Edwards against the 49ers and ended up a hero after a pick-six that essentially sealed the 25-20 victory.

The Eagles also have rookies Shaun Bradley and Davion Taylor at the position. Bradley, a Temple product, is more refined than Taylor at this stage despite the fact he was a sixth-round pick, and Taylor was selected in the third round as a developmental prospect with a high ceiling due to his top-tier athletic ability.

Ford, meanwhile, is the Eagles' top gunner on punt coverage and had just returned from a groin injury.

Craig James is Dave Fipp's other top option on punt coverage and the team just started a 21-day window to get him back from IR on Wednesday. Other players who've held down the coverage responsibilities while those two have been out of the lineup are Cre'Von LeBlanc and rookie DB Grayland Arnold.

The Eagles have a pool of four players who could be activated from IR to fill the two roster spots, including James. Will Parks, rookie receiver Quez Watkins and versatile defensive lineman Vinny Curry are also eligible.

-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's EagleMaven and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John every Monday and Friday on SIRIUSXM and every Monday and Thursday with Eytan Shander on SportsMap Radio. He’s also the host of Extending the Play on AM1490 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen

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