The Philadelphia Eagles will move on to the second round of the playoffs without standout defender Nakobe Dean, who suffered a season-ending injury this weekend.
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NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported on Monday that Dean had suffered a torn patellar tendon during Sunday evening's win over the Green Bay Packers. Sources told the insiders that an MRI revealed the extent of the injury.
The injury will sideline Dean for the rest of the playoffs and potentially for the start of the 2025 NFL season. According to Resilience Orthopedics founder Dr. Pamela Mehta, the recovery from this particular injury can take roughly six months.
The injury occurred early in the second quarter of the wild-card playoff game. Dean tackled Packers' tight end Tucker Kraft for a loss. He was carted off of the field as the Eagles ruled him out for the rest of the game. He was later seen with a knee brace and on crutches.
This injury cut short what had been a breakout season for Dean, a former third-round pick. This season marked his first campaign as a full-time starter as he registered one interception, 128 combined tackles, three sacks, six quarterback hits, and nine tackles for a loss.
According to Pro Football Focus, Dean earned an overall grade of 74.5 during his season as a starter. He ranked 30th out of 189 eligible linebackers. However, he earned a pass-rushing grade of 82.1. This was good enough for eighth out of 189 eligible linebackers.
Without Dean in the lineup, the Eagles will have to make numerous adjustments. A new defender will have to take the role of signal-caller for defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.
Another player will also have to step in and take Dean's snaps as the Eagles host a divisional-round playoff game. Oren Burks was Dean's backup on Sunday against the Packers.
The NFC East team does not know its opponent yet. The winner of Monday night's game between the Rams and Vikings will head to Philadelphia next weekend for the second week of the playoffs.
