Eagles Weekly Recap: Johnson suspension, injury round-up, DeSean Jackson comments, and more

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Eagles Weekly Recap. The Birds are looking to bounce back from a tough loss last week, and have been preparing for today’s NFC East matchup. Let’s get into it:

• This afternoon, the Eagles will look to bounce back from their loss to the Detroit Lions as they head to FedEx Field to take on the Washington Redskins in their first division matchup of the season. A victory today would keep the currently 3-1 Eagles in a tight race with the Dallas Cowboys for the top spot in the NFC East.

• One player who will not be suiting up today, and for many weeks to come, is right tackle Lane Johnson. After having his appeal of his pending 10-game suspension heard, the NFL ruled to uphold Johnson’s ban. Rookie tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai will start this afternoon in Johnson’s place.

• The Eagles have two key players who have been listed on the team’s injury report this week. Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox missed practice earlier in the week due to an ankle injury, and was limited in Thursday’s practice. Cornerback Leodis McKelvin did not practice this week with a hamstring injury. Both are officially listed as questionable for today’s game. Running back Ryan Mathews left Friday’s practice with an illness, but has not been listed on the injury report.

• Sticking with Cox, the tackle told the media he was fined $9,115 for pulling off quarterback Matthew Stafford’s helmet during a tackle in last week’s loss.

• While former Eagle DeSean Jackson will be on the other side of the ball today, the receiver made interesting comments regarding a possible return to Philadelphia. In a media conference call this week, Jackson admitted that he has no hard feelings towards the Eagles. When asked whether he would consider returning when he becomes a free-agent at the conclusion of the 2016 season, Jackson did not dismiss the possibility of reuniting with his former team.

That’s it for this week. Stay tuned with Total Sports Live for the latest involving the Philadelphia Eagles.