The Philadelphia Eagles defense is highly successful, but they’ll have to make it work without linebacker Nakobe Dean for the rest of the playoffs — and maybe longer.
According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, Dean tore his patellar tendon on Sunday during the Eagles’ 22-10 wild-card win over the Green Bay Packers. Patellar tendon tears are tough injuries, and his recovery time could extend into the start of the 2025 regular season.
Dean sustained the injury early in the second quarter, while he was taking down Packers tight end Tucker Kraft. The injury to his knee looked rough right from the start, and after he was carted off to the locker room he was quickly ruled out for the rest of the game.
Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean was carted off after reportedly suffering a torn patellar tendon against the Packers in Sunday’s wild-card game. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
This is a rough loss for the Eagles. The 24-year-old Dean, drafted in the third round in 2022 out of Georgia (just like many of his teammates), has had a breakout season. His 128 tackles are the second-most on the team, behind only fellow breakout Zack Baun, and far ahead of safety Reed Blankenship, who is third on the team with 78 tackles.
Next man up for the Eagles after Dean went down was Oren Burks, who helped force the fumble on the opening kickoff of the game. He had 17 tackles in Week 18 when the Eagles rested their starters. Combining him with Jeremiah Trotter Jr., who racked up 11 tackles in Week 18 when he played for the resting Baun, could possibly make up for some of what Philly is losing with Dean out for the long haul.