Eagles rule out Isaiah Rodgers for season opener in Brazil – NBC Sports Philadelphia

SÃO PAULO – The Eagles will be without Isaiah Rodgers for their season opener against the Packers in Brazil.

The 26-year-old Rodgers was limited all week with a hand injury but was officially ruled out by the Eagles on Thursday afternoon. Rodgers traveled to São Paulo and was on the court for the walkthrough at Corinthians Arena, but will not play in this game.

Rodgers and Devin White (ankle) are the two Eagles out for this game. All others are expected to be available against the Packers.

All summer, Rodgers had plenty of work to do as a cornerback on the first-team defense opposite Darius Slay, so this is definitely a loss.

Rodgers had a strong training camp after missing the entire 2023 season due to suspension. He hasn’t played a game since 2022 and will have to wait at least another week to return.

Rookie Quinyon Mitchell will play a big role from the first game of his first NFL season. Mitchell should be a starting outside cornerback in the Eagles’ base package, pushing inside on nickel downs. That could be the plan for the opening game even without Rodgers. In that case, the Eagles would likely put Kelee Ringo on the field at outside cornerback. Ringo gained some experience as a rookie last season and made many appearances on the first team this summer.

The other option is to have Mitchell play outside cornerback. In this case, the experienced Avonte Maddox would likely be the one to play nickel corner. While Maddox primarily played safety in training camp, he has been a slot corner for most of his career.

Since White (ankle), who did not travel to Brazil, cannot play, the Eagles will likely use Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun at linebacker. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. could also be used.