While Philadelphia Eagles rookie tight end Eli Stowers was hoping that he would be making his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders, that is no longer going to be the case.
The Eagles announced that Eli Stowers went from being questionable to being ruled out of the Commanders game. They also announced that Stowers is going on IR with quadriceps and hamstring injuries. Wide receiver and return specialist Britain Covey was elevated to the 53-man roster.
Stowers was the Eagles' second-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. He had been dealing with injuries over the past few weeks, which kept him out of the last preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals. He caught three passes for 12 yards on five targets in two preseason appearances.
Eli Stowers' debut season with the Eagles hits another roadblock
Over the last five months, Stowers hasn't made the best first impression on the Eagles. He was basically non-existent at OTAs and struggled with consistency in training camp, both in catching the football and in blocking.
This was a tight end who won the John Mackey Award for being the nation's best tight end last year at Vanderbilt. His 4.51-second speed had every NFL team wanting to get a look at him during the NFL Combine.
Now it appears that he will miss at least four weeks, if not more. All signs have pointed towards a "redshirt" season for Stowers, as he needed more time to develop and learn how to be an NFL tight end. That is becoming a reality.
The Eagles are still solid at tight end, though, as they have Dallas Goedert as their starter. Johnny Mundt is going to be the backup and will be brought in on 12 personnel packages as the blocking tight end. E.J. Jenkins will be the third string, who could be used more on special teams.
Eagles fans initially looked forward to seeing Stowers on the field, but now it looks like they'll have to wait a while. The potential is there for him, but it appears as though the 2026 season will not be when he reaches that potential.
Read more: Commanders' secondary is giving Jalen Hurts exactly what he needs with Eagles
Philly will have to wait to see his debut, whether that is in 2026 or 2027. Regardless, this is a disappointing outcome for a guy who had high hopes when he was drafted.
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