The Philadelphia Eagles won't have Devin White for the season opener in Brazil against the Green Bay Packers. White didn't make the trip with an ankle injury, yet there could be more than meets the eye.
Per Sports Illustrated, White was a trade candidate prior to roster cutdown last week. Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun outplayed White in training camp, even though White was getting first-team reps in practice nearly all of the practices. When the Eagles did rotate linebackers, White was typically on the field.
"Devin tweaked his ankle the other day in practice," Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. "The guys are ready. The guys behind him are ready. They're ready to go, and excited about the opportunity for them."
Would the Eagles move on from White? Philadelphia found out in training camp it had depth at linebacker with Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and Ben VanSumeren in addition to how well Dean performed. If Dean and Baun perform well in Friday's opener, the opportunity for White to reclaim a starting job could be slim.
"I'm really excited for Nakobe's opportunity," Sirianni said. "He's a really good player. He's battled some injuries throughout, but we've sure as heck been excited about him from the moment he stepped into this building. Look forward to an opportunity that he gets to play in the season opener."
White is making $3.5 million guaranteed on his one-year contract with the Eagles, so it would have been interesting to see what teams would have offered Philadelphia. The Eagles could just keep White on the roster and retain their linebacker depth, but White would certainly be an expensive backup at a position that seemed thin this offseason.
