Eagles defensive tackle Beau Allen suffered an injury in the pectoral area on Thursday and will undergo surgery, according to Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mike Garafalo of the NFL Network reports that the injury will likely keep Allen off the field for four to six months, so he could miss the first few weeks of the regular season.
The Eagles acquired defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan from the Ravens on Tuesday, meaning that deal was not a reaction to the Allen injury. However, Jernigan may be asked to play an even larger role than originally planned if Allen is sidelined for the early portion of the regular season. Philadelphia boasts one of the league’s best interior lineman in Fletcher Cox, but the only other defensive tackles on the roster are Jernigan and Destiny Vaeao.
If the Eagles want to add more bodies along the front four, they could look to the free agent market in order to bring in another player. Johnathan Hankins is the best interior lineman who remains unsigned, but it’s unclear if an injury to Allen will force Philadelphia to make a signing of that level. Other options that may intrigue the Eagles could include Jared Odrick, Vance Walker, Sen’Derrick Marks, and Roy Miller.
Allen, 25, has appeared in every possible game for the Eagles since being drafted in the seventh round three years ago. He hasn’t been a full-time player, as he was splitting time with Bennie Logan over the past three campaigns, but Allen did play on 40% of Philadelphia’s defensive snaps last in 2016. In that time, he managed 29 tackles and a half-sack, and graded out as the league’s No. 57 interior defender, per Pro Football Focus.
Good thing they already got Jernigan or the price would’ve gone up a bit.