The Philadelphia Eagles did not leave Sunday’s Wild Card win over the Green Bay Packers unscathed, as linebacker Nakobe Dean suffered a left knee injury.
Nakobe Dean Out For Rest Of Postseason
Eagles LB Nakobe Dean suffered torn patellar tendon and is out for the playoffs. (via @RapSheet, @MikeGarafolo) pic.twitter.com/DXHqy7YJ55
— NFL (@NFL) January 13, 2025
Nakobe will miss the rest of the season with a torn patellar tendon, head coach Nick Sirianni announced on Monday.
“Nakobe’s had a great year. As you guys saw the reports, he’s going to be out, and we sure will miss him,” Sirianni said via Eagles.com. “He’s made big plays all year long. The one that comes to everyone’s mind is going to be the interception against Jacksonville to seal the game, but he had a couple plays in yesterday’s game that are just outstanding that set the tone of how physical we were going to play.”
Dean injured his knee after tackling Packers tight end Tucker Kraft in the second quarter. Dean was assisted off the field before being carted to the locker room.
NFL Network first reported the news of Dean’s season-ending injury.
The former third-round pick in the 2022 draft transformed into an excellent linebacker this season. Dean registered 128 tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks, and an interception during the regular season.
Nakobe Dean posted this to his Instagram after finding out he tore his patellar tendon and is lost for the season pic.twitter.com/nXuT8hohWC
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) January 13, 2025
Eagles Defense Shined In Win Over Packers
The Eagles defense limited Jordan Love to 3-of-11 passing for 58 yards & 3 INTs on passes of 10+ air yards (-14.6% CPOE).
Quinyon Mitchell was targeted 6 times as the nearest defender, allowing only 2 receptions for 10 yards & INT (1.6 yds avg separation).
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— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) January 13, 2025
The Eagles defense was the story of the game in Philadelphia’s 22-10 win over Green Bay.
Philly’s defense intercepted Jordan Love three times, including two in the first half. No Packers pass catcher exceeded 46 years of receiving.
The Eagles set the tone on the game’s first play, forcing a Packers fumble on the opening kickoff. Three plays later, Jalen Hurts threw a touchdown pass to take a 7-0 lead and never look back.
Oren Burks will likely be Dean’s replacement at linebacker. All-pro linebacker Zack Baun will wear the green dot helmet communications system in Dean’s absence.
The Eagles advance to the Divisional Round, where they will play the winner of the No. 5 Minnesota Vikings and No. 4 Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles will host that game on Sunday, Jan. 19, at 3 p.m. ET.
