Former Georgia Bulldog Nakobe Dean suffered a devastating end to his breakout season with the Philadelphia Eagles. In a wild-card NFL playoff game against the Green Bay Packers, a team with many former Bulldogs on their roster, Dean was carted off the field with a knee injury.
An MRI revealed that Dean suffered a torn patellar tendon and he will miss the rest of the Eagles’ postseason run. The Eagles played linebacker Oren Burks after Dean was carted off.
It’s a terrible blow for both the Eagles’ defense and Dean. After being selected in the third round of the 2022 draft, Dean emerged as an every-down linebacker with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024. Dean recorded a career-best 128 tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks, two fumble recoveries, and an interception.
Since the Philadelphia won against the Packers, the Eagles will advance to play the winner of the Minnesota Vikings versus Los Angles Rams game in the divisional round. As usual, the Eagles will rely on a ton of Georgia Bulldogs on defense. Losing Dean is a huge loss for the Eagles.
Against the Packers, Dean had six tackles and two tackles for loss before exiting the game. There’s no timetable on when he’ll be ready to play again, but when he returns, he’ll be looking to improve on his excellent 2024 play.
