Philadelphia Eagles are set to face the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football, but roster moves and returner decisions have shaken up the lineup.
Lineup Changes
The Eagles waived receiver and return man Xavier Gipson on Sunday, leaving the punt return duties to Britain Covey, the team’s full‑time returner.
Returner Decision
Gipson suffered a shoulder injury in Dallas on a play that resulted in a fumble and missed last week. Covey filled in and performed well. Special teams coordinator Michael Clay praised his effort: “Yeah, obviously a familiar face with Covey,” he said. “I thought he had a good job, difficult with conditions out there with being windy. Only had really that one opportunity to return it. I thought he did a nice job. It was one of those punts that we call, it was so bad, it was good, in terms of it came off Tory Taylor’s foot kind of sideways and it was short then it just kept rolling and we didn’t know — if he didn’t pick that up, who knows where that ball would’ve rolled to, could have been to the 15, things of that nature. He did a good job of kind of corralling and getting square. Then he made two miss and got nine yards out of it and kind of vintage Covey making something out of nothing to get us that first down in terms of the return.”
Roster Moves
By waiving Gipson, the Eagles opened a roster spot that can be used to bring safety Marcus Epps off Injured Reserve. The team must make that move by 4 p.m. on Monday. Epps has missed the last four weeks on IR with a shoulder injury but is expected to play against the Chargers. The Eagles also downgraded rookie offensive tackle Myles Hinton to out. Hinton has been on IR all season but has been practicing after having his window opened. The Eagles will need to activate Hinton or shut him down for the season next week.
Key Takeaways
- Eagles waive Gipson, keep Covey as punt returner.
- Safety Marcus Epps to be activated for Monday Night Football.
- Rookie OT Myles Hinton remains out; activation decision pending.
With these adjustments, the Eagles aim to strengthen their special teams and defensive lineup ahead of the high‑profile matchup against the Chargers.
