The New York Jets will be without a key Pro Bowl player and team captain in Week 6 when they host the Philadelphia Eagles at MetLife Stadium.

Special teams ace Justin Hardee is out with a hamstring injury. His loss is a major one for the Jets. He was selected to the Pro Bowl last season when he had 14 special teams tackles and Pro Football Focus gave him a solid 78.2 grade. And he’s in his second season as a team captain with New York.

Backup cornerback Brandin Echols, who’s also a solid special teams contributor, remains out with a hamstring, as well. So, the Jets are down two important players this week against the Eagles.

“Two really, really good (players),” coach Robert Saleh said Friday. “Irv (Charles) coming up is a really big deal. So, we've got some reinforcements.”

Charles was signed from the practice squad last week and made an immediate impact. He forced a fumble on a punt coverage that led to a Jets field goal in the first quarter of their 31-21 win against the Denver Broncos. Charles had an 86.1 special teams grade, per PFF, in his NFL debut.

The 26-year-old also played two snaps at wide receiver, though was not targeted on either play. Wide receiver Mecole Hardman was inactive last week because the Jets elevated Charles. Hardman is now the focus of trade rumors.

Saleh said, “we'll see what happens today” regarding the status of starting cornerback D.J. Reed. The 26-year-old didn’t play last week because of a concussion but did take part in practice this week.