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Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson announced Wednesday that defensive end Derek Barnett is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. ESPN's Adam Schefter had reported Tuesday that Barnett would need surgery on his shoulder.
Barnett initially suffered the injury in the Eagles' 26-23 Week 4 loss against the Tennessee Titans. The 22-year-old missed the next game against the Minnesota Vikings but returned to action to face the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers.
However, the torn rotator cuff now needs to be taken care of in the form of a surgical procedure.
This is a tough blow to a struggling Eagles team that fell to 3-4 thanks to a fourth-quarter meltdown against Carolina. The defending Super Bowl champions have been up and down all season, and losing a key piece on the defensive line won't help matters.
Philly drafted Barnett with the 14th pick in the 2017 NFL Draft out of Tennessee. He recorded 5.0 sacks as a rookie in the regular season and added another in the playoffs. Barnett recovered Tom Brady's fumble created by Brandon Graham to help clinch the Super Bowl.
Barnett recorded 2.5 sacks and 17 combined tackles this season while playing about half the defensive snaps. The Eagles are a bit thin on the defensive line at the moment, so they'll need to figure out a way to get production despite this.
Philly will face another disappointing 3-4 team in the Jacksonville Jaguars this upcoming Sunday. The Eagles need to turn things around quick if they want to have a chance to repeat.
