Eagles Sign Three Players, Place Three On Injured Reserve
Rick Lovato. (USA Today Sports)
The Philadelphia Eagles announced a few roster moves on Monday evening. First, the Eagles made two free agent signings: cornerback Dwayne Gratz and long snapper Rick Lovato.
In order to make room for these two new players on the 53-man roster, the Eagles placed rookie running back Wendell Smallwood, reserve offensive lineman Matt Tobin, and long snapper Jon Dorenbos on the season-ending injured reserve list. All three players sustained significant injuries during Philadelphia’s Week 14 loss to Washington.
Gratz, 26, is now on his third team this season. The Jaguars drafted Gratz with a third-round pick in the the 2013 NFL Draft. The Piscataway, New Jersey native played 40 games (25 starts) in Jacksonville before being cut in early October. The Rams claimed Gratz off waivers before cutting him in late November.
The signing of Gratz gives the Eagles more depth in the secondary. Doug Pederson had mentioned Jaylen Watkins as an injured reserve candidate due to a ruptured tendon in his finger. Watkins wasn’t placed on IR (yet), but it seems like he won’t be playing any time soon.
As for Lovato, the Eagles obviously needed a long snapper after losing Dorenbos for the season. The 24-year-old Lovato is a native of Neptune, New Jersey. He’s played in four games with two different teams since joining the league as an undrafted free agent in 2015.
The Eagles still have one open roster spot. It’s expected the team will sign practice squad running back Byron Marshall, according to a report from Eliot Shorr-Parks. Pederson also mentioned the possibility of promoting Marshall due to Smallwood’s injury.
Three games remain on Philadelphia’s 2016 schedule.
UPDATE: The Eagles officially signed Marshall to their active roster. The 22-year-old Oregon alumnus signed with the team as an undrafted free agent following the 2016 NFL Draft.