Scott Supplants Watkins At Right Guard

It took just six days from being signed off the street for Jake Scott to surge to the top of the depth chart at right guard. Now it looks like he might not give that spot up.

Andy Reid said on Wednesday that Scott is the starter for now ahead of Danny Watkins, who has been nursing a high ankle sprain for the last several weeks. The former first-round pick was healthy enough to be activated Sunday against the Panthers, but the decision was made to hold Watkins back.  The 28-year-old explained that this is a different injury than the one he sustained in college, where “a little bone flake came off.”

“The docs were watching film from Pittsburgh and New York. When we were running those quarterback draws, Mike [Vick] kept rolling up into the back of my knees,” Watkins said. “It’s just one of those things that’s just kind of nagging, and I didn’t realize how far it put me back.”

So is Watkins down because of injury, or is it a flat demotion? Reid was a little vague.

“Well, on the high ankle you have the tweaks and all that,” said Reid.”This guy’s healthy, he understands the offense. He did a nice job after he got over the two penalties early there. He played good football, has a lot of experience.”

Scott graded out fairly well against Washington, particularly considering he was signed to a contract that Monday and hadn’t played a snap of football all season.

“Throw on a a helmet and some cleats and go do it,” Scott said, on how he was able to come in cold and play effectively. “It’s about as simple as that.

“[My performance] was alright. I  felt like I had a pretty good grasp of the offense, I knew what to do most of the time. It wasn’t as crisp as it could be. Everything was OK.”

A lot of fans have been asking the question: Given the issues along the offensive front, why wasn’t this guy signed until now? Scott was asked just that following Wednesday’s walkthrough.

“You’re asking the wrong guy that question,” said Scott.

“There had been some contact in the offseason [with the Eagles] but they went other routes, and that’s fine.”

The Eagles have been decimated by injury along the offensive line, prompting the team to circle back to the Scott camp. He was signed,  he was inserted into the line, and he performed. And now you have to wonder where Watkins fits into the equation.

Is it his job when he gets fully healthy?

“I hope so,” said Watkins. “That’s something you always worry about when you get injured. [Scott] has come in and played well. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?”

“I’ve been disappointed since I got injured. The team is not doing very well, you want to be out there helping the guys. We’re just not getting the wins and quarterbacks are getting pressured and hit so yeah, it’s frustrating. You can’t be out there helping and you want to be contributing and doing something. You just want to pull your hair out. There’s nothing you can do right now, so I’m working hard, getting ready to get  back out there.”

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