Alshon Jeffery Misses 2nd Straight Day of Eagles Practice

Alshon Jeffery missed practice for the second straight day with an ankle injury on Thursday, putting his status for Sunday's game against the Patriots very much in question. 

It's rare for an Eagles player to miss the first two days of practice in a week and play that weekend. 

On Wednesday, head coach Doug Pederson said Jeffery was "day to day" with the ankle injury he suffered in the Bears game before the bye week. He left that game early, but then had an extra week to rest. 

Earlier in the season, Jeffery suffered a calf injury early in the game against Atlanta. It's possible he's been playing through injury for most of the season, which would help to explain his drop in production. 

In eight games this season, the 29-year-old receiver has just 34 catches for 353 yards and three touchdowns. He's on pace for his worst statistical season since his rookie year in 2012. 

On Wednesday, I asked Pederson about Jeffery's dip in production. 

"Well, I think with having Dallas [Goedert] a little more involved in the offense, the ball gets spread around a little bit more. The times we have gone to Alshon, he's made plays," Pederson said. 

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It's worth noting that Jeffery is tied for the team lead in drops with three. He's one of five Eagles with three drops this season. 

"His value to the offense has been very good," Pederson continued. "The ball's going to find the open guy. Sometimes he's the primary, sometimes he's not. He might be the secondary or the third guy in the progression. He's a guy that gives of himself to the team. That's who Alshon is. He doesn't gripe or complain. He does battle through injury. He's battled through it his whole career. He's battled through it here. He's a tough kid.

"We continue to game plan. We game plan for him every week. Again, it's my job to try to dial up as many plays as I can for him."

If Jeffery doesn't play on Sunday, look for J.J. Arcega-Whiteside or Jordan Matthews to have a big role. 

The only other notable player missing at Thursday's practice was Nigel Bradham, who will likely miss his fourth straight game this Sunday with an ankle injury of his own. 

Jason Peters (knee) and Jordan Howard (shoulder) were both practicing Thursday after being listed as limited on Wednesday. 

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