Eagles Lose Malik Jackson to ‘Significant Injury’

PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) - A "little injury" turned into a significant one after an MRI for Malik Jackson.

Doug Pederson confirmed that the Eagles defensive tackle has a "significant injury that will require some time."

The coach did refuse to call it a season-ending issue for Jackson and claimed the Eagles were waiting on further tests before making a decision but the tea leaves are not trending in a positive direction.

Jackson was injured late in the 32-27 season-opening win over Washington and was in the locker room wearing a walking boot on his left foot after the game.

"Just a little injury. Football," the veteran said. "We’ll see what the doctors say.”

In Jackson's absence, Tim Jernigan is expected to step up and once again start next to Fletcher Cox. That duo was dominant early in the 2017 season until injuries took ahold of Jernigan. The 2018 campaign was essentially lost for Jernigan after herniated disc surgery and he is now healthy again which bodes well.

The Eagles also have Hassan Ridgeway at defensive tackle and Bruce Hector could be elevated from the practice squad while both Brandon Graham and Vinny Curry have the versatility to kick inside if needed at times.

"I thought Jernigan was disruptive at times. I thought Hassan got in there especially late in the game when Malik came out, had a couple of pressure moments there," Pederson said Monday. "And again, getting in game action, it’s a little bit different, speed is a little bit different, but I thought both guys were disruptive, and Timmy, in particular, did some really nice things."

A unique, lengthy defensive tackle, Jackson's ability to rush inside next to Cox or kick out to left end while allowing Graham to rush inside will be hard to duplicate for Jim Schwartz moving forward. Jackson played 34 of the team's 67 defensive snaps before going down against Washington (51 percent).

-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973espn.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen