Help could be right around the corner from Mills
PHILADELPHIA >> Challenged to find enough healthy cornerbacks to remain competitive, the Eagles can continue to look for outside help before the Oct. 29 trade deadline.
Before then, they may find help from within.
On the Physically Unable to Perform list all season, Jalen Mills will be eligible to resume practicing next week. Soon after, he should be able to return to the playing field.
A victim of a foot injury widely believed to be of the troublesome Lisfranc variety, Mills said Thursday that he has been running and is hopeful to be cleared by doctors to practice after the Eagles return from a Sunday game in Minnesota.
The fourth-year pro and hero of the 2017 world championship season is not ruling out a return as soon as a Week 7 visit to Dallas.
“That’s always the plan, as far as being injured and coming back,” Mills said. “But it’s really all about the doctor and what he says.”
Though Mills appears to be in good shape and has been running regularly, it remains uncertain if he will need more than a week of practice time to return to satisfactory game condition.
“At the end of the day, it’s all about getting muscle memory back,” Mills said at the NovaCare Complex after a workout. “It’s on the doctors. They can tell you what I can and can’t do. We’re sticking to the plan. They have had a great plan for me so far.”
Mills made 50 tackles last season before missing the final eight games with the fractured foot. He was planted on the PUP list before training camp. Since he’d remained on that list through the entire camp, he was ineligible to return until after Week 6.
In a season in which Ronald Darby (hamstring), Avonte Maddox (concussion, neck) and Sidney Jones (hamstring) have had trouble staying healthy, the Eagles’ cornerback depth chart has been an ever-evolving puzzle. This week, Orlando Scandrick was caught in that swirl, too, as he battled an illness.
“As a true competitor,” Mills said, “you want to play in whatever circumstances.”
Mills is reporting no lingering effects of the fracture. Other than the prohibition on formally practicing, he has no restrictions on physical activity.
“I am running good,” he said. “I can’t remember the exact day when I started running, but from the start until now, I am a lot better.”
Mills was a seventh-round draft choice out of LSU in 2016. He made two starts as a rookie and 15 in the Eagles’ Super Bowl season. During that playoff run, he was remembered for successfully defending Julio Jones as the Eagles snuffed a late Atlanta Falcons rally.
He doesn’t believe he will have any difficulty recalling how to play.
“That’s like riding a bike,” he said. “But for sure, when I play, it’s going to be exciting. I am going to go out there with a lot of energy.”
During his lengthy rehab, Mills realized his injury was “something serious,” but tried to avoid being demoralized despite limited jolts of positive news.
“I’ve dealt with adversity before, not just with the football aspect, but with my life in general,” Mills said. “So it’s about keeping a strong mind. I’ve got great teammates and coaches. They keep me into it.
“It’s an injury that you have to take a long time with. The training staff did a good job with me, making sure I am running good and making sure I can do all the things I did before I was injured.”
Without Mills, and in large measure due to the physical damage to their secondary, the Eagles have begun the season 3-2. As slight underdogs against the Vikings, it is possible that Mills will return only to a .500 team.
“It’s tough not being out there,” he said. “So of course not being able to play with my guys is always hard.”
Mills said he would meet with physicians early next week.
“I feel good now,” Mills said. “Whatever the doctor says I can or can’t do, I’m just going to follow it.”