Eagles LB/DE Phillip Hunt tears ACL; will miss season

Aug 9, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Phillip Hunt (56) tackles New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) during the second quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

The Philadelphia Eagles have encountered a rash of ACL injuries in the past few days, and they were hit, yet again, with that bug again on Thursday.

Phillip Hunt, a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker from the University of Houston, suffered a reported torn ACL during Philadelphia’s last preseason game and, according to Adam Caplan of SiriusXM radio, he underwent surgery to repair the injury. Hunt appeared in 13 games for the Eagles in 2012, contributing 8 tackles and 1 sack from the defensive end position, but it was expected that he would be an outside linebacker in Philly’s new 3-4 defensive system.

This is the fourth ACL injury of the Eagles’ preseason, and while it is the least “high-profile”, there is growing suspicion that the team could have an issue on their hands. Jeremy Maclin famously exited for the year early in the preseason, but he was followed by WR Arrelious Benn, and LB Jason Phillips in subsequent days.

The on-field loss of Hunt could be minimal, but with the expectation that he would provide depth and flexibility, it is possible that the impact could be felt down the line. Philadelphia is still blessed with high-end talent on defense (Trent Cole and Fletcher Cox, for example), but they simply can’t afford any more injuries before the kick-off of the 2013 season.

Home/NFL