The Eagles’ Week 4 setup against the Rams is less about who is active than how Philadelphia chose to spend its limited game-day flexibility.
Lane Johnson is out, and the Eagles are carrying four quarterbacks for the matchup. That combination turns a standard inactive list into something more revealing: Philadelphia is protecting itself at quarterback while also trying to cover for a major absence on the offensive line.
Johnson is officially ruled out for Sunday’s game, leaving the Eagles without one of their most important blockers. He started all three games this season and allowed only two pressures, so his absence leaves a clear hole at right tackle. The Eagles are expected to start rookie Markel Bell there, which would be his first career start.
At the same time, the quarterback room is unusually crowded. One report described the Eagles as carrying four quarterbacks for the Rams game, while the inactive report noted that Tanner McKee and Andy Dalton are both active. McKee has taken over as the backup quarterback, and Dalton has been moved down to QB3.
That is the part that makes the roster construction stand out. With Johnson out and the Eagles already dealing with a short list of unavailable players, Philadelphia is still choosing to keep extra quarterback insurance on hand. The final injury report left the team in a spot where it had to make three quarterbacks active, even though the roster is also thin elsewhere.
The Eagles are already dealing with a long list of absences. They could be missing about six starters against the Rams, and the final injury report forced them to navigate a roster that is stretched in multiple places. That is why the rest of the game-day setup matters just as much as the quarterback count.
Philadelphia also elevated tight ends Josiah Deguara and Zach Ertz from the practice squad for Sunday’s game. Deguara was signed to the practice squad on September 15, so his quick move onto the 53-man roster shows how fast the Eagles needed him ready. Ertz’s elevation is notable for a different reason: he is eligible to play in his first home game since rejoining the Eagles, and he is just nine receptions away from tying Harold Carmichael’s franchise record of 589.
Those elevations help explain how the Eagles are trying to patch together the offense around the edges. Dallas Goedert is out with an injury, so the tight end group needed reinforcement. But the bigger roster question remains the same: why keep four quarterbacks when the offensive line is also short-handed and one of the team’s most reliable blockers is unavailable?
The answer is not spelled out by the inactive list itself. What is clear is that Philadelphia chose quarterback depth and late elevations over a cleaner allocation of roster spots, even with Johnson out and the Eagles trying to avoid a second straight loss at 2-1.
That is the tension in this Week 4 setup. The Eagles are not just missing players; they are deciding where to absorb the damage. Against the Rams, that decision leaves them with four quarterbacks, two elevated tight ends, and a right side of the line that looks very different without Johnson.