Who Should I Start? Nakobe Dean or Baylon Spector

Monday, January 13, 12:03 PM

Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean (knee) suffered a torn patellar tendon in his knee late in the wild-card win over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday and will miss the rest of the playoffs. It's a tough blow for the Eagles and Deal, who was at the tail end of a breakout season. He now has a long road to recovery and will likely miss the start of the 2025 regular season this fall. The Eagles were bracing for a serious injury after Dean had to be carted off the field in Philadelphia on Sunday. He underwent an MRI exam on Monday morning to confirm the serious injury. The former third-rounder in 2022 out of Georgia emerged as a starter in 2024 in his third year in the league and had an impressive 128 tackles (80 solo), a career-high three sacks, nine tackles for loss, six QB hits, one interception, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries in 15 regular-season starts. It's a notable loss for Philly's D the rest of the way.

Saturday, January 25, 9:29 PM

Buffalo Bills linebacker Baylon Spector (calf) has been downgraded to out for Sunday's Conference Championship clash with the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bills opened Spector's practice window on Wednesday, and he logged three straight full sessions before being deemed questionable in Friday's injury report. However, he won't be activated off injured reserve before this weekend's tilt. It's unfortunate news for the 26-year-old, as he'd played significant snaps for Buffalo earlier in the year and still ranks third amongst Bills linebackers in total snaps played despite missing nine outings. Teammate Dorian Williams will continue to swap in behind Matt Milano and Terrel Bernard at linebacker against Kansas City.