Although Josiah Scott connected with his former teammates in Philadelphia, he didn’t exactly follow through with injuries to the Eagles’ secondary.
He found them Sunday night when his assistant called.
And before long, the 24-year-old defensive end was on his way back to Philadelphia as a member of the Eagles’ 53-man roster.
“It changed quickly,” said Scott, who was officially signed to the Eagles’ 53-man roster on Wednesday. But I was always ready, always ready. Whatever happens, I’ll be ready. “
The Eagles on Tuesday signed Scott and waived second-year linebacker Mario Goodrich. After Goodrich cleared the suspension, the Eagles signed him to their practice squad. So now they all have power.
But signing any player to another team’s practice squad is a three-week commitment to that player, so taking Scott is more than just the upcoming game.
Scott was on Pittsburgh’s injured reserve list so when the Eagles called his agent this week, they were concerned about his health. Scott said Wednesday that he had already recovered from the injury that kept him on the roster so much that the Eagles decided to bring him back because their injuries continued in high school.
The second most recent injuries came to safety Reed Blankenship (ribs) and nickel cornerback Bradley Roby (shoulder) in the loss to the Jets. So it was clear that the Eagles needed more bodies in the secondary.
Why go back to Scott?
“What he went through,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. “It’s some changes that are happening in the high school, we know that we played in big games with Josiah and he did well in this game. He had a problem last year against New Orleans. Obviously, we lost the game, but we played well on defense and Josiah was a big part of that.
“So, we have confidence in him. We have confidence in the person. We have confidence in the players. So, I think a little bit of that was just what happened to him in this city, what happened to him with this team, what he experienced with these guys on this team. He was also here during practice, so I think that’s what helped Josiah come back.
Scott was with the Eagles in the 2021 and 2022 seasons and played in 29 games and 4 starts for the Eagles during that time. Last season, he had 26 tackles, 2 interceptions and 8 interceptions, despite losing his defensive position at the end of the year. But after arriving at training camp in 2023 placed on the depth chart at nickel cornerback, Scott was released in late August and left Philly to join the Steelers’ practice squad.
This summer, Scott was behind Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson and Mario Goodrich at nickel corner on the depth chart. Then McPhearson went down with a season injury in the preseason and Maddox tore his pec in Week 2. That left the Eagles with Goodrich and Eli Ricks as their possible corners when Sydney Brown hurt his hamstring, so they went out and got Roby. And now he too is injured.
Scott just called and didn’t hesitate to call back.
“Nothing is personal in this business,” Scott said on his wall Wednesday. “I’ve been friends with these guys all this time. We are in a chat group. No matter where I went, we were talking in public, talking all the time. Nothing was surprising. It is not surprising to return. Everyone is welcoming me back. I am happy to be here.”
The Eagles originally acquired Scott in a trade with the Jaguars, who drafted him fourth overall out of Michigan State in the 2020 draft. Scott played just six games with the Jags as a rookie before being traded to the Eagles in May of 2021.
Although Scott (5-9, 185) looks like a linebacker, he also played outside linebacker and on the Eagles’ defense. Although the Birds appear to be in good shape at cornerback with Darius Slay and James Bradberry, the nickel and safety spots have been depleted due to injuries. Adding a player and other moves made sense.
But because of those injuries in the secondary, Scott may need to play more Sunday night against the NFL’s No. 1 offense. So he is living these days making sure he remembers this safety and is ready to go.
“It would be difficult,” Scott said. But at the same time, I’m a very smart player. I always joke that every defense I’ve been in, it’s not good. It only takes a little time at work to review the notes. I have a lot of confidence in myself.”
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