Eagles designate Avonte Maddox for return

Maddox sustained an ankle injury against the Texans last month but now has a three-week span to return to the Eagles’ 53-man roster. After activating defensive end Janarius Robinson on Tuesday, the Eagles have four injury activations remaining. Robert Quinn stands to account for one of those; Maddox is on track to claim another spot.

Tied to a three-year, $22.5M contract agreed to in November 2021, Maddox is now the Eagles’ longest-tenured defensive back. The Eagles drafted Maddox in the 2018 fourth round and have him under contract through 2024. He is moving toward returning to playing alongside Darius Slay and James Bradberry in Philadelphia’s No. 1-ranked pass defense.

While the Eagles have gotten by against the pass without Maddox, his return will benefit the 12-1 team. Pro Football Focus graded Maddox’s early-season work well, placing him just inside the top 40 at corner. In six games this season, Maddox was seeing action at a career-high rate. He logged 81% of the snaps during the six games he played this season. Maddox has been a constant for the Eagles since debuting, having played between 65% and 75% of Philly’s defensive snaps from 2018-21.