The Philadelphia Eagles made five transactions Tuesday evening, and the clearest move in the batch was a shuffle in the running back room. Jaydon Blue was waived, while Tyrion Mitchell was added to the practice squad to give the Eagles more depth at the position.
The timing matters because the Eagles are trying to line up a Monday night answer with several backs in flux. Blue had only just been signed to the roster the previous Friday after spending the last day of August on the practice squad, and now he is off the active group unless he clears waivers and returns to the practice squad or injured reserve list, depending on how the move is handled.
Mitchell is not a stranger to the Eagles. He was with the team in training camp before getting hurt, then went on injured reserve and later received an injury settlement. He is back in Philadelphia now with a clearer purpose: the Eagles want another running back available in practice and, if needed, on game day. Mitchell also brings more NFL experience than Wheeler, with 327 career rushing attempts for 1,523 yards and nine touchdowns.
That depth push says as much about the roster around him as it does about Mitchell himself. The Eagles had already been dealing with an unsettled backfield, and the latest moves come while Saquon Barkley’s status for Week 7 remains unclear because of a hamstring injury. Tank Bigsby and Will Shipley are on injured reserve, and if Barkley is not ready, Dameon Pierce is the only healthy running back left on the roster.
There is also a sharper edge to the decision. Steele was called up after beginning the season on the practice squad and entered Week 6 as RB2 behind Dameon Pierce, but he hurt his shoulder on his first and only touch of the season, a reception for four yards. He tried to re-enter the game after getting banged up, then left again. Against that backdrop, the Eagles brought Mitchell in for protection they apparently did not believe Jaydon Blue could provide, even when another back was already injured early in the game.
What comes next depends on Barkley. If he is ready for Week 7, the Eagles can avoid a heavier stopgap plan. If he is not, Mitchell could be temporarily elevated from the practice squad and serve as RB2 or RB3 on Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys. For now, the roster move is straightforward: the Eagles have turned one of Tuesday’s transactions into an immediate test of how thin their running back group can get before it breaks.
