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Nolan Smith honors Nakobe Dean pregame after season-ending injury

IMG_0985by: Griffin McVeigh01/19/25griffin_mcveigh
Nakobe Dean, Nolan Smith
© Alex Gallardo-Imagn Images

A strong contingent of Georgia Bulldogs now plays for the Philadelphia Eagles, capitalizing on some talent from two national championships. Unfortunately, one will be without Philadelphia for the rest of their NFL postseason run. Nakobe Dean is out due to an injury he suffered against Green Bay, a big hole for the Eagles at linebacker.

Nolan Smith decided to honor his long-time teammate during pregame warmups. When running onto the field while being named a starter, Smith was holding Dean’s jersey with him. Raised above his head, the green No. 17 was present.

A nice tribute from Smith ahead of the Divisional Round matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. Smith is getting ready to face off against Matthew Stafford, another former Georgia player, and you have to imagine he would rather be playing alongside Dean.

You can check out the full moment below.

Dean did not get to play much against Green Bay in the Wild Card round, only seeing the field for 23 plays. Even so, he recorded six tackles and two tackles for a loss. In what has been an impressive linebacker group for the Eagles this season, Dean was really hitting his stride.

Philadelphia’s overall goal is to win three more games, beginning with Los Angeles on Sunday. The Washington Commanders are waiting in the NFC Championship if they can get there. Getting to New Orleans would provide an opportunity to win the franchise’s second-ever Super Bowl.

Nakobe Dean to miss remainder of NFL playoffs due to knee injury

Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean will reportedly be out for the remainder of the playoffs with a knee injury, per NFL Network. Dean was carted off during Sunday’s Wild Card win over the Green Bay Packers.

“Eagles LB Nakobe Dean, who was carted off during last night’s playoff win, is feared to have suffered a significant knee injury that would knock him for the playoffs, sources tell me and Mike Garafolo,” Ian Rapoport wrote on Twitter. “He’ll have an MRI this morning to deliver the full news. Dean emerged as a starter this season with 128 tackles, including 9 for a loss.”

If Dean is confirmed to be out for the remainder of the year, it’ll be a significant loss for the Eagles’ defense.

On3’s Nick Kosko contributed to this report