Latest News Out of Philadelphia Eagles Camp: JaCorey Shepherd Tears ACL

The Philadelphia Eagles secondary suffered a significant blow over the weekend, as rookie cornerback JaCorey Shepherd has been diagnosed with a torn right ACL.

The team confirmed the news Monday morning on Twitter: 

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Following an MRI this morning, Eagles rookie CB JaCorey Shepherd has been diagnosed with an torn ACL in his right knee.

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) August 10, 2015"

The injury came during Sunday's practice when Shepherd, a sixth-round pick out of Kansas, chased down running back Darren Sproles after a reception on the left sideline, according to CSNPhilly.com's Reuben Frank. The ensuing collision left Shepherd on the ground for minutes before being carted off the field.

Sproles told Frank that he heard Shepherd "hollering" after going down.

It's a big blow for an Eagles team that just traded its starting nickelback, Brandon Boykin, to the Pittsburgh Steelers last week.

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#Eagles announce that an MRI showed it’s a torn ACL for rookie CB JaCorey Shepherd. Was slated to take over for Brandon Boykin in the slot

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 10, 2015"

Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk wondered whether Shepherd's injury will make Chip Kelly rethink his decision to send Boykin to the Steelers, saying it "does raise the question of whether Kelly still would have traded Boykin, had he known he was about to lose the rookie who had been penciled in as Boykin’s replacement."

Following the Boykin trade, 2014 fourth-round pick Jaylen Watkins had been splitting snaps with Shepherd out of the nickelback spot, per NFL.com's Chris Wesseling.

The Eagles also have sixth-round pick Randall Evans, free-agent pickup E.J. Biggers and rookie free agent Denzel Rice as options at cornerback after Shepherd's injury.

According to NJ Advance Media's Eliot Shorr-Parks, the Eagles were already looking to have Nolan Carroll play most of the slot snaps while in the nickel formation, with rookie second-round pick Eric Rowe playing outside. So, losing Shepherd doesn't necessarily cost the team a starter, but it does deprive Philadelphia's secondary of some depth.

Shepherd's injury marks the second ACL tear the Eagles have suffered this offseason, as Travis Long tore his ACL and was placed on injured reserve last week.

Phil Sheridan of ESPN.com also noted that Shepherd and Long aren't the only injury concerns the Eagles have heading into the season.

"The injuries underscore the risk the Eagles took by trading for quarterback Sam Bradford, who has looked sharp in camp but is coming off two torn ACLs in a 10-month span," Sheridan wrote.