Les Bowen: Missing pieces have Eagles scrambling going into Chargers game

IT HAS BEEN an interesting week for the Eagles' defense, and life figures to remain chock full of surprises, right on through Sunday's game against San Diego and the NFL's seventh-ranked passing game.

"I feel like every week, there's always something going on," Chris Gocong said after yesterday's practice. "There's always a minisoap opera. You've just got to stay alive and adjust. Every week, there's stuff to adjust to. Guys are going to get hurt."

They certainly have this year. Gocong, the Eagles' strongside linebacker, is preparing to start at middle linebacker this week, for the first time since high school. He's also returning from missing last week's Dallas game with quad and hamstring injuries that still require treatment. Will Witherspoon, just getting comfortable at middle linebacker after arriving last month in a trade with the Rams, will move over to the weakside, where usual starter Akeem Jordan is not expected to play with a knee injury suffered last Sunday against Dallas.

The nickel corner will be Dimitri Patterson, still being treated for quad and hand injuries that have kept him out since Oct. 11. Patterson and the starters, Sheldon Brown and Asante Samuel, will be the only corners on the field who have ever played that position for the Eagles in a regular-season game. Something happens to one of them, next guy up is Jack Ikegwuonu, fresh from the practice squad. After him there's Ramzee Robinson, who will have been an Eagle all of 4 days by game time.

"This Monday was not like every other Monday," said defensive coordinator Sean McDermott. "Every Monday you come in and you see who's available, who's healthy, in order to formulate your defensive package . . . it's just the number of injuries we had and the timing of everything. When it rains, it pours, so to speak.

"We're going ahead with who we have available to use, and we look forward to seeing those players execute, and to playing at a high level, like we've done to this point."

When you have injuries, McDermott said, "instead of sitting down Monday morning to watch the opponent, you have to get a new feel for the complexion of your roster, and how you want to attack."