Eagles WR Marquise Goodwin opts out of season

PHILADELPHIA -- Eagles wide receiver Marquise Goodwin has opted out of the 2020 season due to coronavirus concerns.

Family is top of mind for Goodwin. His wife, Morgan, had a baby girl in February after suffering multiple miscarriages.

He explained his decision to opt out in an Instagram post:

View this post on Instagram

ᴡʜʏ ɪ'ᴍ ᴏᴘᴛɪɴɢ ᴏᴜᴛ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ 2020 ɴғʟ sᴇᴀsᴏɴ By Marquise Goodwin - husband, father, son, brother, football player @nfl . Before I get into the specifics, hear me out. It is truly a blessing and privilege to be able to play football, a game that I love so much and have been blessed to play since the age of 9. The NFL Organization provides my family and I with many opportunities that wouldn't have presented itself in other industries. Traveling to several States multiple times a year and internationally to play on foreign soil has allowed me to gain an appreciation for different cultures and a wider world view perspective. The NFL Football organization has allowed me to create a platform I always dreamed of and it allows me to reach numerous people on different stages of life. Three years ago, I made a decision that affected my whole life. I choose to leave my wife at the hospital after prematurely birthing our first baby boy (due to incompetent cervix) which resulted in a fatality, to play on a football game. I felt like I had to prove to my coaches and new team that I was dedicated to winning and I wouldn't let anything keep me from the goal, not even my family. The following year in the same month, same week, our lives took another traumatic turn. Two weeks after learning her abdominal cerclage was failing, my wife called me shortly after we landed and arrived to our team hotel in Tampa, Florida to inform me she was having painful contractions, and my grandma (who flew up to help take care of Morgan while I would go to work and away games) had to rush her to the emergency room. Here we are again in the same predicament as a year ago, except I was almost 3,000 miles away this time. Anxiety weighed heavily on me because I once again had to decide - will I choose to play a game again like everyone may expect me to, or do I go home and tend to my ailing wife? After much prayer and discussion, I told our team GM that I absolutely had to fly back and take care of my wife, in attempt to honor my wedding vowels that I made to both her, myself, and God. He and the 49ers organization... [ᴛᴏ ʟᴇᴀʀɴ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʟɪᴄᴋ ᴛʜᴇ ʟɪɴᴋ ɪɴ ᴍʏ ʙɪᴏ]

A post shared by MG (@marquisegoodwin) on Jul 28, 2020 at 1:03pm PDT

In need of more speed at the receiver position, the Eagles acquired Goodwin from the San Francisco 49ers in April. He was part of the "track team" Philadelphia assembled this offseason along with draft picks and fellow burners Jalen Reagor, John Hightower and Quez Watkins.

The rookies will have to pick up some of the slack now, as the Eagles opted not to aggressively pursue wide receiver upgrades in free agency.

They do have a healthy DeSean Jackson returning. Jackson, 33, played in just three games last season due to an abdominal tear. Alshon Jeffery, meanwhile, continues to recover from a Lisfranc injury.

"He's doing extremely well," coach Doug Pederson said of Jeffery. "He's going to continue to work and get himself ready. I don't put timetables on players, but when he's ready, he's ready, and he'll be back out there on the field with us."

The Eagles would likely lean heavier on second-year player JJ Arcega-Whiteside if Jeffery is not available. Greg Ward is in line to get playing time from the slot.

Goodwin, 29, played his first four years with the Buffalo Bills before joining the Niners in 2017. His first year in San Francisco was his best as a pro, as he caught 56 balls for 962 yards.

Dealing with knee and foot issues last season, he played in nine games and had 12 catches for 186 yards.