Early-week optimism has given way to a late-week setback for the Eagles' Asante Samuel . On Tuesday, head coach Andy Reid said he expected his star corner to play Sunday night against the Cowboys. But after going through limited practice Wednesday and resting Thursday, Samuel was unable to finish Friday's workout. He was listed as questionable on the official injury report, only to be downgraded to out. The team made the announcement Saturday. Samuel will miss his third consecutive game due to a knee injury. He has missed four games in all, but still leads the NFL with seven interceptions this season. The Eagles have allowed six passing touchdowns and 584 passing yards without Samuel available during the past two games. Joselio Hanson and Dimitri Patterson are expected to be Philly's starting cornerbacks.

Fantasy Analysis:

The Eagles were falling all over themselves in pass coverage against Jay Cutler and Matt Schaub. Bump up your expectations for Jon Kitna, Miles Austin , Jason Witten and Roy Williams. Witten is one of the top plays at tight end this week. Even though he admitted he suffered a high ankle sprain during the Colts game in week 13, he is not listed on the injury report. Austin is probably a top-15 WR while Williams is a fairly solid option as a WR3. And Kitna suddenly turns into a fairly strong start in 12-team leagues.