Brian Westbrook's ankle? Nah. Stuff happens. LeSean McCoy's a keeper.

Shawn Andrews' back? Ominous for Andrews, but Winston Justice might be the Birds' best o-lineman so far.

No, the most crucial injury obviously has been the torn ACL suffered by middle linebacker Stewart Bradley, back on Aug. 2.

The 3-2 Eagles made yet another attempt to fill that hole yesterday, executing a trade-deadline deal with St. Louis for veteran Will Witherspoon. The Birds gave up rookie wideout Brandon Gibson and a fifth-round draft pick.

The timing would seem to highlight the 86-yard touchdown reception by Raiders tight end Zach Miller against Jeremiah Trotter, the key play of a shocking 13-9 Eagles loss Sunday. But it probably had just as much, or more, to do with the fact that Omar Gaither suffered a foot sprain late in the fourth quarter. In announcing the Witherspoon trade, coach Andy Reid disclosed that Gaither likely will not play Monday night at Washington and will be visiting a foot specialist; there must be concern about a long-term injury.

It probably isn't coincidental that Witherspoon, 6-1, 240, is known for his pass-coverage skills.

"It's one of my strong suits. It's one of those things I've always had to do . . . [and have] taken great pride in, that I can go out and trust myself that I can cover anybody," Witherspoon, 29, told Philadelphia-area reporters on a conference call last evening.

"I'm bringing him in here as the MIKE linebacker, to fill in what Omar did," said Reid, who noted that Witherspooon also can play the weakside. "He's a good cover linebacker; he has the flexibility to cover tight ends and running backs and that type of thing, which is a plus."

Tight ends were a big problem for the Eagles' defense even before Sunday became Miller time.

Reid indicated that Trotter's role - primarily short-yardage - won't change.

If you're keeping score at home, the first move in the wake of Bradley's injury was to elevate Joe Mays into the starting job. That idea died quickly during the preseason. Gaither, the 2007 starter, was the next option. During the bye week, Gaither lost at least part of the role to Trotter, who hadn't played football in nearly 2 years. Now, enter Witherspoon.

The biggest problem with bringing in someone and expecting him to contribute at a key position right away is that the new guy doesn't know your system. That's not so much the case with Witherspoon, playing this year for ex-Eagles assistant Steve Spagnuolo in St. Louis.

"He's been playing for Spags, so he's been playing in this defense," Reid said. "We started off the season thinking we were in pretty good shape at the MIKE linebacker spot, and we've been banged up a little bit, so we needed to make this move to stay strong there. That's the only reason that I would have done something like this . . . We might not have been quite as aggressive [at the deadline] had we not had the injuries there."

Witherspoon noted that he has been playing the weakside, not the middle, in the Spagnuolo defense, but said: "I'm pretty comfortable with it."

Reid said he thinks Gibson, a sixth-round pick this season, will be an NFL starter someday. He was a training-camp phenom but has been active for just one game. The Rams' offensive coordinator is former Eagles quarterbacks coach Pat Shurmur, and he definitely is keeping an eye on his old team - St. Louis earlier claimed Danny Amendola off the Birds' practice squad. Amendola immediately moved into a sizable role, returning kicks and punts and catching nine passes for 76 yards in his first four games as a Ram.

Witherspoon, a third-round draft choice of Carolina in 2002, was mostly a middle linebacker for the Panthers. Recently he has played the weakside for the Rams, with whom he signed as a free agent in 2006 after considering overtures from the Eagles. He was St. Louis team MVP as the middle linebacker in 2007 but was among many Rams who did not have a great year during a 2-14 season.

Eagles general manager Tom Heckert praised Witherspoon's durability in an interview with the team's Web site. "This guy doesn't leave the field much," said Heckert, who called parting with Gibson "a very tough decision . . . we think we gave up a lot."

Witherspoon left Sunday's overtime loss to the Jaguars; he said yesterday he "just bruised my tailbone a little bit," and should be able to practice and play this week.

Good news for Todd

 

Andy Reid said Todd Herremans' bone scan yesterday, which Herremans said would tell him whether he can go all-out in practice and possibly play Monday, went well.

"There's a good chance that he's going to be out there," Reid said, when asked about the possibility of Herremans playing this week. But later in his answer, Reid seemed to be saying more that Herremans is likely to practice when the team reconvenes tomorrow for the Monday game, not that he was likely to play.

For more Eagles coverage and opinion, read

the Daily News' Eagles blog, Eagletarian, at www.eagletarian.com.