NFL: Injury ends Australia's Jordan Mailata's rookie season with Philadelphia Eagles

A back injury has ended Jordan Mailata's hopes of playing for the Philadelphia Eagles this season.

The Eagles announced on Friday they had placed the rookie Australian giant on their injured reserve list, a move ruling him out for the rest of the NFL season.

With the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles expected to miss the playoffs there were hopes the team would let the 203cm tall, 157kg former South Sydney Rabbitohs junior make his regular-season debut and gain valuable experience in the final games.

The Eagles have three regular season games left and their slim playoffs hopes will be snuffed out with a loss this weekend against the NFL leading Los Angeles Rams.

The team didn't disclose how serious Mailata's injury was.

Linebacker BJ Bello was promoted from the practice squad to fill Mailata's place.

The Eagles view Mailata, who had never played in a game of organised American football until this year's NFL pre-season, as a long-term prospect and had no plans to rush him into a game.

The Eagles were forced to activate the raw 21-year-old Mailata for three games this season when injuries struck their offensive line but he remained on the bench.

If they placed Mailata on the practice squad, other teams could sign him.