The Philadelphia Eagles are looking to clinch the NFC East in Week 17 after failing to do so against the Washington Commanders in Week 16.
The Eagles may have to accomplish that goal without the services of their top quarterback, Jalen Hurts.
Hurts suffered a concussion in the first quarter of the Eagles’ 36-33 loss to the Commanders. The injury occurred after he scrambled for 13 yards and was hit hard by Washington linebacker Frankie Luvu while going to the ground, causing Hurts’ head to bounce off the turf. No flag was thrown on the play.
Hurts got up after the play and flashed a thumbs up to umpire Alex Moore. Despite this, Moore, who was looking the Eagles quarterback right in the eyes, stopped the game and sent Hurts off to be evaluated for a head injury. He was later diagnosed with a concussion and ruled out for the game.
Hurts is now in the NFL’s five-step concussion protocol and will have to clear that before being allowed to return to the field. Could that happen in Week 17? Here are the latest status updates on the Eagles quarterback as his team looks to clinch the division.
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Will Jalen Hurts play Week 17 vs. Cowboys?
Hurts’ status for the Eagles’ Week 17 game against the Dallas Cowboys remains unclear, but he did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday. Instead, Kenny Pickett, Tanner McKee and Ian Book were all in uniform for the session.
That the Eagles signed Book to their practice squad ahead of Week 17 is notable. The team had three quarterbacks in its organization before adding Book. Now, they have four, and it could be a sign that the Eagles will be without Hurts on Sunday.
Hurts was listed as a non-participant on the team’s practice report for Wednesday and Thursday as well. The report was just an estimation, as the Eagles did not hold a practice on Christmas, but it’s still a sign that the quarterback is trending toward being ‘questionable’ at best for Sunday’s game.
Hurts will likely need to get on the practice field Friday in at least a limited capacity to have a shot at playing against the Cowboys.
That said, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni didn’t rule out playing Hurts if he was cleared but didn’t practice when asked about the possibility during a Monday news conference.
‘Each and every week is a different scenario,’ Sirianni said. ‘What I’ve seen is Jalen knows how to prepare, knows how to get himself ready,’ Sirianni said. ‘He is a true pro, who like I’ve said, I just can’t say enough good things about Jalen. Jalen the player, Jalen the leader, Jalen the person. Every week is a little bit different and I know Jalen does everything he can to get ready for each and every week regardless of the circumstances.’
Given this, Hurts’ status will be worth watching over the weekend, especially if he is given the ‘questionable’ tag after Friday’s practice.
Jalen Hurts injury updates
The Eagles haven’t yet provided many updates on how Hurts is feeling after his concussion. Sirianni told reporters on Monday that the plan was just to follow the steps of the NFL’s concussion protocol in assessing Hurts’ status for the week.
‘When that happens, we just lean on the doctors to let us know on a daily basis of where he is,’ Sirianni explained, per NBC Sports Philadelphia.
This echoed the message Sirianni had in the immediate aftermath of the team’s loss to the Commanders.
‘Anything that has anything to do with the head is out of our hands there,’ Sirianni said.
NFL concussion protocol, explained
The NFL’s concussion protocol is a wide-ranging policy designed to protect a player’s safety after a head injury. The policy outlines specific game-day rules to identify players who need to be evaluated for head injuries, but once a player is in the protocol, returning to play becomes a five-step process.
Below are those five benchmarks, according to the NFL:
Symptom limited activity
Aerobic exercise
Football specific exercise
Club-based non-contact training drills
Full football activity/clearance
The NFL’s concussion protocol notes that each concussion is ‘unique’ and that ‘recovery time will vary from player to player.’ That makes it hard to predict exactly how long a player might be out because of the injury.
As such, the Eagles won’t be able to provide a definite timeline on Hurts’ potential return. But fans will be hoping its a shorter recovery time with the playoffs looming for Philadelphia.