Hurts may miss game against Jets
Jalen Hurts’ run of 16 consecutive starts is in jeapordy according to podcaster Derek Gunn, who says the Eagles’ quarterback won’t play against the New York Jets Sunday at MetLife Stadium (1 p.m., CBS TV, WIP 94.1-FM).
Listed as questionable by the Eagles with a sprained ankle, meaning there’s a 50-50 chance he plays, Hurts is out according to Gunn, and backup quarterback Gardner Minshew will start againts the Jets.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni risks opening the door to a quarterback controversy if Minshew crushes the defenseless Jets. Hurts has not thrown the ball consistently well, all of the issues flaring up in a 13-7 loss last week to the New York Giants in which the quarterback was picked off three times. Minshew threw three TD passes to lead Jacksonville to a 29-15 win over the Jets during the 2019 season. The locker room is going to keep a close eye on the way the Eagles manage the starting position.
That’s not the only streak to keep an eye on. Tthe Eagles are 11-0 lifetime against the Jets, the only NFL team they’ve swept. The series has had close calls and drama, particularly the 1993 game when the Jets were coached by Rich Kotite, formerly head coach of the Eagles. Then-Eagles quarterback Ty Detmer remarked that his team would look like “the biggest idiots in the world” if they were beaten by the Jets, who entered with a 1-13 record. The Eagles rallied for a 21-20 win on
a Detmer touchdown pass.
Eagles center Jason Kelce, who has started 117 straight games, tops among active pivots is nursing a knee injury that had him in and out of the Giants game. When he exits, the offense immediately misfires.
There also is the Eagles’ streak of five straight wins in games preceding the bye, which arrives next week and gives all of the players, including Hurts more time to rehab. Going belly up before the bye changes everything for a tired team with playoff aspirations.
“The biggest thing we’ve been talking about is not looking forward to the
bye,” Fletcher Cox said. “It’s looking forward to Sunday’s game and getting a win. That way you go into the bye feeling good.”
The Eagles (5-7) are coming off a disturbing loss to the Giants, one in which Hurts had a 17.5 passer rating in addition to the turnovers and running back Boston Scott fumbled the ball away at the worst of times. Like Hurts, Scott (illness) is questionable per the Eagles and coming off a costly gaffe, his giveaway helping to derail the comeback.
The report on Hurts flies in the face of his blunt response that he would play Sunday and “just tune in” to see if he would raise his
game in spite of the injury.
At the same time the Jets (3-8) are the team you can afford to start your backup against. They’re next to last in the league in yards allowed and last in points allowed.
The Eagles have rushed for 200 or more yards in four of their last five games. It’s Hurts’ role as a passer that is suspect, as he’s thrown for fewer than 200 yards in all of those games and ranks 28th in the league in passing. Minshew doesn’t have the arm strength of Hurts but his career 63 percent completion rate is four points better and he’s 7-13 as a starter
Whoever the Eagles’ quarterback is he would be
wise to keep his head on a swivel for defensive linemen John Franklin-Myers and Quinnen Williams, who are tied for the Jets lead with six sacks apiece. C.J. Mosely is an elite every down linebacker cut from the cloth of the Baltimore Ravens.
On offense the Jets are learning how to win with rookie quarterback Zach Wilson, who made the Eagles gush. Wilson came off the board in the second round of the draft last spring and with former Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco mentoring, learning what the job is.
With four touchdowns and 10 interceptions, Wilson is in desperate need of instruction. But he has two wins in seven starts, including a decision over Houston, his first action after missing four games with a torn PCL in his knee.
In Wilson’s return the Jets trailed the Texans, 14-3, late in the first half, a shovel pass interception the lowlight. Wilson bounced back to complete five of next six passes in the second quarter to lead the Jets to a TD in the last two minutes before the intermission, and eventually a 21-14 triumph.
Something else for the Eagles to be concerned about Sunday is quarterback Josh Johnson, who does two-point conversions and short yardage for the Jets. Their kicking game is a train wreck, head coach Robert Saleh opening the job up to competition between incumbent Matt Ammendola and Alex Kessman.
There’s also the history the Eagles and Jets have from their joint practices over the summer and a preseason game. They were replete with competitive banter, Wilson giving it to the Eagles’ defense, including Cox.
“The chirping was competing,” Cox said. “Everybody is going to chirp when competing and having fun and being smart at the same time. It was training camp. Everybody was protecting their quarterback. The quarterback’s live now. I think it will be a competitive game. There might be some chirping from both sides knowing that we practiced against them. They’re coming off a big win. We’re going off a tough loss. It’s going to be who wants it the most.”