Shoulder injury not hampering Hurts’ healing confidence
PHILADELPHIA » Of all the skills that have made Jalen Hurts an MVP candidate, none has been as valuable as his ability to keep a defense guessing.
So it was Tuesday, when the Eagles’ quarterback made it sound like he would play Saturday in Dallas, even with a sprained throwing shoulder.
“It’s going to be fine,” he said.
On that, there was unanimous agreement, as the shoulder injury was not considered threatening to his career or season. Yet there were enough credible reports, historic examples and in-house murmurs to suggest Hurts could miss at least two games. Yet the quarterback would not admit to even that at the top of a short week at the NovaCare Complex.
“It’s a week where we’re keeping everything businessas-usual,” Hurts said. “And we’re doing everything that we can on a short week to make sure that we are at full health.”
The best translation: The Eagles are trying to bring Hurts to full health, and even if they can’t, will continue to complicate the Cowboys’ preparation.
“I’ll never put a timetable on him,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “He has a sprained shoulder, and I don’t put anything past Jalen Hurts as far as his mental and physical toughness. There’s a chance he could play this week.
“He is one of the toughest guys I know, and he heals fast. He’s a freak. His body is not like yours or mine. I’m shaming myself there a little bit, too. His body is not like ours. He heals fast. He came back fast from his injury last year, and I will not rule him out. We will see what happens this week.”
Hurts suffered a highankle sprain in Week 12 of last season, causing similar alarm, and a similar reaction, with both the quarterback and head coach touting his unique self-healing powers. But he did miss one game before returning, with Gardner Minshew filling in and completing 20 of 25 passes, including two for touchdowns, in a 33-18 victory over the New York Jets.
Minshew was excused from activities Tuesday to attend the funeral of Mike Leach, his college coach at Washington State. But if Hurts cannot play Saturday, Minshew has been said to have shown enough in practice to keep the Eagles confident.
“I’m sure Gardner will get reps this week, and he’s been here for a while,” Jason Kelce said. “If he’s the guy that’s up, we’ll be ready to go. I think he’s done a good job when we’ve asked before. He’s a veteran player and has played a lot of football in the NFL.”
Hurts was injured late in the third quarter of a 25-20 victory Sunday in Chicago, when he was forced to the grass by Trevis Gipson during a short run. That he continued to play — and make multiple late-game contributions — encouraged the Eagles, but a Monday MRI revealed the sprain.
Hurts indicated Tuesday that he can still throw the ball and sounded like he was determined to play in Dallas.
“I’m always aware of my body,” he said. “I’ve always been that way. And I’ve always been good at overcoming those different things. So nothing changes with my approach this week.”
As for the approach of the head coach, that will have to be expanded, with the likelihood that Minshew will be the quarterback trying to help the Eagles clinch the championship of the NFC East.
“We are going to have to plan for both guys to play,” Sirianni said. “We’re going to have to have a plan for Jalen to play. We’re going to have to have a plan for Gardner to play. There will naturally
be some differences because there’s going to be things different that Gardner likes that Jalen might not like as much and vice-versa.
“That will mean a lot of extra work for us this week just to make sure they’re both ready and that we understand what they both like, but there will be some differences but not huge differences.”
Should Hurts be unavailable, one difference to the Eagles likely will be the sacrifice of the crisp timing he has had with his good friend A.J. Brown.
“I have not played a game with Gardner, so I don’t know the differences,” Brown said. “If he plays, if he doesn’t play, we have to make plays at the end of the day. So whoever is
in there at QB, we’ll be fine.”
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Dallas Goedert, who has missed five games with a shoulder injury, was reactivated Tuesday and will start Saturday. The tight end had been enjoying his best season, catching 43 passes, three for touchdowns, for 544 yards in nine games.
“He is one of the best tight ends in the NFL,” Kelce said. “He can do everything you want. It’s huge to get him back.”
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NOTES » Hurts, Minshew and K’Von Wallace (hip) did not practice Tuesday. … Tyree Jackson (knee) was limited in his activities. … Reed Blankenship (knee) practiced fully.