OK guys, let's back down off of that panic button. Here are a few thoughts in no particular order on the news that Jalen Hurts is hurt:
There's already a lot of angst over the play calling in the Chicago game, and how the pass-heavy approach exposed Hurts to injury and was therefore to blame. While I certainly agree that the Birds should have sought to expose the Bears' weak rush D more than what they did, Hurts was injured on a running play. It seems unlikely that a run heavy approach would have reduced his exposure, considering how significantly the read option factors into their rush offense.
Hurts certainly didn't let on that he had a serious injury, either during the game or during his postgame comments. Don't rule out the possibility that we're witnessing a little gamesmanship on the part of the Birds with this announcement.
Assuming that Hurts does not play, and assuming that Gardner Minshew struggles or the Eagles lose, I'm not planning on leaning on Jalen's injury as any kind of crutch. Don't forget what we talked about before the last Cowboys game; backup quarterbacks being thrust into action for this rivalry is practically a tradition. I had no plans to let the Cowboys off the hook for missing their starter in the last game, and we should not let the Eagles off the hook for this game. About the only difference I can think of is that Dallas did have a few weeks to get comfortable with Cooper Rush as their starter, while Philly will have four days. Still, no excuses.
Speaking of Minshew, I don't think we should assume that there will be a cataclysmic dropoff if he has to play. Of course, replacing Hurts isn't possible, but Gardner Minshew is a starting caliber player in this league. He managed a TYP of 6.16 in the absolute black hole that was the Jaguars offense during his time there; that figure would have rated #17 overall last season (just between Mac Jones and Lamar Jackson). I have no doubt that figure would be substantially higher than it was, if Minshew had the league's top OL and AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert to throw to. He'll have those advantages on Saturday.
The Eagles have a long and glorious tradition of the backup QB coming in and carrying the Eagles into the playoffs. Just in the last few decades, we've seen this happen with Rodney Peete ('95), Ty Detmer ('96), AJ Feeley and Koy Detmer ('02), Jeff Garcia ('06), Mike Vick ('10), and of course Nick Foles, ('13, '17, and '18). Even Mark Sanchez very nearly pulled it off in 2014. By my count, nine of the last 17 winning seasons in Eagles history have prominently featured the backup QB. It's why the franchise puts a lot of emphasis on finding capable players to sit the bench. Certainly, Eagles fans should be feeling a whiff of positive deja vu.
Without question, this injury makes the path more difficult, but equally unquestionable is the fact that the overall trajectory of this season should remain the same. Let's see what happens. In some ways, I think this news only increases the pressure on Dallas (already feeling the heat), as the talking heads will say that no Jalen means a better chance of a Cowboys win. We'll just see...
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