Philadelphia Eagles debate table: Should Carson Wentz be placed on IR?

Here’s something that might cause a bit of a debate. Why aren’t the Phiadelphia Eagles putting their franchise quarterback, Carson Wentz, on the team’s injured reserve?

It’s a basic rule of any good business model. You protect your best asset. If we were talking sports, football for instance, we’d probably all agree that a team’s franchise quarterback counts. Why, then, aren’t the Philadelphia Eagles shutting down Carson Wentz for the remainder of 2018’s season?

Let’s put it this way. Franchise quarterbacks are hard to come by. Has anyone else noticed that the Miami Dolphins never replaced Dan Marino?

As 2018’s regular season rolled on, we all went from debating whether or not Wentz returned from a knee injury too early to debating just how long he’s been dealing with a back injury that may now shut him down for the remainder of 2018.

Now, as the Eagles return to Lincoln Financial Field to face the Houston Texans, Nick Foles will, again, get the start. Nate Sudfeld will serve as the backup. Carson Wentz will be wearing a ball cap and whatever really cool hoodie the NFL gives the Eagles to wear on the sideline.

We’ve turned the page from a thrilling win versus the Los Angeles Rams to the Texans, and though Wentz is dealing with a spinal compression fracture, his name can still be found on the team’s active roster.

We could argue the point all day and night about whether or not Philly should shut him down, but here’s the thing. Regardless of what you and I think, the Eagles aren’t going to do it.

They’re not going to rule out the possibility of him playing again despite the fact that his injury, normally, doesn’t require surgery but could take upwards of three months for him to heal. Eagles head coach Doug Pederson met with the media on Monday and had a lot to say on the subject.

"Things have changed just a little bit, so, he’ll be listed as week-to-week. We will not put him on IR. Obviously, when he’s healthy, he’s our quarterback and we’ll go from there."

Lately, the Eagles’ medical staff has been the subject of some controversy, but for now, the Eagles organization and coaches are still trusting their medical team. Coach Pederson continued:

"We continue to gather information like we do on all our athletes and all our players. The information is favorable, and it’s something that was positive for him (and) positive for us… At the same time, we have to make sure that he’s 100 percent or better before we put him back out there, but (for) right now, he’ll be listed as week-to-week and we will go from there."

There you have it. The Eagles are rolling the dice again with Wentz’s health and the next few games are taking precedence over what could be a career that stretches over ten years or more. Then, there’s the other thing.

How does a broken back heal naturally without surgery. That question hasn’t crossed anyone else’s mind? We’ll all have to wait and see what happens going forward.