When is Jalen Hurts returning to the Eagles lineup?

It’s funny how sports give us an understanding of concepts and theories that we would ignore in other circumstances. We all understand what mixed emotions are. We’ve all had them, but seeing the Philadelphia Eagles lose their franchise quarterback, Jalen Hurts, for the foreseeable future gives the term new meaning.

On one hand, we want to be angry with the Eagles coaching staff for putting QB1 in harm’s way. Had they simply handed the ball off to their tailbacks instead of running Jalen into the teeth of the Chicago Bears’ defense, we wouldn’t be in this mess. Then again, all things considered, we’re all thankful that QB1’s injury isn’t of the season-ending variety.

See? Mixed emotions…

While losing an MVP candidate isn’t ideal, Monday’s news could have been much worse, but we’ve all arrived at the same place. We’re relieved to some degree, but we’re all also asking the same question.

When will Jalen Hurts return to action and make his return to the Eagles lineup?

At the time of this story being written and published, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni hasn’t spoken to the media following Philly’s Week 15 win over Chicago. Even if he did, it’s unlikely that he’d provide updates on the timetable for QB1’s return. That simply isn’t Philadelphia’s business model.

ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter provided the news of Jalen Hurts injury. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane chimed in by stating NFL sources were telling him that Jalen is expected to miss two games. A three-game absence seems to be more realistic though.

The Eagles need one more win in their final three games or a loss by Dallas during the Cowboys’ final three games to assure themselves of the top seed in the National Football Conference and home-field advantage through the NFL’s postseason. Losing one of the frontrunners for the MVP Trophy is no small deal, but Philadelphia is good enough to beat the New Orleans Saints or the New York Giants or both with Gardner Minshew serving as a fill-in even if they don’t conquer the Cowboys in Week 16 (and some even believe that Gardner is good enough to beat Dallas).

Once Philly achieves home-field advantage versus the Cowboys or Saints, it’s likely that the Eagles would play it safe and wait until the Divisional Round of the playoffs to bring Jalen Hurts back into the lineup. That’s our story, and we’re sticking to it… for now anyway.

Conventional thinking leads us back to the theory that once Philly achieves home-field advantage versus the Cowboys or Saints, it’s likely that the Eagles would play it safe, meaning they’ll sit Jalen in the regular-season finale and wait until the Divisional Round of the playoffs to bring Jalen Hurts back into the lineup. That’s our story, and we’re sticking to it… for now anyway.

First things first. Fingers are crossed all over Eagles Nation for a swift recovery. Stay tuned. Bookmark this one for updates as they’ll be housed below.