We knew what was about to happen as soon as we saw him peel himself from the turf. A replay of the tackle that forced Jalen Hurts out of Week 16's Philadelphia Eagles game vs. the Washington Commanders showed his head being rammed to an unforgiving turf.
The next few moments were reruns of moments we had seen before. QB1 walked into a blue medical tent, ran out, and tried to re-enter the game. The competitor living inside him was no doubt telling him he couldn't let his teammates down. The medical staff told him that he couldn't let himself down.
Jalen would ultimately enter the Eagles locker room, and he wouldn't return. That gave way to Kenny Pickett's first start of the Eagles season and questions about whether he'd also miss Philly's next game.
The Cowboys are on the horizon. The Birds look to place a bow on another NFC East title. It appears they will be doing so with Kenny Pickett at the helm of the offense.
Latest Jalen Hurts injury updates: Jalen Hurts is out, and Kenny Pickett is starting in Week 17 as the Eagles quarterback.
As you'd expect, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni offered no update on Jalen Hurts earlier in the week during sit-downs with the Philly media. He's known for keeping everything close to the vest.
He stated what we knew, that Jalen was in the NFL's concussion protocol. On Thursday, he offered the usual "We'll see how things go", but during the portions of this week's practices that were open to the media, it was Kenny Pickett that took first-team reps.
We rarely see guys suffer head injuries and return to the lineup less than seven days later. Jalen didn't participate in practice all week. The expectation was Pickett would make his first start as an Eagle vs. Dallas. We were right. The Friday injury report was released, and Jalen is one of three Eagles ruled out.
Nakobe Dean is doubtful.
Friday’s Injury Report#DALvsPHI pic.twitter.com/iovvJv4eZb
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) December 27, 2024
Kenny is dealing with his own injuries, most notably some rib discomfort, but he says he'll be ready to go by Sunday.
The Cowboys are without CeeDee Lamb. Below is their injury report from Friday.
Cowboys Friday injury report pic.twitter.com/xhPBRUvSa3
— Inside The Iggles (@InsideIggles) December 27, 2024
We don't expect Philly will lose this game. This is one they should be able to win with Kenny at the helm of their offense. A win here gives the Birds the NFC East and increases their chances at earning the second seed.