Jalen Hurts Out Indefinitely With Blood Clot
Jalen Hurts attempts a pass at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. (Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
The Eagles will be without their starting quarterback for the time being.
Jalen Hurts, the Eagles’ starting quarterback who was dealing with a calf issue following the Week 4 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams, was diagnosed with a superficial blood clot ahead of the game in London. While cleared to play for that game, the Eagles discovered movement in the clot and Hurts was ruled out against the Carolina Panthers.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport described Hurts’ condition as “out indefinitely.”
“We don’t know when Jalen Hurts is going to play again,” Rapoport said on NFL Total Access.
The Eagles released a statement on Thursday indicating the sequence of events and noted that the team is considering the treatment path for their franchise quarterback.
“[Jalen’s] health and safety are our highest priority,” the team said in a statement, which also noted that the team was in communication with the NFL offices during the situation.
Rapoport appeared on ESPN’s Pat McAfee Show and indicated that the typical treatment for a blood clot could keep Hurts out for some time.
“He’s going to get treatment, which a lot of times is blood thinners,” Rapoport noted. “When you are on blood thinners, it is very difficult if not impossible to play football because, if something happens, […] it could be very bad.”
Hurts addressed his calf injury on Wednesday before an evening ultrasound revealed the movement.
“It was a very unique experience, to say the least,” Hurts said in his usual, matter-of-fact, tight-lipped way. “I don’t want to get into the details of kind of leading up to the game and whatnot, but got nicked up in the Rams game.”
With Hurts out, Tanner McKee will fill in for the star. He told media members on Thursday that he is ready to go.
“As a backup quarterback, that’s the mindset you have to have,” McKee said Thursday. “At any moment, you have to be ready to play on a Sunday. It could be the first play, it could be the last play. It’s kind of a luxury for me to have the ‘1’ [starter] reps in practice and just running the meetings or whatever it is. It’s kind of a luxury for me as a backup to have a week to prepare like that.”
Meanwhile, Zack Baun lauded McKee.
“I love [McKee] so much,” Baun shared. “I told someone that it’s just seeming like he’s got some sort of Tom Brady career arc to him, because he’s totally capable, he’s tall, he knows where to go with the ball, he gets it out on time and he’s got a lot of confidence in these receivers.”
