Because of an injury to the middle finger of his throwing hand, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts told reporters on Thursday that he hadn’t thrown a football since leaving the regular-season finale in the second quarter on Sunday.
Hurts still is trying to get ready to play on Monday night, when the Eagles take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a first-round game in the NFC playoffs. “It’s just going out there and doing my best and giving my best,” Hurts said. “I told you it was a day-by-day thing. Getting the preparation in this week, doing everything I can to lead the guys.”
While passing in Sunday’s 27-10 loss to the New York Giants, Hurts hit the hand of a pass-rusher with his hand, and his finger “popped out,” as he described it after the game. After a trip to the sideline medical tent, Hurts was back on the field when Philadelphia regained possession without missing an offensive snap. But after getting intercepted by Giants safety Xavier McKinney, a former Alabama teammate, Hurts left the game with 1:28 left in the first half.
Hurts said his finger hurt more on Monday than it had on Sunday. “Leaving that game and attempting to go back in that game,” Hurts said, “probably wasn’t physically the best idea, not having much control over the things that I wanted to do. But time will tell with that, and I can assure you that everything’s progressing in the right way.”
On its injury report, Philadelphia listed Hurts as a limited participant on Thursday. “I think everything is a challenge when you have a finger out of place,” Hurts said when asked if the injury affected passing or ball-handling more. “It’s just a matter of me doing what I need to be able to go. Got to go out there and practice and see what that reality is.”
The Eagles enter the playoffs after losing five of their final six regular-season games. Philadelphia is in the postseason because it won 10 of its first 11 games in 2023. Among those victories was a 25-11 win in Tampa on Sept. 25. Hurts threw for 277 yards and one touchdown and ran for another TD in the Eagles’ Week 3 win over the Buccaneers.
In contrast to Philadelphia, Tampa Bay won five of its final six regular-season games to win the NFC South. “You play a team like that so early on, things are bound to change,” Hurts said about what he expected from the Bucs. The Eagles and Buccaneers kick off at 7:15 p.m. CST Monday at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.
