Jalen Hurts, Gardner Minshews split reps at QB as Eagles prepare for Week 15 vs. Washington

Jalen Hurts assured reporters ahead of the Eagles‘ Week 13 win over the Jets that he would play against New York despite suffering an ankle injury the week prior. Two weeks later, the team’s starting quarterback has yet to fully return to action. Coming out of their bye, with a divisional showdown with Washington on tap for Sunday, the Eagles will split QB reps between Hurts and backup Gardner Minshew, who started in Hurts’ place against the Jets.

Head coach Nick Sirianni confirmed as much in his Wednesday news conference, saying Hurts is “trending upwards” but declining to commit to the second-year QB as this week’s starter.

“We’ll see how the week continues to go,” Sirianni said. “Like last walk-through, both Gardner and Jalen got reps, and we’ll do the same thing (Wednesday).”

Asked for the specific reason behind the split of reps, Sirianni indicated the decision was purely injury-related.

“Just to make sure, again, I don’t know exactly what’s gonna happen,” the coach said of Hurts’ recovery. “You wanna make sure that you’re covered … if one guy can’t play. That’s it.”

Sirianni, for what it’s worth, previously reiterated that Hurts is the team’s starting QB if/when he’s healthy after Minshew’s efficient passing performance helped lift the Eagles over the Jets in Week 13. Should Hurts return to practice in a fuller capacity later this week, he’d be in line to start against Washington.

Questions about Hurts’ permanent status as the starter, however, could easily escalate in the event Minshew starts and turns in another productive day through the air on Sunday. While Hurts has thrived on the ground in 2021, his first full season as a starter, he’s had mixed results as a passer, most notably throwing a season-worst three interceptions in the Eagles’ Week 12 loss to the Giants. Minshew, meanwhile, made a seamless transition to starting duties against the Jets before Philadelphia’s bye.