Jalen Hurts is having an MVP-caliber season, so it goes without saying that his injury adversely impacts the Philadelphia Eagles.
But Mike Lombardi doesn’t seem to believe that loss is as dire as it might seem.
Hurts is dealing with a shoulder injury sustained in Sunday’s win over the Chicago Bears. He’s not expected to play Saturday against the Dallas Cowboys, which means Gardner Minshew will take over.
Minshew had some impressive stretches with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and is one of the higher-end backup options in the league. He might not be able to impact games the way Hurts has, but Lombardi offered a pretty rosy outlook on Minshew in his weekly appearance on “Angelo Cataldi and the Morning Team.”
“Credit to their organization, they have a really good backup,” Lombardi said. “I think you’ve got to err on the side of caution with Hurts, give him some time. I’m not even sure you should play him against the Saints. I think Minshew is a really good player, they'll change what they do offensively, they won’t be a six-back attack. They'll be more of a rhythm passing game, RPOs, he can do it.
“This kid played well for Jacksonville. I think he’s got 41 touchdown passes in 22 starts, he can make plays and he gives them a chance. And the team buys into him, the team believes in him. This is not a knock on Hurts at all. They’ll be a different offense, with their offensive line -- the strength of their offensive line allows them to have versatility within their offense.”
Despite sitting at 13-1 with a playoff spot locked in, the Eagles do still have something to play for down the stretch, as there remains a distant possibility the Minnesota Vikings could secure the top seed in the NFC.
A win Saturday would secure that top spot, and as a result, a first-round bye, for the Eagles. Lombardi thinks that’s at least in reach with Minshew.
“I was shocked that the line moved on Monday because of the news of Hurts all the way up to six. Now, it’s back down to five, I think it’ll be a really close game,” Lombardi said. “I think the Cowboys will win the game, but I think it will be less than a field goal. I think the Eagles will have every opportunity to win the game.
“I have a lot of faith in Minshew as a quarterback, I have faith in the Eagles offense because they can still run the ball. Even though it won’t be out of the six-back attack, they’ll run the ball. They’ll pretend that Minshew is going to run it, which is going to cause Dallas to have to defend it.”
Ultimately, this very scenario is why the Eagles invested in the backup quarterback position. Losing Hurts is far from ideal, but Minshew is well-positioned to keep the Eagles’ head above water.
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