Jalen Hurts Makes First Appearance at Eagles Facility Since Blood Clot Diagnosis
The injured quarterback sat in on meetings Wednesday, but he's still expected to miss the rest of the season
Jalen Hurts was back in the building Wednesday. The Eagles quarterback showed up at the team's practice facility and sat in on the team meeting along with other meetings, the first time some players had seen him since he went on injured reserve with blood clots in his lungs, according to ESPN's Tim McManus.
Hurts didn't address the team, but a source told ESPN his presence gave some players a morale boost. Nick Sirianni didn't directly answer whether Hurts had been in the building earlier in the day, though he said he'd seen him.
The visit doesn't change the football picture. Hurts, 28, is still expected to miss the rest of the season. He was first diagnosed with a superficial clot in London before the Week 5 game against Jacksonville, played in that game and practiced in full the next Wednesday, before a follow-up ultrasound showed the clot had moved. The Eagles put him on IR on Oct. 17, and two days later he and the team announced a diagnosis of deep vein thrombosis and bilateral pulmonary emboli. He's on blood thinners, which rules out any contact, football included.
Philadelphia has come apart without him. Tanner McKee went 0-3 as the starter with two touchdowns and two interceptions, and the Eagles are turning to Joe Milton this week. Milton was signed off the Cowboys' practice squad in mid-October. The Eagles have lost six straight and Sirianni is under heat; they host the division-leading Giants on Sunday.