Amid ‘really good room,’ no word on Hurts’ status for the Pack
Jan 06, 2025
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, in typical fashion, provided no clarity on Jalen Hurts’ status for Sunday’s Wild Card matchup against Green Bay. Sirianni offered his usual refrain of no updates during Monday’s press conference.
The quarterback remains in concussion protocol.
“I have no new information for you guys,” Sirianni said. “Like I said yesterday, he is still progressing through the protocol. I’m sorry.”
NBC10 reported Sunday, citing sources, that Hurts would be able to practice this week.
Hurts was reportedly present at the Eagles’ walkthrough last Saturday ahead of their regular-season finale against the Giants. Sirianni would not confirm Monday whether Hurts was inside the Novacare Complex. The team doesn’t practice until Wednesday.
Sirianni didn’t indicate whether he would lean toward Kenny Pickett or Tanner McKee, if Hurts is unavailable.
Pickett is nursing a rib injury and was inactive against the Giants. Meanwhile, McKee impressed in his NFL starting debut, completing 27 of 41 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.
“I have a lot of confidence in both of the guys,” Sirianni said. “I think when Kenny has had to play, he’s played really well. When Tanner has had to play, he’s played really well. So, we’ve got a really good room. Obviously Jalen has had an outstanding season. We just have a great room.”
The second-seeded Eagles and No. 7 Packers are no strangers, having faced off in Week 1 in August on a Friday night in Brazil, with Philly claiming a 34-29 victory. In that game, Packers quarterback Jordan Love exited in the second half due to injury and did not return.
The Packers finished the season with an 11-6 record, third place in the highly competitive NFC North, home to the top-seeded Detroit Lions (15-2) and the No. 5. Minnesota Vikings (14-3).
“Still obviously early on in our stages of scouting them, but teams develop from game one to game where we are now, 18. Everyone’s a different team,” Sirianni said. “Now there are things that are staples that have been good for them, that have been good for us, that remain the same. But there are a lot of changes and a lot of differences.
“At the end of the day though, I see a really well-coached, fundamentally sound football team with a lot of really good football players. … This is a really good football team that we’re playing here on Sunday.”
But the Packers are far from a fully healthy team. Coach Matt LeFleur announced Monday that star wide receiver Christian Watson tore his ACL in the team’s Week 18 loss to Chicago.Love’s status against the Eagles is uncertain after he left in the second quarter with an apparent elbow injury. Backup quarterback Malik Ellis finished the game but hurt his throwing hand on a Chicago defender’s helmet.
While the Packers played the majority of their starters in hopes of avoiding a first-round matchup at Lincoln Financial Field with a win over Chicago, the Eagles rested most of their key players, with only defensive tackle Jordan Davis seeing action in the second half.
Tight end Dallas Goedert played a few series in the first half, basically so he could get his rhythm back going into the playoffs after spending several weeks on the injured reserve list.
“Dallas is a big playmaker when the ball is in his hands, we saw that in the return of him yesterday,” Sirianni said. “But what makes him a complete tight end is his ability to block and all the different schemes that he can do. So that’s big to get him back for both the run and the pass game.”
Sirianni has steered the Eagles to the playoffs in each of his first four seasons at the helm.
While the team collapsed down the stretch last year and suffered a lopsided first-round exit against Tampa Bay, he has had 14-3 records in two of the last three seasons.
Reflecting on his success — which has faced its share of criticism, including earlier this year when the team stumbled to a 2-2 start — Sirianni remains focused on the task at hand.
“I think at the end of the day, the higher the stakes get as we get into single elimination football, the more you’ve got to stay committed to the things you’ve done on a daily basis to get 14 wins,” he said. “That doesn’t mean you’re not looking to improve on the things that you can do better at, which is exactly what we’re doing, trying to shore up every single thing we possibly can.
“That’s what we’ve tried to do all year, and that’s the point. It’s what has gotten you to the No. 2 seed in the NFC with the NFC East title. Stick to those principles.”
With success comes the inevitability that members of Sirianni’s coaching staff are attracting attention for head coaching opportunities elsewhere.
According to a report from Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, New Orleans has requested an interview with offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who is in his first season with the team.
The Saints, who parted ways with head coach Dennis Allen midseason, finished the year under interim coach Darren Rizzi. With Moore running the offense the Eagles ranked second in the league in run offense, behind only Baltimore, and seventh in scoring.