Another Hurts Update

Can we officially call this Clotgate? It feels like we have reached that kind of level with all the finger pointing and agendas at play right now. Some of this is warranted, some is way over the top.

Tom Pelissero got the ball rolling with his report that Jalen Hurts was up for 36 hours before starting in London. That made everyone, me included, go a bit nuts. Pelissero has since said that was due to miscommunication. Hurts did get some sleep at the hotel and at the stadium. He didn’t have a normal night by any stretch, but it was nothing over the top. It wasn’t wrong to play him from that standpoint.

What about the clot? At the time it was a superficial clot and medical people told Pelissero that playing with that isn’t a dangerous or overly risky move. I think that is why the NFL said they had no issues with how the situation was handled. The NFLPA has come out and said they think an investigation is warranted.

Statement from the @NFLPA:

“The NFLPA is not aware of any NFL investigation into the medical care provided to Jalen Hurts. In fact, the league previously informed the union that it did not plan to review the care he received. Before conclusions are drawn about how this situation was handled, there must be a full investigation into what occurred. Determining the facts is essential to ensuring players receive the highest level of care and protection going forward.”

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 20, 2026

To a certain extent, it feels like people really want to play the blame game. They want someone to be mad at. I understand the thinking. I would just question who is the victim. You would say Hurts, but he and his agent have been working with the team on messaging. There doesn’t seem to be ill will between the parties.

Hurts reported the issue. They did a scan and identified the superficial clot. They determined it was safe to play.

One thing I’d add to this: The Eagles don’t travel with a hematologist. When traveling internationally, they rely on the league for the best hospitals/specialists.

As noted here, the NFL worked with the Premier League and Jalen Hurts was evaluated at the Cleveland Clinic in London. He was then cleared to play.

When Nick Sirianni referred to relying on “medical experts,” that reference included the specialists in London.

— Zach Berman (@ZBerm) October 20, 2026

He played.

Hurts then was at practice on Wednesday. He got a follow-up scan that day and that is when they saw clots in the lungs. That changed everything. He went on blood thinners and was put on IR. The messaging about IR was confusing. I’m guessing both parties were trying to see if there were any other options. Hurts does not like to miss games. Blood thinners require a 3-month regimen so he’s effectively out for the year.

Maybe I’m being naive and something nefarious went on, but I can’t figure out what it would be. Some might want to blame the Eagles medical staff for being negligent. The initial scan didn’t show anything beyond the superficial clot so there was no need for blood thinners or anything serious. Once the second scan showed the clots moving, the team changed the tone on handling the situation. It went from a gameday matter to a real medical issue.

The Nick Sirianni press conference wasn’t ideal. The Eagles certainly could have handled that better. The right messaging can make situations like this so much less messy. Let’s hope they learn from this.

I have no issue with the league doing an investigation. I have no problem with the media asking tough questions. This is a complex, bizarre story about the team’s star QB. I just hope people are better informed. The sleepless angle no longer exists. That is a real game-changer. We have a better idea of the timeline so everyone can understand how things went down. If new info emerges we’ll adjust the story and our conclusions.

Hopefully this situation will settle down so we can get back to talking about the Eagles as a football team. On second thought…

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Here are some videos. Understand that the team has connections with the reporters so we’re getting a slant on things. But we aren’t hearing a counter to the reports, just questions from fans and some media.

From the @ringernflshow on Jalen Hurts, the Eagles, sleep, the timeline and why everyone is on the same page. https://t.co/exVxaD1a2T

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 20, 2026

From @gmfb on the Jalen Hurts blood clot, trying to fill in some gaps and why we still have questions that need to be answered. https://t.co/GqXCvYENNs

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 20, 2026

From @BigDayESPN: What’s next for the #Eagles and QB Jalen Hurts, who is out for the season and undergoing treatment. https://t.co/GUV2JheQXQ

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 20, 2026

NFL Chief Medical Officer Allen Sills gave a nearly 5-minute defense of the league and Eagles protocol in treating Jalen Hurts’ blood clots.

Called some reports “nonsense” and insisted that no doctors are taking orders from football coaches or management when treating patients. https://t.co/LvmzoYvPYy

— Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) October 20, 2026

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Hurt Hurts Update

Every day we seem to get some new insight on the Jalen Hurts situation. We got some bombshell news on Monday morning.

https://t.co/aInIuUYiQJ

— Nicole Lynn (@AgentNicoleLynn) October 19, 2026

How committed is Jalen Hurts to football? After initially being diagnosed with a superficial blood clot in London, doctors told him not to sleep as a precaution, so he had been awake for roughly 36 hours when he started against the Jaguars, throwing for 220 yards and a TD.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 19, 2026

Say what?

It sounds like Hurts will be out for the rest of the year. The good news is that it sounds like he’ll make a full recovery and this won’t affect his future, on or off the field. Football aside, you just want him to be healthy.

Now to the part about playing without sleep. If the Eagles knew that and played him , that is insane. It is possible Hurts didn’t tell them about the lack of sleep until afterward. Players are trained from a young age to do everything humanly possible to get on the field. That menmtality is part of what makes them so good at what they do. It can also be a curse. The organization has to protect players from themselves.

Landon Dickerson has played when he clearly wasn’t right. Now we have this situation. You love the desire to play, to compete, but something has to change in the future. If a guy isn’t right, don’t put him out there. Drew Kendall warmed up on Sunday, but wasn’t good enough to start so he became an emergency backup. I’m fine with that.

This is going to lead to a lot of scrutiny and unpleasant questions for the Eagles. Nick Sirianni might prefer discussing the inept offense.

So what does this mean from a football perspective?

Tanner McKee will have a real chance to show what he can do. Huge opportunity for him. I hope he’s able to take advantage of it. He didn’t get off to a great start on Sunday, but that was just one game. Learn from it and build off it. Cole Payton is now the primary backup. He needs to be ready in case he’s asked to play. Newly signed Joe Milton has to learn the offense.

Apparently the team reached out to Andy Dalton about coming back. He said no thanks and will be signing with the Falcons today. They are going to release Cooper Rush. It will be interesting to see if the Eagles pursue a veteran backup or stick with the young guys. I’m kind of glad Dalton said no. He has been a good backup in the past, but didn’t play well this summer and then threw the terrible INT.

Does anyone have AJ Feeley’s phone number?

If the Eagles stick with the young guys, that could be a sign they are embracing this as a lost season. If they add a veteran, that could signal they still want to try to win the division and make the playoffs. That may sound nuts in the middle of a 4-game losing streak, but the team could get a boost as some hurt players start returning from their injuries. Howie and Nick are the kind of guys who will want to compete as long as possible.

A weird season seems to get weirder every week. If you’re an older fan this might remind you of 1993, 2005, 2012 or 2020. The Eagles expected to be really good in those years and then things went haywire. I might get PTSD if I start thinking too much about them. The biggest common denominator was injuries. That certainly is a huge issue for the current team.

I get where Jimmy Bama and some others say to just punt on the season and focus on the future. There is real logic in that. But then…

SEA 3-3
LAR 2-4
DAL 2-4
PHI 2-4

Those were the NFC teams predicted to make the Super Bowl. The Eagles are in the worst shape because of injuries, but the fact so many “good” teams are struggling won’t escape Howie’s attention. It really will be interesting to see what he does. A loss to Dallas next Monday might be the nail in the coffin that this season needs. But the Eagles could go win the game just to get everyone’s hopes up and make the agonizing season torture us some more.

If Cleveland is the “Factory of Sadness”, The Linc has become the Factory of Weirdness.

I can’t wait to see what happens next.

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