Jalen Rush for Jets, Gardner Minshew to Start for Eagles – NBC10 Philadelphia

Report: Jalen Rush, Gardner Minshew to Start for the Eagles originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Jalen Hurts’ sore ankle will have to leave him for Sunday’s game against the Jets, according to Eagles veteran reporter Derrick Gunn.

Former Jaguar Gardner Minshew, who became the No. 2 QB when the Eagles traded Joe Flacco to the Jets in October, will start first in the Eagles uniform if Hurts can’t go.

Hurts was injured in the fourth inning after the Eagles’ loss to the Giants on Sunday and was restricted from training for the week.

Hurts said Wednesday he was due to play – “It’s okay, I’ll be ready” – but it’s clear the injury will keep him out of the Eagles’ game against the Jets at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, the same field where Wound was wounded last week.

Nick Sirianni said during the week the offense would have been different in a number of ways if Minshew had played. The Eagles have been running very hard for the past five weeks, but that could change on Sunday, especially with the Eagles having a successful run back.

“You know what your backup person likes and you know what he’s good at,” says Sirianni. “I wouldn’t say it’s different game plans. Those are slightly different styles because you tailor things to each individual player. But we are playing a certain defensive style, so there will be some similarities regardless of who is playing full-back.”

Hurts hasn’t missed a meaningful moment this year and is one of 15 NFL quarterbacks to start each of his team’s games. He has started the Eagles’ last 20 games since replacing Carson Wentz last December.

The Eagles’ opening day has played every meaningful game just once since 2005. That was 2016, when Wentz started all 16 games.

Minshew had a 7-13 record in 20 appearances for the Jaguars in 2019 and 2020 and has a career passer rating of 93.1, the 20th highest in NFL history among QBs who have thrown at least 750 pass. This will be his first game since December 20 of last year, when he was 22 for 29 with 226 yards with two TDs and no interception against Raven in Baltimore.

Minshew beat the Jets in Jacksonville as a rookie in 2019, going 22 to 34 in 279 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 29-15 win. He struggled a week later against the Texans and was substituted for Nick Foles.

In his only run this year, Minshew went 2v2 in the 11-yard range in the final minutes of the Eagles’ 44-6 win in Detroit in October.

Head coach Nick Sirianni says Friday Jalen Hurts has more than half of the 1^NS-representative of the group for the week, added, “I feel confident that both of them will be ready to go when either of their numbers is called.”

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