Philadelphia Eagles’ star quarterback Jalen Hurts is expected to be ruled out for the entirety of the 2026 NFL season after the discovery of deep vein thrombosis and bilateral pulmonary emboli (commonly known as blood clots) in the signal caller’s lungs.

This diagnosis comes against the backdrop of the signal caller’s initial diagnosis of a superficial blood clot on his calf that was caused by the impact of a cleat to his calf during his side’s Week 4 encounter against the Los Angeles Rams. Having initially been placed on the injured reserve (IR) list, Hurts’ return to the field remains indefinite.

Reacting to Hurts’ injury situation, NFL analyst and media personality Dan Patrick on his show on Tuesday criticized the Eagles organization for not having a member of the team’s medical staff present during head coach Nick Sirianni’s media address about the quarterback’s medical condition. Patrick further argued that the franchise owed the media and its fans a clearer update on Hurts’ condition.

“Nick Sirianni was meeting with the media and I know he has to do that every week but I am watching this press conference and I am going, why isn’t someone from the medical staff out there? Why isn’t Howie Roseman, the GM, out there? Nick Sirianni is having a hard time just being a coach. Now you want him to play a doctor on TV? Not a good situation here for the Eagles,” Patrick stated (0:10).

“But Nick Sirianni shouldn’t be out there alone. He should have somebody from the medical staff come out, give an update, that medical staff person can be excused, now you can talk about the game with the Cowboys coming up. But you can’t have your coach out there. And if you do, have your GM out there with him and or somebody from the medical staff. And maybe you’re gonna answer a couple of questions, but the media deserves, the fans deserve to know. This is serious,” he further elaborated (1:52)

On the field, Nick Sirianni and Co. have an overall record of 2-4 with four back-to-back losses so far. They currently occupy the second spot in the NFC East standings.

Who Will Start For The Eagles At QB Vs. Cowboys In Week 7?

Before being placed on the IR list and eventually being ruled out indefinitely, quarterback Jalen Hurts started for the Eagles against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 5. The Philadelphia-based franchise’s Week 6 matchup against the Carolina Panthers saw quarterback Tanner McKee fill in for the injured Hurts.

As the Eagles lost their Week 6 encounter to the Panthers 25-14, McKee threw for a total of 215 yards as he recorded one touchdown and completed 26 passes with a completion rate of 57.8%. While the void left by Hurts’ injury is difficult to fill, the Eagles’ depth chart sees McKee as the starter, and it is very likely that the signal caller gets his second start of the season against the Dallas Cowboys next week.

The depth chart further sees Cole Payton as the backup quarterback with Joe Milton as the third-string quarterback.