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Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts has been ruled out for Saturday's (December 24) game against the Dallas Cowboys, head coach Nick Sirianni announced on Thursday (December 22).
"Jalen did everything he possibly could to get his body ready to go," coach Nick Sirianni said via ESPN. "And at the end of the day, he's not going to be able to do it He tried like crazy. And I know he still wants to go. Jalen Hurts is the toughest player I've ever been around."
Backup Gardner Minshew will start in Hurts' absence as the Eagles could clinch the NFC East Division title and No. 1 overall seed in the NFC with a victory.
On Monday (December 19), sources with knowledge of the situation told NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo that Hurts was doubtful for Saturday (December 24) game against the Dallas Cowboys due to a sprained shoulder.
Hurts, however, said he was "taking it day-by-day" and seemed to imply that there's a possibility he'll play on Tuesday (December 20), while acknowledging his injury status.
"Everybody knows that I'm dealing with something, I think that's pretty public," Hurts told reporters. "It's out there. I'm not one to really talk about myself. Obviously, being the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles, you can't run from that. But I'm taking everything one day at a time with it and preparing against a really good defense."
Hurts reportedly experienced the injury during the third quarter of Sunday's game just prior to completing a 68-yard pass to A.J. Brown, which he followed up with a touchdown run, according to Pelissero.
Hurts is currently a candidate for the NFL MVP award, having led the Eagles to a league best 13-1 record while throwing for 3,472 yards, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions on 286 of 425 passing, as well as recording 747 yards and 13 touchdowns on 156 rushing attempts.
Backup Gardner Minshew is expected to start if Hurts is unavailable for Saturday's game.
Minshew, a former standout at Washington State, has an 8-14 record as an NFL starter, as well as 6,003 yards, 41 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 544 of 861 passing in 30 total appearances.