The Morning Call: https://tinyurl.com/yptcav8w
Originally published Oct. 22, 2026
PHILADELPHIA — Perhaps the only thing as dismal as the Eagles’ season so far is the rest of the NFC East, a division in which no team has won a game in two weeks.
That has never happened in NFL history.
Over the past two weeks, the Eagles (2-4), New York Giants (3-2-1), Dallas Cowboys (2-4) and Washington Commanders (1-4-1) are a combined 0-6-2.
Despite all the Eagles’ injuries and personnel changes, including the loss of quarterback Jalen Hurts for the season, they are only 1 1/2 games behind the Giants for first place. That means even if the first six weeks of the Eagles’ season feel more like six months, the playoffs are still within reach.
Perhaps that dangling hope will merely torture and toy with fans the rest of the year, like some cruel joke week after week. Or maybe the Eagles make real progress.
Monday night against the Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field will begin a three-game stretch against the division. If the Birds can manage to find their footing and start winning again, they could be sitting in a pretty good spot.
Of course, that’s a major “if.” The Eagles have lost four straight. Their roster has been devastated by injuries, the trade of center/guard Cam Jurgens and the sudden retirement of iconic right tackle Lane Johnson.
Hurts is on blood thinners for at least three months because of clots in his lungs, which means he can’t play football. His prognosis is positive, and hopefully he’ll be able to resume his career in 2027, though nothing is guaranteed and questions linger about his medical treatment.
Now, Tanner McKee takes the reins in his fourth season out of Stanford. He had a bumpy training camp and difficulty in his first meaningful start last week against Carolina. He struggled to find a rhythm against the Panthers, but he protected the ball and delivered a few sharp throws, finishing 26 of 45 for 215 yards and a touchdown in the Eagles’ 25-14 loss.
The Giants have also lost their starting quarterback, the young and brash Jaxson Dart, for the season after he tore the MCL and PCL in his left knee. They have stayed afloat with Jameis Winston and now J.J. McCarthy behind center, but whether it’s sustainable remains to be seen.
Cam Skattebo, their dynamic second-year running back, has developed fumbleitis, coughing up the football four times already. And the Giants have suffered injuries on defense.
The Washington Commanders can’t seem to get out of their own way, bungling basic clock management in their last two games. They’ve lost top receiver Terry McLauren (knee) and have a battered offensive line.
Quarterback Jayden Daniels — who was Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2024 and led the Commanders to the NFC championship game in Philly — has been inconsistent.
The Cowboys have been the Cowboys, with lots of drama and an underperforming roster led by QB Dak Prescott, who has regressed. Their defense has struggled under first-year coordinator Christian Parker, a former Eagles assistant.
They’ve hired Bucks County native Mike Pettine — who coached at North Penn and William Tennent high schools before becoming an NFL defensive coordinator and head coach — as a consultant to help the 34-year-old Parker.
Dallas had assembled one of the NFL’s youngest defensive coaching staffs under Parker before bringing in 60-year-old veteran Pettine, a student of Rex Ryan.
“The division really is winnable,” said Eagles wide receiver Britain Covey, one of the top punt returners in the league, on Thursday. “Things can change quickly. Every division game is extra important at this point because just looking at the playoff picture and things like that — and you don’t want to look ahead too much — but winning your division is the best chance you have to make the playoffs.
“And so every division game, there’s an uptick in urgency. And we’re not even at the bye week (which is Week 10 for the Eagles), so if we can get our identity and start rolling a little bit before we go into that, it’s going to help a lot.
“Last week, we were kind of blindsided with the Jalen stuff. The game plan was in, (with him as) starting quarterback, you know. And now it’s like we’ve got a week to prepare (with McKee). I think it’s going to be a lot more dialed in, I guess you’d say.”
The Eagles got running back Saquon Barkley (hamstring) back at practice Thursday, bolstering a decimated backfield and giving the team a morale boost, as well a center Drew Kendall (knee) and edge rusher A.J. Epenesa (back).
“Obviously, Saquon’s a phenomenal football player, phenomenal leader, captain,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “I mean, they voted him captain, his teammates. So any time you have an opportunity to get someone like him back on the field, that’s huge. We’ll see where we are as the week progresses. ... I can’t say enough good things about him.”
Unfortunately, other key players were absent (see the injury report below), but if the Eagles can slowly recover and find some consistency on offense, they’ll have a legit shot at turning around their season.
Tanner time
McKee, who primarily played in shotgun at Stanford and in previous seasons here, has had to adjust to offensive coordinator Sean Mannion’s version of the West Coast system, which includes lots of being under center. But McKee, who did split snaps under center in 2021 (his first of two years as a starter for the Cardinal), has shown in the past that he can be comfortable commanding an NFL offense.
“I feel comfortable doing whatever we need to do,” McKee said. “I don’t feel like there’s ever a play where (being under center doesn’t work). If there is, I would talk to Sean and say, ‘Hey, let’s run this play from gun,’ but that hasn’t happened yet. So, yeah, I feel comfortable doing whatever we’ve got to do.”
On Wednesday, Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, whose unit practices against McKee every day, expressed confidence in the young QB.
“I think he’s got good knowledge of the game, good feel, command of where the ball needs to go,” Fangio said. “Again, another guy who got his first meaningful start, and I think he’ll continue to improve.”
The handling of Hurts’ health
In addition to his playing duties, Covey is the Eagles’ main player rep for the NFLPA. The union has demanded an investigation into the Eagles’ handling of Jalen Hurts’ blood clots.
Per the collective bargaining agreement, the investigation would be conducted jointly by the league and the union rather than an outside law firm or other neutral third party. This past Monday, Hurts and his agent released a joint statement with the team explaining that a superficial blood clot in his left calf ended up as deep vein thrombosis with clots in both lungs.
“I do think it’s a good thing the NFLPA is doing, you know, their due diligence, because I think that would be a win-win situation for everybody at the end of the day,” Covey said. “But it’s always tricky when you’re talking about someone’s personal health.
“It’s just a chaotic situation. We were all blindsided by it just as much as Jalen was. ... I have no idea what went on in the process. But what I will say, and this is genuine, is, you know, and I’ve been to other places and talked with a lot of guys on other teams. And we just, we’ve got a good medical staff here that genuinely cares about each player.
“I think it’s very telling that Jalen and his team are collaborating with the Eagles organization on all their posts. I think that speaks volumes to how they feel about how the situation was handled.”
Thursday practice report
DNP – DB Michael Carter (abdomen), TE Dallas Goedert (knee), G Willie Lampkin (illness), WR DeVonta Smith (hamstring), OLB Nolan Smith (concussion), WR Dontayvion Wicks (ankle).
LIMITED – RB Saquon Barkley (hamstring), G Landon Dickerson (knee/pectoral), OLB AJ Epenesa (back), OLB Jonathan Greenard (ankle), OLB Jalyx Hunt (knee/ankle), C Drew Kendall (knee), DT Moro Ojomo (abdomen), G Tyler Steen (shoulder).
FULL – LB Zack Baun (shoulder), CB Jakorian Bennett (knee), WR Marquise Brown (ankle), TE Grant Calcaterra (back), LB Jihaad Campbell (wrist), DT Jalen Carter (wrist), WR Britain Covey (shoulder), DT Jordan Davis (shin/thumb), OLB Arnold Ebiketie (shoulder), TE Eli Stowers (quad).
Notes
● Veteran tight end Zach Ertz has exhausted his three permitted practice squad elevations after playing against Chicago, Los Angeles and Jacksonville. The Eagles must sign him to their 53-man roster if they want him to play again this season. Ertz remains on the practice squad, but his future is uncertain with Dallas Goedert playing again and Grant Calcaterra and Eli Stowers nearing returns (though Goedert didn’t practice Thursday).
“Zach’s obviously still here,” Sirianni said. “He’s out of elevations at this particular time. I think Zach’s been having really good practices, and we’ll see. Again, just like there’s things that you can’t predict, but I love having Zach on this football team, and we’ll see as the season progresses.
“When he’s been in with the ones, he’s had great reps. When he’s been in with the scout team, he’s given our defense great looks, phenomenal looks, because of the player he is and the teammate that he is.”
● Earlier in the week, the Eagles made a series of roster moves. They signed RB Elijah Mitchell to the practice squad, waived RB Jaydon Blue, waived/IR RB Carson Steele, released C James Brockermeyer from the practice squad and released RB Ian Wheeler from the practice squad.
● After hosting the Cowboys this Monday night, the Eagles travel to Washington the following Sunday night and host the Giants the week after that.
Follow Christiaan DeFranco on X and Threads at @the_defranc.