No Hurts, No Margin: Cowboys–Eagles Tonight Is a 2–4 Elimination Game in October

Four weeks ago the Philadelphia Eagles walked into a Monday night game 2–0, with a healthy Jalen Hurts and a title defense in front of them. Tonight they walk into another one 2–4, on a four-game losing streak, without their captain and quarterback — and the only team standing between them and 2–5 is the Dallas Cowboys, who are 2–4 themselves and out of margin for exactly the same reason.

This is not how Week 7 was supposed to look. It is, instead, an elimination game in October, and the reason is a medical story that still doesn't quite sound real.

Here is what is known, from the team and Hurts' own camp. Hurts was diagnosed with superficial vein thrombosis while the Eagles were in London for their Week 5 game against Jacksonville. He spent the night before that game in a London hospital until 4 a.m., according to NFL Media reporting, was cleared to play, and played — a 19–17 loss on Oct. 11 — before flying home with the team.

A week later, further imaging showed the condition had progressed. In a joint statement, the Eagles and Hurts' agent, Nicole Lynn, announced that Hurts had been diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis and bilateral pulmonary emboli — blood clots in both of his lungs. He was placed on injured reserve. Because his treatment involves blood thinners, he cannot take part in contact activities while on them; USA TODAY reports he will miss several months and potentially the remainder of the 2026 season.

What the statement also said, and what matters most, is the outlook. "Jalen's prognosis is very good, and we expect a full recovery," Lynn wrote. "We anticipate that he will have the opportunity to resume contact football activities when off the blood thinners. In the meantime, he will remain active around the team and continue to condition. More importantly, we anticipate that he will have no long-term effects."

Through five games, Hurts had thrown for 933 yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions, and run for 107 yards and a score. The Eagles' losing streak began before the diagnosis — but it has not stopped since it.

The clearance decision has drawn scrutiny of its own. On Oct. 20, the NFL Players Association issued a statement calling for a "full investigation" into the medical evaluation process Hurts underwent before he was cleared to play in London. On Sunday, Oct. 25, the NFL and the NFLPA released a joint statement saying they were "working together to review the matter." Neither side has said more than that, and this story will not guess at the rest.

So the season now sits on Tanner McKee, a 2023 sixth-round pick who makes his second straight start — and the fourth of his career — tonight. His first start of the year, last Sunday against Carolina, was a 25–14 loss: 26-of-45 for 215 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, three sacks taken behind an offensive line that has been a revolving door all month. The Panthers pressured him on 41.7% of his attempts.

What McKee does have is a quick trigger, and his coaches are leaning on it. "I think he's really sharp mentally. He's accurate. He gets the ball out of his hands quickly," offensive coordinator Sean Mannion said this week. "I think he does all the things that you ask at the quarterback in terms of his pre-snap operation and being able to use his cadence, being able to handle things at the line of scrimmage if you need adjustments." Per Next Gen Stats, McKee recorded the third-lowest time to throw of any quarterback in Week 6 — a genuine contrast with Hurts, whose ability to extend plays has bailed this offense out for years.

He will have to do it short-handed. DeVonta Smith — McKee's top target against Carolina, with seven catches for 75 yards and a touchdown — is out tonight with a hamstring injury, and Dontayvion Wicks is out with an ankle injury. Saquon Barkley, who missed the Carolina game, is listed as questionable with a hamstring injury after practicing fully on Saturday. Tight end Dallas Goedert is expected to play.

Across the field, Dallas has its own 2–4 and its own problems, but it has its quarterback. Dak Prescott has thrown for 1,639 yards with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions through six games, and he gets George Pickens — cleared from a shoulder issue — back alongside CeeDee Lamb tonight. In a division where all four teams lost in Week 6, the winner of this game wakes up Tuesday with a season. The loser is 2–5, in October, with the hardest questions in football still to come.

For Philadelphia, the strangest part is the arithmetic of the fall. Defending champions do not crater like this — a retired anchor on the offensive line, a traded center, a stripped-down receiver room, and now a franchise quarterback lost to something nobody tackles. But the Eagles' season does not get to wait for any of it to make sense. It goes through Tanner McKee, at home, on Monday night, starting in a few hours.

Season lines via the Previously Stats Hub (through Week 6). McKee's line is his Week 6 start against Carolina — his only appearance of the season.