“I’m Floored”- Rich Reacts to Eagles QB Jalen Hurts Out for the Season Due to Blood Clots

Rich opened Monday's show by sending best wishes to Jalen Hurts. And he admitted he was floored.

There was plenty of other news to get to, including Chris Ballard's firing as general manager in Indianapolis. But the Hurts update stopped Rich cold. The blood clot that kept the Eagles quarterback out of Sunday's game against the Panthers has, Rich explained, traveled from his foot area into his lungs.

"When I heard it was like one to two weeks, I'm like, well, that's good," Rich said. "Now it's the whole year." Hurts is expected to miss several months, and his 2026 season is over.

Anyone who follows sports knows how serious blood clots are, Rich noted. Some athletes have dealt with them before. You have to sit down, you're on blood thinners, and it's dreadful.

Rich walked through the Eagles' statement. Hurts was initially diagnosed by specialists in London with deep vein thrombosis, which was superficial at that point, before getting on a plane. "This is why you don't travel with this sort of stuff," Rich said. According to the team, Hurts is now clinically stable with no significant functional limitations. His treatment should only involve anticoagulation, meaning blood thinners, and he won't be allowed to participate in any contact activities, including football, during that time. The prognosis is good, and a full recovery is expected.

"My gosh, just the latest example of how you never know in this world, in this league, and in this, you know, human race," Rich said. "Not to be overly dramatic, but I love this guy. I love watching him play. I root for him. I love what he stands for and how he goes about his business despite the world seemingly crumbling all around him. He doesn't deserve this."

Once the human side gets its due, Rich said, you turn to football. And for an Eagles team with Super Bowl aspirations, the question is where they go from here.

The answer, at least for now, is Tanner McKee. Rich called it a massive opportunity. Every time McKee has gotten on the field, and every time the Eagles have chosen to keep him, the message has been the same: they believe in him.

Rich also pointed out that there's a statue outside the Eagles' stadium featuring a backup quarterback who once took them to the winner's podium and himself to an MVP award. And Rich works alongside Kurt Warner, who in Rich's words is the poster of possibility. "One never knows," he said.

It won't be easy. The offensive line is banged up and changed, and Saquon isn't there. The defense, though, is balling out, as it showed against Carolina. And while backup quarterbacks are normally asked to cover four to six weeks, not week six through week 18, the opening is real.

Rich's reason for optimism is the division. "The NFC East is wide open," he said. He teased the conversation still to come about JJ McCarthy's opportunity with the Giants after what he did in Sunday's loss, and about what the Commanders could do Monday night.

That last part had Rich imagining an alternate timeline. If Washington's clock management had worked in its favor against the Giants, the Commanders would be 2-3 going into the 49ers game, with a chance to reach .500 and sit in first place.

For the Eagles, the football questions can wait a beat. Rich's first message was the simplest one: best to Hurts, and he can't wait to see him back out on the field.