Eagles QB Jalen Hurts practices for 1st time since suffering concussion: "He looked really sharp"
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was a limited participant at Wednesday's practice after missing the team's final two regular-season games with a concussion.
Hurts suffered a concussion minutes into the Eagles' 36-33 loss to the Commanders on Dec. 22 and has been in the NFL's five-phase concussion protocol.
"Sharp. He looked sharp, I'll be honest. He looked really sharp," left tackle Jordan Maitata said of Hurts. "He brought a lot of energy. He was out there in short sleeves. I've been in his position before with a concussion, and when you miss time, you try to find ways to get back as fast as you can. I think he did a great job dealing with that and coming back as sharp as he did today. I thought he had a phenomenal practice."
The Eagles won their final two games without Hurts and clinched the No. 2 seed in the NFC. Philadelphia will host the Green Bay Packers in the NFL's wild-card playoff round Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field. Sunday will be three weeks since Hurts was concussed.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said he isn't concerned about any possible rust for Hurts after the time off.
"This is why you practice. This is why you go through the process of practicing and all the things that you do at practice to get on the same page to do everything there," Sirianni said. "We feel like we practice at a very high-intensity level. This is why you go out there and do those things."
Hurts has also been dealing with an injured left finger, which Sirianni said is "continuing to get better."
While Hurts practiced Wednesday, the quarterback attended Philadelphia's walkthrough last Saturday before the team's final regular-season game against the New York Giants.
"From my eyes, he looked good [today]," DeVonta Smith said after Wednesday's practice.
Sunday's wild-card matchup will be a rematch of the Eagles' season-opening 34-29 win over Green Bay in São Paulo, Brazil. Hurts was 20 of 34 for 278 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in Philadelphia's victory.
On Tuesday, the Eagles waived quarterback Ian Book, a sign that Hurts is moving toward returning against the Packers.
A.J. Brown was also a limited participant Wednesday for a knee injury and rest.
Eagles sign former first-round pick to active roster
Another Georgia Bulldog was added to the Eagles' active roster Wednesday. Philadelphia signed defensive back Lewis Cine, a 2022 first-round pick out by the Minnesota Vikings, to its active roster and released defensive tackle Byron Young.
Cine was teammates with Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean, Nolan Smith and Kelee Ringo at UGA in 2021.
