PHILADELPHIA — The Eagles went shopping in a division rival's practice squad Friday, signing quarterback Joe Milton III away from the Dallas Cowboys one day after ruling Jalen Hurts out of Sunday's home game against the Carolina Panthers.
The team says the clot in his calf is superficial, and club officials have given no return date and say his health and safety come first.
The problem traces to the Oct. 4 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, when Hurts took a cleat to the calf. He kept practicing in full and was cleared by doctors to play the Jacksonville Jaguars in London after an ultrasound there found the clot. A follow-up scan back home showed the clot had shifted, and the team shut him down.
That puts Tanner McKee under center. The fourth-year backup has two career starts, both in Week 18 games after Philadelphia had already locked in its playoff seeding, so Sunday will be his first start with real stakes. The Eagles sit at 2-3 and have dropped three straight, while Carolina comes in at 2-2.
Milton brings little game film. New England took him in the sixth round of the 2024 draft out of Tennessee, and he also spent time at Michigan. Dallas acquired him before the 2025 season. Across five NFL appearances he has completed 37 of 53 throws with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Because he was signed off another club's practice squad, league rules require him to go straight onto the 53-man roster.
Rookie Cole Payton, drafted in the fifth round this spring, rounds out the room. Philadelphia is also juggling injuries to running back Saquon Barkley and receiver DeVonta Smith. Through five starts before the clot, Hurts had 933 passing yards and eight touchdown throws.
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