With Jalen Hurts ruled out, Eagles QB Tanner McKee feels ‘very prepared’ if he has to start vs. the Giants

Tanner McKee, the Eagles’ third-string quarterback, could make his first NFL start in the regular-season finale against the New York Giants on Sunday.

The Eagles ruled out Jalen Hurts (concussion) and listed Kenny Pickett (ribs) as questionable on the final injury report Friday. Neither player participated in practice or walk-through this week.

If Pickett can’t go, McKee could be the next man up in a contest that bears no consequence on playoff seeding. McKee, a 2023 sixth-round pick of out Stanford, would likely take the field alongside a number of second- and third-string players. The team is slated to rest key starters while locked into the NFC’s No. 2 seed.

“I feel very ready, very prepared,” McKee said Friday. “Getting a ton of reps this week, which has been awesome, just with our guys. Feel like we have a good game plan. Just honestly, really excited to go out and play football. I don’t think anything’s different as far as preparation standpoint or anything like that, but just go out and play ball.”

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While McKee’s film preparation didn’t change when he previously served as the emergency quarterback on game day, his upcoming Saturday is going to be a bit different. The night before the game in his hotel room, McKee plans on running his own personal walk-through with his wristband full of plays to make sure he has all the calls down.

Last week, in the win over the Dallas Cowboys, McKee made his regular-season debut, completing 3 of 4 passes for 54 yards and two touchdowns. Even though he took his first regular-season snaps last week, he said he was still held to a high standard, which carries over to Sunday’s game against the Giants.

“Just because it was my first snap in an NFL game, everybody expected us to move the ball and to score and to win the game,” McKee said. “And that’s great. It’s a great place to be as a team, as a person, that it was my first game, just everybody have that confidence and have that expectation was great and builds confidence for yourself to go out and perform.”

Tight end Dallas Goedert (knee) did not have a game status on the final injury report, indicating that he could be available to play if the Eagles decide to activate him from injured reserve. He was listed as a full participant on the injury report every day this week.

The 30-year-old tight end said Thursday that he wasn’t sure if he would “get a little bit of cobwebs out” by playing against the Giants, leaving that decision up to the coaching staff. If he is not promoted to the active roster before the game, Goedert said that he would “100 percent” be activated in time for the wild-card round. He would be in game shape even if he misses five straight contests, he added.

“It’d be no different than not playing in the preseason, going out and playing in the first game,” Goedert said. “But the season’s coming to an end. Missed a little bit of time this year. So the more football I can play, just the more is going to help me.”

Goedert said he’s feeling “really good” after missing the last four games while recovering from a knee injury suffered in Week 13 against the Baltimore Ravens. The injury marked his second this season, as he missed Weeks 6-8 with a hamstring problem.

With one regular season game remaining, Goedert has played just in nine this year, which is the fewest in his seven-year career. Although he has made just 38 catches (his second-lowest total of his career), he has still been efficient, hauling in a career-high 82.6% of his targets and posting 11.6 yards per reception (his third-best rate).

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“You’ve got to deal with the hand that you’re dealt,” Goedert said. “Obviously injuries are something you don’t want. But in this game, it’s tough to avoid them at all costs. So I’m not going to look down at it or anything like that. I’m going to go out there and play the game that I always play.”

Saquon Barkley, Zack Baun, A.J. Brown, Jalen Carter, Nakobe Dean, Landon Dickerson, Lane Johnson, Jordan Mailata, Darius Slay, and DeVonta Smith are all listed as doubtful for Sunday’s game against the Giants. Each starter has a “coach’s decision” designation, indicating that they will likely rest in Week 18 in preparation for the playoffs.

Running back Will Shipley (concussion) is listed as questionable. He missed last week’s win over the Cowboys with a concussion suffered against the Washington Commanders on Dec. 22.

The Eagles play in Week 18 against the New York Giants. Join Eagles beat reporters Olivia Reiner and EJ Smith as they dissect the hottest storylines surrounding the team on Gameday Central, live from Lincoln Financial Field.