It is the bad news for the Philadelphia Eagles: For Carson Wentz, the season has ended prematurely due to a rupture of the cruciate ligament. The NFL’s most complete team to date must now reorganise itself, and do so in no time at all. But how did the injury happen? What can Philly do now? And what does it mean for the NFC playoffs? SPOX looks at the drama in Philadelphia.
It was late in the third quarter: The Eagles had just marched down the field and stood on the 2-yard line of the Rams. Wentz started at First and Goal and jumped into the final zone – with two Rams defenders exerting pressure on his knee while Wentz was lying across the air from different directions.
The alleged touchdown was whistled back to all abundance because of a holding penalty. Wentz stayed in the game for a while, but seemed to be much less mobile – nevertheless he finished four more placements, completed with the 2-yard touchdown pass on Alshon Jeffery.
But it soon became clear that something was wrong. While Wentz, who had taken some hard hits from the Rams front all through the game, walked off the court, his knee suddenly snapped away. Philly’s quarterback was able to walk into the cabin, but the first reports of the FOX team on site were fast: Much sadness from the Eagles doctors. The first palpation soon revealed that there was something wrong with the cruciate ligament.
The team announced a short time later that Wentz would not return and it took less than half an hour after the match ended, before Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network and Adam Schefter of ESPN, among others, announced that the 24-year-old was likely to have a torn cruciate ligament.
Page 1: How did the Wentz injury happen?
Page 2: What does Wentz injury mean for the Eagles?
Page 3: What does Wentz injury mean for the playoffs?
Page 4: Should Colin Kaepernick be a theme for the Eagles?
Page 5: Forecast: What’s next for the Eagles?