Thee might be only two reasonable explanations for the Philadelphia Eagles saying quarterback Carson Wentz would be questionable for Sunday’s game despite a fractured vertebra.

They’re either flat out lying on the injury report, or they’re not thinking clearly.

(UPDATE: Either the Eagles re-evaluated, or they were involved in some gamesmanship, because Wentz was officially listed as doubtful on the injury report after coach Doug Pederson said earlier Friday that he would be questionable. Players listed as doubtful rarely play.)

The 6-7 Eagles are still in the wild-card race, just a half-game behind the current No. 6 seed Vikings. You can understand why the Eagles would be tempted to keep playing Wentz. Reports have said the Eagles will examine if Wentz can make the injury worse. However, their track record handling injuries this season doesn’t inspire much confidence that they can make the right call.

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Even considering the Eagles aren’t eliminated from the playoffs, why would they risk playing their young franchise quarterback when he has a fracture in his back?

Carson Wentz is questionable for Sunday

On Wednesday, the news was that Wentz was unlikely to play Sunday and could miss the rest of the season if the Eagles get eliminated from the playoff race. On Thursday, the story moved forward as there were reports Wentz had a fracture in his back. ESPN’s Adam Schefter specified that it was a fractured vertebra.

Yet, on Friday, Eagles coach Doug Pederson wouldn’t rule out Wentz for Sunday.

On one hand it’s understandable why the Eagles wouldn’t shut down their quarterback yet. They’re still alive in the playoff race. They want to defend their Super Bowl championship in the playoffs.

If they really are considering playing Wentz, hopefully the medical staff knows what it’s doing.

Wentz has been dealing with injuries most of the season

Wentz has had a taxing season. First, he missed the beginning of the season as he recovered from a torn ACL suffered last December against the Rams. Then he had the back issue. He showed up on the injury report with a back injury in Week 7, more than two months ago.

Given all that Wentz has dealt with, his season hasn’t been too bad. He’s not an MVP candidate like he was last season, but he also has barely been healthy.

From the outside looking in, it would seem prudent for the Eagles to shut down Wentz and make sure he’s healthy for the offseason. There’s no reason the Eagles can’t be championship contenders again in 2019, especially if Wentz is fully healthy. But they don’t want to give up on this season yet, so apparently they aren’t ready to tell their injured quarterback to call it a season.

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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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