Eagles name Nick Foles starter vs. Texans

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The Eagles aren’t going to play the game again this week. 

Nick Foles will start at quarterback Sunday when the Eagles host the Texans at the Linc, head coach Doug Pederson said Monday afternoon. 

While Foles will start, the Eagles are not putting Carson Wentz on injured reserve, leaving the possibility Wentz might be able to play again this season.

Pederson said the Eagles did get some more positive information about the stress fracture in Wentz’s back, which is likely the reason they are going to keep him on the 53-man roster with the hope of a return. Pederson said Wentz is week to week.

Obviously, the Eagles have just one game after the Houston game; they end their regular season in Washington in late December. Maybe if Foles can get the Eagles into the playoffs, Wentz will be ready to take over. It could be sort of a role reversal of last season, when Foles took over a team Wentz got into the playoffs.  

Pederson made sure to avoid anything that could be misconstrued as a quarterback controversy in waiting. 

“Obviously, when he’s healthy, he’s our quarterback,” Pederson said of Wentz. 

For now, though, it’s Foles. 

Foles’ stat line wasn’t great on Sunday night in L.A., but he got the job done. He completed 24 of 31 passes for 270 yards and an interception, with a passer rating of 89.4. He didn’t fill up the stat sheet, but he helped the Eagles put up 30 points for just the second time this year and the whole team seemed to get a spark from him. 

Foles has played the Texans just once in his career, back in 2014. That was when the Eagles were down in Houston and he broke his collarbone, ending his season. 

This will be a big game for Foles and the Eagles (7-7) against a Texans team that has a 10-4 record. If the Eagles beat Houston on Sunday, their playoff chances would jump to 51 percent, according to FiveThirtyEight. But if they lose, their chances are down to 10 percent. 

It’s a big game, but Foles has played in big games before. 

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