The Philadelphia Eagles (11-6) are absolutely reeling as they get set to begin their NFC title defense next Monday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8). All of their issues will be massively compounded, however, if Jalen Hurts is unable to operate at full capacity.

The franchise quarterback, who dislocated his middle finger in Sunday's humiliating loss to the New York Giants, does not have a fracture, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. He is “taking it day-by-day.”

Hurts left the game but did return and now has the long week to get right in time for a road meeting with the Buccaneers. The fact that the injury is on his throwing hand, though, will obviously be the cause of much distress in Philly ahead of this NFC Wild Card game. The good news? Fans are used to it by now.

Eagles have been in free-fall mode for a while now

The Eagles went from looking a bit shaky midway through the year to completely imploding down the stretch. They handed the NFC East to the Dallas Cowboys after brutal losses to the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals and did not even appear to show up in what began as a meaningful regular season finale versus the Giants. Aside from their patented “Brotherly Shove,” nothing is really working at the moment.

And that includes on offense. Jalen Hurts threw 15 interceptions during the regular season, as the passing attack proved to be much more erratic than it was last year. AJ Brown is also nursing an injury (knee), which means Philadelphia is in line to face plenty of adversity in Raymond James Stadium.

But the Bucs' defense can be exploited. Hurts and the Eagles still possess the necessary talent and experience to avoid an agonizing end to their season. The problems plaguing them are not going to magically disappear, but health is of the most importance heading into this do-or-die matchup.