Taylor Heinicke expected to be able to start against Eagles

Washington Football Team quarterback Taylor Heinicke is expected to start against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15, according to NFL insider Adam Schefter.

Heinicke suffered a knee injury in Washington’s Week 14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The issue is causing Heinicke to undergo an MRI but the early read is that he should be able to play through it.

Heinicke is coming off a rough game. He posted the following stat line against Dallas: 11/25 (44% completion), 122 yards (4.9 average), 1 TD, 1 INT, 55.8 passer rating ... and three rushes for eight yards. He also lost a fumble that the Cowboys recovered for a touchdown to really blow the game open.

On the season, Heinicke has completed 66.5% of his attempts for 2,931 yards (7.0 average), 19 TD, 12 INT, and an 89.9 passer rating. He’s also rushed for 297 yards (5.4 average) and one score.

Heinicke was on a hot stretch before the Cowboys matchup. He was completed over 77% of his attempts for a 110.00 passer rating during Washington’s four-game win streak. Could he reignite against Philly? We’ve certainly seen Jonathan Gannon’s defense give up some high completion rates.

Then again, Gannon’s defense has also mostly handled lesser quarterbacks and a hobbled Heinicke fits in that category. Not to mention that star wide receiver Terry McLaurin (concussion), starting left tackle Charles Leno (back), and starting center Tyler Larsen (achilles) also got banged up on Sunday, further damaging the Football Team’s offensive outlook.

If it turns out that Heinicke can’t play or gets further injured during next week’s game, the Eagles will see Kyle Allen take the field. Allen is 7-10 in 17 career starts with a career 84.1 passer rating. Allen fumbles at a really high rate with 15 in 20 games played.

Heinicke’s status will be monitored as the week progresses; the first injury report will be issued on Wednesday.