Jaguars' Nick Foles Reportedly to Return Week 11 After Surgery for Injury

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Nick Foles broke his collarbone in the team's Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, but the injury reportedly won't end his season.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, "the belief is that the former big free-agent pickup will be back under center as soon as the rules allow. He is out for at least eight weeks on injured reserve and eligible to return for the Week 11 game against the Colts, and sources say that is the target date for him to be back."

That's good news for Foles and the Jaguars, with some fears that his injury could cost him the rest of the season after just eight passes, one of which went for a touchdown. 

Foles, 30, signed with the Jaguars to a four-year, $88 million contract this offseason after resurrecting his career with the Philadelphia Eagles. Foles was brought aboard in Philadelphia to serve as Carson Wentz's backup, though season-ending injuries to Wentz in consecutive years left Foles in the position of starter down the stretch.

He responded by leading the team to a 10-3 record as the starter, including the postseason. He brought Philadelphia its first Super Bowl title in the 2017 season, out-dueling Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, before helping the Eagles sneak into the postseason last year behind three straight wins (and a fourth against the Chicago Bears in the Wild Card round). 

For Jacksonville, the hope was that he would provide enough of an upgrade over Blake Bortles to return the team to the postseason. Instead, a broken collarbone temporarily halted those plans.

While he's injured, Gardner Minshew II will assume the starting duties. He showed some flashes in relief work during the team's Week 1 loss, finishing 22-of-25 for 275 yards and two touchdowns. It was quite the debut, though he'll now be called upon to keep the Jaguars in the hunt, with divisional showdowns against the Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans the next two weeks. 

The Jaguars can't afford to fall into a 0-3 hole. Minshew will have to do for the Jaguars what Foles did for the Eagles in recent seasons—save the season as the backup quarterback.