Carson Wentz reportedly wants to play through injury, but Eagles, doctors are cautious

Doug Pederson hinted that Wentz is itching to return to the field

If you're wondering how severe the recent stress fracture suffered by Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz really is, the answer probably depends on who you listen to.

It was a surprise before the team's Week 15 upset of the Los Angeles Rams when Wentz was held out of practice, and it was perhaps even more surprising when coach Doug Pederson revealed that the Eagles' 2017 MVP candidate might be out for the rest of the season due to a previously unidentified back fracture. When Pederson then offered a timetable of up to three months for Wentz to recover, most people assumed backup and reigning Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles would remain under center until 2019.

Yet now, just days after Foles led Philly over the Rams and days before another game critical to the Eagles' playoff hopes, it appears Wentz himself hasn't ruled out the possibility of playing again this year.

According to John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia, Wentz "got another opinion on his back with (a) specialist while (the) Eagles were in L.A." and "really wants to play through" his injury. That doctor ultimately agreed with the Eagles, however, that "rest is best right now" for the quarterback's recovery.

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The report aligns with what Pederson told reporters Friday, when he hinted that Wentz would prefer to stay on the field.

"Does he want to play through it?" Pederson said. "I don't want to put words in his mouth, (but) I think as an athlete who has an injury this time of year, if it's not going to set them back, then, yeah, I would say everybody wants to play through injury ... Again, we have to make sure they're 100 percent -- that's kind of been our philosophy around here -- before we stick them back out here."

Foles has already been ruled the Eagles' starter for Sunday's game against the Houston Texans. Wentz has not, however, been placed on Injured Reserve, so it's not impossible -- at least hypothetically -- for Pederson and company to re-evaluate his status for Week 17. Yet chances are that if the Eagles don't beat the Texans to increase their chances of a playoff run even more, there won't be much of a re-evaluation to make, at least for 2018.