Cam Jurgens enters 2026 with a very different kind of spotlight on him: not just as the Eagles’ starting center, but as one of the most important health stories on the roster.
That’s because last season was a grind. Jurgens battled a back injury that carried over from the 2024 playoffs, and the pain never really let up.
He was limited to 14 games, and when he was out there, he wasn’t quite himself. The leverage that usually shows up in his game wasn’t there the same way, and the injury clearly took a toll.
“It was suffocating my leg. It was hard to walk,” Jurgens admitted back in March.
“I don’t know how I was playing. It was easily the worst month of my life, but also kinds the best month of my life because we won the Super Bowl.
"But, it was just miserable. Just the pain and get surgery, then trying to get back for the next year."
Jurgens took an unconventional route to getting right, going to Columbia for stem cell treatment. Since then, the signs have been encouraging. He has taken part in every spring practice open to the media, and he’s been on the field for every OTA and minicamp session available to reporters as well.
That matters for the Eagles, because a healthy Jurgens is a difference-maker. That’s part of why he lands at No. 16 on the Eagles’ top-25 players list for 2026.
The franchise spent two years grooming him as Jason Kelce’s successor at center, and once Kelce retired after the 2023 season, Jurgens stepped into the job. Since then, he’s made two Pro Bowls in two seasons as the Eagles’ center.
Even with the back issue, he still held up well in pass protection last season. Jurgens did not allow a sack and gave up only eight pressures, good for a 1.8% pressure rate allowed per dropback. That was an improvement over 2024, when he allowed four sacks and posted a 3.9% pressure rate allowed per dropback.
So while the injury clearly affected him, Jurgens was still better in 2025 than he was in 2024, when the back problem first hit. If he’s fully right in 2026, the ceiling is even higher. An All-Pro season is on the table.
The Eagles are also being careful with him this summer. The idea is to manage Jurgens through camp so he can be ready to play 17 games at 100% - or at least get to Week 1 as close to full strength as possible.
“It might be, ‘Hey, you need to take this drill off,’ or, ‘We’ve got to get you in this type of shape,’”Eagles offensive line coach Chris Kuper said to Eagles On SI. “I know Landon went through a bunch last year.
Having a true offseason to get his body right is going to help. Offensive linemen need to work on strength, flexibility, and movement skills.
If that’s taken away, you’re playing catch-up all year.”
Behind Jurgens, the Eagles have Drew Kendall ready as the backup center. Kendall, a sixth-round pick from last season, is viewed highly inside the building and is arguably the team’s top interior lineman entering camp, though Michael Jordan has not been seen in action yet. Kendall started at center in Week 18, played 62 snaps, and allowed one pressure, which came out to a 2.2% pressure rate allowed per dropback.
If Jurgens has to miss time, Kendall is the next man up. The Eagles are also cross training him at guard, even though center is his best position.
That approach isn’t new for Philadelphia. The team used the same path with Jurgens, moving him to right guard before he took over for Kelce. Jurgens even started at right guard in the 2023 season.
Jurgens’ spot on the top-25 list came after a final vote from Eagles on SI publisher/editor Jeff Kerr, insider John McMullen, and writer Ed Kracz. He finished with 49 points, where the lowest points wins.
He ended up tied with Tariq Woolen, and the tiebreaker came down to which player was ranked highest by the three writers. One voter had Jurgens at 14th, which put him ahead of Woolen. Kerr ranked him 14th, McMullen 18th, and Kracz 17th.
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