PHILADELPHIA -- Nick Foles wore a helmet and threw a football Wednesday. It may turn out the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback was practicing for nothing, but there he was.

Foles was ruled out for last Sunday’s game against Dallas after doctors examined his collarbone. The Eagles play Washington Saturday and Foles will not be ready to play in that game, either.

After that, there is just one regular-season game left, at the New York Giants on Dec. 28. It is unclear whether Foles will be examined next week.

“I don't know when the next follow up is,” Eagles coach Chip Kelly said before Wednesday’s practice. “We didn't throw at all [Tuesday]. It was kind of a walk-through. So we’ll see him throw the ball around a little bit today.”

Foles’ collarbone is healing normally, according to Kelly. But the doctors have not cleared Foles for contact. Obviously, that prevents him from playing football.

“Still, the bone is not healed,” Kelly said. “The biggest thing is, I think Nick can throw -- I don't think you're going to see anything different from him throwing -- but he can't have any contact because if he gets hit, he can reinjure it. That's the biggest concern right now.”

If the Eagles make the playoffs, Kelly will have a tough decision to make. Does he put Foles back into the lineup after an eight-week interruption, or stay with Mark Sanchez? The Eagles are 3-3 in the games Sanchez has started. He has at least one and probably two more starts to make a stronger case for himself.

If the Eagles do not make the playoffs, things are really murky. Sanchez is playing on a one-year deal, so he will become a free agent.

Foles is still under contract, but he will have missed half a season. That followed the first half of the season, in which Foles completed 186 of 311 passes (59.8 percent) for 2,163 yards and 13 touchdowns. Foles also threw 10 interceptions and finished with a quarterback rating of 81.4.

At the very least, the Eagles will have to find another veteran backup to replace Sanchez, unless they decide to go with Matt Barkley in that role. At the other extreme, the Eagles could decide they want to find a new starting quarterback to replace Foles.

Those are big decisions. It would help to see Foles play more this season, but time is running low.