Will Hurts Hurt?

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Philadelphia Eagles Quarterbacks Carson Wentz (left) and Jalen Hurts (right) at a practice this year (Credit: USA Today)

Written by Johnny Maffei

Update at 2:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday 12/8/2020

Jalen Hurts is getting the start according to ESPN's Adam Schefter and Chris Mortenson.

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The short answer to the headline is "no."

The Philadelphia Eagles fell to the Green Bay Packers 30-16 on Sunday and benched QB Carson Wentz for rookie QB Jalen Hurts in the midst of their eighth loss of the 2020 season. 

Wentz went 6/15 passing for just 79 yards.  When Hurts came in, there was a spark.  He only went 5/12 but had 109 yards and a TD.  

Eagles HC Doug Pederson has been delaying his own inevitable decision for weeks, just look at the numbers.  Wentz leads the league in interceptions with 15, has the third most fumbles among QBs, and has taken the most sacks in 2020.  He also has the most "turnover-worthy" plays in the NFL since 2019, according to PFF.  

So at least for this season, it's time to head to the bullpen.  

I say at least for this season because of some information I learned today:

Even ESPN's Adam Schefter was surprised.  It doesn't look like Philadelphia can afford to release him and I don't know if it's dumb or smart to sit your ~$32M AAV QB.  What I do know is if you care about winning, you sit him and keep him on roster.  But, if you care about financial efficiency, you try to ride it out with 2016's 2nd overall draft pick.

How did anyone let a player sign this contract?

Wentz has had less than a couple good years, he holds the ball for too long, and he doesn't protect his body or the football.  The Eagles need to steal a page out of the Arizona Cardinals book and admit their 1st rounder didn't hit the jackpot.  The Cardinals saw an opportunity to grab Kyler Murray in the 2019 NFL Draft just a year after selecting Josh Rosen 10th overall.  Now, Arizona is making a push for a wild card spot, and their losses aren't on Murray.

"Wentz has had less than a couple good years, he holds the ball for too long, and he doesn't protect his body or the football."

Assuming Philadelphia can't find a suitor for their $32M/year signal caller, they should sit Wentz next season, as opposed to cutting or starting him.  Give Hurts the nod, see what he can do.  With the Washington Football Team and New York Giants trending upwards, a playoff spot is unlikely, but Wentz hasn't shown anything to say he will catch up to his division opponents.  Playing Hurts is also good for the future to see if he is someone they can build around and insert into their playbook. So Hurts is a good decision for the short-term and long-term. Win-Win!

It isn't like Hurts is a bad option, either.  He hasn't been amazing with his opportunities, but he never got a chance to settle in until this week and he hasn't gotten anywhere near a full week of first-team reps.

In college, Hurts played under Nick Saban and Lincoln Reilly, two coaches who have developed some of the best players in the league.  When former Alabama teammate Tua Tagovailoa took his spot in the 2018 National Championship, reports from the inside said he handled it with the utmost class, and even helped them when they needed a spark the next season.

In three seasons as a starter and one backing up Tagovailoa, Hurts tallied almost 9,500yds for 80 TD through the air and rushed for almost 3,300yd and another 43 TD.  With these numbers, the competition he did it against, and his knowledge from two of the best coaches in the country, he certainly deserves the opportunity.

As of Monday morning, Pederson hasn't made a decision as to who will start under-center when the New Orleans Saints "come marching in" this weekend.

Before the game Sunday, FOX Sports' Jay Glazer reported that Wentz's struggles could be due to confidence issues because the Eagles drafted Hurts.

This is a terrible excuse if it's true.  I cannot get behind this.  Every team in the NFL has a backup QB.  Hurts himself had a top 5 pick backing him up in Tuscaloosa.  If the Eagles didn't have a good backup QB in 2017-18, when Wentz tore his ACL, they would never have won their only Super Bowl.

I hope Hurts gets a much-deserved opportunity on Sunday.  I also hope he gets enough first-team reps at practice.  If most of them go to Wentz it will make it a lot harder to take down the current #1 seed in the NFC.  

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The Eagles host the Saints on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX. 

Emerson College '22 | Co-host/Producer of Ridin' Pine | Fmr #1 Show on WSFR | Fmr Full Press Coverage Patriots Writer | Socials: @johnnymaffei45