Eagles 'committed' to Jalen Hurts, is that the right strategy?
The Philadelphia Eagles want to make one thing crystal clear: They are committed to Jalen Hurts as their starting quarterback.
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said as much in comments at the annual league meeting this week, and he went on to explain why.
"We have a young, 23-year-old, playoff QB who gets better every year in college and in the pros," Lurie said, as reported by The Athletic. "He’s had, really, one full year. No one knows where that’s going to end up, but I think what you do know is you have a guy that is incredibly dedicated, excellent leader of men. Players around him gravitate to him. He will do anything and everything to get better and work on every weakness he has to try to maximize every strength he has. And that’s why we’re committed to Jalen at age 23. Who knows what the future holds, right?"
Some might question the wisdom of putting one's eggs in the Hurts basket, as he is anything but a typical quarterback.
And when you look at his numbers through his first two seasons as a pro, you can understand the questions.
Through 30 games (19 starts), Hurts has completed just 59% of his passes for 4,205 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. His career passer rating is just 84.7.
Last season, Hurts' first as a full-time starter, was better. He completed 61.3% of his passes for 3,144 yards, 16 touchdowns and nine picks (for an interception percentage of 2.1). His passer rating was 87.2.
But still, those numbers don't dazzle. By comparison, here are the NFL's leaders in those categories last season.
Completion percentage: Joe Burrow, 70.4%.
Passing yards: Tom Brady, 5,316.
Touchdowns: Brady, 43.
Interception percentage: Aaron Rodgers, 0.8%.
Passer rating: Rodgers, 111.9.
But Skip Bayless would take issue with those who question the Eagles QB, and he explained why on "Undisputed."
"I have been all-in on Jalen Hurts since he played at the University of Oklahoma," Bayless said. "He is a very special leader, leadership, intangibles, as the highest level. He is a special playmaker. I never said he'd make a Pro Bowl, I just said you could win with him."
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The Philadelphia Eagles are all in on Jalen Hurts, who led the Eagles to a playoff berth and accounted for 26 touchdowns (16 passing, 10 rushing) in the 2021 season. Skip Bayless reacts to the Eagles' endorsement of their quarterback.
There is some evidence to back up Bayless' claim. The Eagles went 9-8 last season, winning four of their last five regular-season games to earn a wild-card spot.
They were no match for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the playoffs, losing 31-15, but it was still a nice turnaround from the 2020 season, when the Eagles went 4-11-1 with Carson Wentz as the primary starting QB.
The other thing Hurts does well — better than most QBs, even — is make plays with his feet. Hurts rushed for 784 yards last season, much of it coming on designed runs, and scored 10 touchdowns on the ground.
That led all QBs in rushing, beating out Lamar Jackson (767 in 12 games), Josh Allen (763) and Kyler Murray (423).
"You can mix and match the backs [in the backfield] all you want," Bayless said, "but you need the firestarter, and he's the firestarter."
Bayless went so far as to declare the Eagles a threat to unseat the Dallas Cowboys atop the NFC East.
"I am now leaning toward — I'll say it here first — I'm learning toward picking the Eagles to win this division next year," he said. "I told you last year, the biggest threat to my Dallas Cowboys going into the season is Jalen Hurts' Eagles."