The Eagles did something bold Friday night, something that will have fans and media alike yelling controversy for the next couple of months but is there really a QB controversy?
“We have shown how we feel about Carson by our actions.” Eagles GM Howie Roseman said on Friday night. “We showed it by the amount of picks we put into him, and we showed it by the contract extension, and we believe this is a guy to lead us to our next Super Bowl championship. For better or worse, we are quarterback developers. We want to be a quarterback factory. We have the right people in place to do that. No team in the National Football League has benefitted more from developing quarterbacks than the Philadelphia Eagles. When we make these kinds of decisions, we always go to our principles and who we are and what we believe in and right or wrong, this is who we are. Earlier today, I spoke to Carson about the options at this pick, and one of them was Jalen, so he had a heads up ahead of time.”
Let’s rewind back to the Eagles last game, Wentz went down after being targeted by Seahawks defender Jadaveon Clowney. We were forced to see McCown try his absolute best to will this team to victory as he even got injured himself. The Eagles have had a very inconsistent rotation behind Wentz over the last few years. It all started with Foles and Daniel, then led to Foles and Sudfeld, followed by Sudfeld and McCown.
Now let’s actually think about this. The timing of Hurts pick was really bad, I completely agree. There were still players on the board at 53 that could’ve helped the Eagles instantly but let’s not forget what Howie said at the combine. He stressed the idea of a three-year plan for this team which has explained some signings.
Howie is thinking long term here with a hopeful instant impact. Wentz will have a mobile QB who can do it all backing him up and possibly jumping on the field with Wentz in a Tayson Hill-type role. The Eagles will have a cheap back up, who will be on his rookie contract for the next four years. What if Hurts doesn’t build any value in these four years that could land him a bigger contract?? I mean, the Saints just resigned Hill to a cheap deal and look at him as the replacement to Drew Brees but Hurts brings a win-win scenario to Philly.
He’s versatile, he can move with his feet without a problem and the key thing is that he’s not a finished product. Hurts isn’t a day one starter. That’s factual. He’s not a franchise QB right now and may never be as long as Wentz continues to grow into the elite QB we believe he is.
“With Jalen Hurts, he has a unique skill set.” Doug Pederson said shortly after the pick. “You see what Taysom Hill has done in New Orleans and now he and [Saints QB] Drew Brees have a connection there and a bond there, and you even look at — when [Joe] Flacco and [Ravens QB] Lamar [Jackson] in Baltimore for the short period of time, how they gelled together. It’s just something we’re going to explore. I want to make a point here first and foremost that Jalen Hurts is a good quarterback, and he was drafted as a quarterback and he’s a quarterback first, but he has a unique skill set that he’s a great runner. Obviously, he throws well on the run. He has a unique set of skills that we’re going to take a look at as we keep developing this off-season and this advancement, so to speak, as we get ready for training camp.”
Hurts brings a new dynamic to Philly, one they tried many years ago with Mike Vick and Donovan McNabb. Andy Reid didn’t pull the full potential out of that scenario but Sean Payton has. The Eagles will test it and while we don’t know what the outcome will be, the fact of the matter is that Howie found his back up QB at a reasonable price. Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson said the two most important positions on a football team is the starting QB spot and the backup QB spot. The Eagles are now locked in at both.
Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports
