2019:
The offseason kicked off with the greatest non-QB controversy in recent memory. The Eagles had to move on from Foles, not because of Wentz, but due to the fact he more than earned an opportunity to start and had contract complications. Despite countless rumors and analysts pounding the table for his presence to remain in Philadelphia.
Anonymous sources vs Carson Wentz EP2
This then led to anonymous sourcegate part 2: Electric Boogaloo.
“Selfish”, “uncompromising”, “Egotistical”. That’s exactly what you want to hear from “more than a half dozen players, plus other sources close to the team” as Marcus Hayes cited in the piece that essentially ripped the Eagles QB to shreds.
Wentz handled this absolute mess with class, accountability, and reflection. Instead of calling the source wrong, he took responsibility for how his actions had been perceived in the must humble way imaginable. The third-year player who had already been to Valhalla and back wanted to better himself for his team and promised to change his ways.
Fast forward a few months to the start of the season and things start to go wrong for the Eagles…quickly. It was more of the same. Blown leads, erratic plays, and fumbles all played a part, but that’s always been the hero-ball that makes and breaks Carson Wentz. It just so happens that the Hero was becoming a Villain.
Anonymous sources vs Carson Wentz EP3
Enter anonymous sourcegate part 3: Electric Jamboree?
We need to make bleep simpler. Sometimes we need to just handle what is manageable. Even Peyton Manning knew when to check it down.’
Well, this is fun. This time, it was a player talking to ESPN’s Josina Anderson with regards to how Wentz plays the game. It felt weird that this came months after the ‘Zach Ertz is being targeted too much’ report as they really don’t correlate. It felt like either someone had it out for Wentz or he was dealing with a mutiny.
As if things couldn’t get even more ridiculous, former Cowboys CB Orlando Scandrick, who was cut from the team just one week prior to his infamous TV spot on First Take, decided to fully rip into Carson Wentz. He went on to say how some players ‘preferred Foles’, totally re-igniting a fire the team had only just extinguished.
The comeback king
Carson Wentz had heard enough. He’d seen enough. The Eagles were decimated with injuries and limping through the season at this point and things were looking bleak. That was until Wentz stood up and turned into the man that the team needed.
Just before his spike in form, Howie Roseman had the foresight to pay Carson Wentz early. He knew the market was going to sky-rocket and if Dak Prescott, at the time a lesser QB, was paid before him, then Roseman would be paying a premium he couldn’t afford. He jumped the gun and made Wentz a $128M man. Wentz was given a contract laden with incentives, workarounds, and prorated bonuses in an attempt to make it affordable, but more importantly, security. This was finally his team again.
Wentz stepped up, put the team on his back, and carried a dying offense to a third-consecutive playoff berth. Over the course of the final four games of the season, he threw 7 TD, 0 INT, for 1,199 yards, to an offense filled with practice squad promotees, leading the Eagles to four straight wins and that all-important playoff berth.
Tragedy would strike Wentz once again when he reached the big dance, falling victim to a vicious illegal hit from Jadeveon Clowney. Wentz was out of the game before it had even really started. Josh McCown somehow kept the Eagles alive, but it wasn’t to be. All that was left was another postseason ‘what-if?’.
But the Eagles had their man. Their $128M man who had battled through Hell to get to that point. The future was bright…until it wasn’t.
Continued on the page below.
Photo credits: Icon Sportswire
