The Philadelphia Eagles are 8-2 with seven games to play. They’re in a good position to get the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoff picture, which would give them the most favorable path to repeating as Super Bowl champions.
Everyone is happy and there are absolutely no issues boiling beneath the surface.
Well, maybe not.
Following Dianna Russini’s weekend reporting about how “multiple Eagles offensive players have grown frustrated with Jalen Hurts’ approach this season,” we have some more similar sentiment being shared by long-time plugged-in Eagles reporter Derrick Gunn.
Here’s a transcript:
Those things that [get] dissected on film [and] during practice, those things that are talked about among the quarterback coach, the offensive coordinator, the head coach … it has been constantly discussed all season long. Yet, when they transition to the field on a football game, he plays “his game.” Not the game the coaches want him to play. He plays “his game.” I don’t think you can get out of that mode at this particular point. I think it’s what we’re going to have to watch all season long, is him playing his “his game.”
You look at a lot of quarterbacks, they’re going to sling it. They’re going to trying to throw it through the eye of the needle. Sometimes you just have to take that chance. That’s not his game. That’s why he stands back there, a lot of the time he’s patting the ball, patting the ball, and it throws the timing of the offense off. The rhythm is thrown off. They can’t get him out of it.
It’s frustrating, in a lot of ways, to the coaching staff. And to the players. Extremely frustrating to the players. Because when they look at the film, the next day or a few days later, they see what’s available out there and what should’ve happened, and it didn’t happen, that’s frustrating to them as well.
[…]
I’m just basically telling you there’s a lot of people in that organization that are frustrated with the quarterback situation right now. But the quarterback understands he has them over a barrel. This is almost Carson Wentz part two. They’re not going to eat this kind of money yet.“
Some thoughts to unpack from this:
- Jalen Hurts’ own words from December last year: “I don’t care how it looks. It’s kind of my game and I think that’s something that people have to accept. It’s going to look how Jalen Hurts wants it to look. But he’s going to win.”
- It’s pretty impossible to argue that offensive players are thrilled with how this offense looks right now. A.J. Brown’s displeasure is well-documented. A mic’d up DeVonta Smith was shown saying “Just throw the fucking ball, man!” after his touchdown catch against the Green Bay Packers last weekend.
- I don’t believe that Derrick Gunn is saying that Hurts is literally Wentz. Hurts is obviously much more accomplished as the reigning Super Bowl MVP and he’s played a big role in more sustained success than his predecessor oversaw. I think the comparison being made there is about how Hurts holds a lot of power (perhaps too much), just like Wentz did when he was the franchise quarterback. That dynamic is something we talked about here at BGN in the past. If that’s true and it’s ultimately a problematic setup, though, the organization has to take blame for allowing it to happen again. It’s not just on the quarterback himself.
- It does feel a bit crazy to be talking about Hurts’ flaws since the Eagles really only win when he plays. But it’s possible for more than one thing to be true. Hurts is a winner. And he could also play better.
- I’m not saying the Eagles should or will bench Hurts for Tanner McKee because that obviously just isn’t going to happen. But it would be pretty fascinating to see what the offense would look like for a game or two without Hurts, would it not? If it continues to be so out of sync, we can clearly point to the coaching staff being the major problem. If it looks a whole lot smoother, however, that might force reconsideration.
- Getting back to “more than one thing can be true,” I find it hard to believe that this coaching staff is doing an amazing job of helping Hurts. The film grinders — including BGN’s own Jonny Page — see a lot of issues that go beyond the quarterback.
- I don’t think this drama is disqualifying as it relates to the Eagles’ chances of winning another Super Bowl. Vic Fangio’s defense could be so good that it continues carries the team to wins. Even if we get more of the same uninspired offensive football we’re used to seeing this season, the Eagles could still win if they continue to avoid turning the ball over. The consternation might all be moot. But if the Eagles do fall short of the ultimate goal … well, here’s a topic that could be revisited.