It wouldn’t be Philadelphia if the starting QB didn’t split the opinion of the fanbase in half. After an abysmal 31-15 loss in Tampa Bay, many fans have pondered how the team should handle the quarterback position in the offseason. And I must say it is quite infuriating. I thought we all agreed this was a season without expectations. Even the most delusional fans believed that this was a 7-8 win team at best. Now after one bad game (in the PLAYOFFS I might add), we are ready to throw a mutiny? Have we forgotten what Hurts has done all year with rookie-esque experience? Let’s talk about it.
The Bad
I will not lie to you and say everything Hurts has done has been impressive. We all have seen the missed reads, especially the painful ones that could have ended in 6. I have found myself yelling at the TV when Hurts has missed layup throws or has thrown boneheaded INTs. I have winced at the poorly thrown deep balls. But we need to take a step back and really ask ourselves: would you ask any other QB with his experience to not make those mistakes? We have to remember that a 23-year-old quarterback is still getting used to the NFL. What is truly impressive is how he diagnoses the mistakes, takes responsibility, and shows extreme maturity. He wouldn’t even let an obviously serious ankle injury be an excuse.
All we needed to see on a week-to-week basis was improvement, which I will wholeheartedly argue we had seen each week. This one week was the first time I can say he did not improve. Wanting to move on from Hurts after this season is just as ridiculous as if the Bears wanted to move on from Justin Fields.
Weapons
We have to remember what Hurts was working with this season. His only two consistent receivers this year were a rookie Devonta Smith and stud TE Dallas Goedert (who was having some drop problems down the stretch). Other than that, who else was he going to throw to? His next best options were Quez Watkins (who was alright this season) or an RB check down. Jalen Reagor has been a liability and JJAW is a glorified Tight End who has brick hands. It is easy for dudes like Dak Prescott to look great when they have solid options all over the field, and even he had shockingly similar passing splits to Hurts yesterday. Even so, hurts has made himself a weapon in this offense. He led the league in rushing yards and TDs for a QB, and that is nothing to scoff at. All Hurts needs is one more good receiver to be evaluated.
The Draft/Can We Do Better?
Kenny Pickett has been on the tips of Eagles fans’ tongues all year, and let me tell you that is not the wave. We would have to use significant draft capital to select the QB from Pitt, and to do so would be to ignore the other glaring needs of our roster. I would rather go with a QB who improves week in and week out with playoff experience over starting over with an older QB with no NFL experience. Drafting a QB would be a completely lateral move for the team in 2022 and does not make us better. Even “sure things” in the draft like Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields play poorly their first year. With aging players, we cannot afford to take that kind of step back.
This also puts us in a tricky scenario when trying to trade for QBs who “want out” like Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson (if his name is cleared). We have the capital to perhaps trade for one of them, but at what cost? We can make this team better in the long run by holding our picks instead of going all in on a QB for a few years. However, if the price isn’t too steep, I would not be opposed to trading some picks for one of those three. This team is almost in win now mode again and a top 10 QB would help us be contenders again, but it cannot come at the expense of our entire future. If the price is too steep, I am perfectly fine with keeping Jalen as the starter and signing a cheap, older backup in free agency like Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Verdict
The Ravens kept Lamar Jackson when he was playing like a glorified running back. The Bills sat through two seasons of a putrid Josh Allen. The Eagles saw Carson Wentz throw 14 nasty INTs a year before he took over the NFL They believed in their quarterbacks’ talents and were rewarded. Jalen Hurts has paid his rent in 2021. This season was meant to see what we had in Hurts, and I’ve seen enough to be confident in keeping him. He still has a ways to go this offseason though. Next year, we need to see a significant jump from the 23-year-old. If he cannot improve, then he will be a mere bridge quarterback for whoever is available in 2023. If he improves from his form this year, then we have our next franchise QB. We as a fanbase need to relax. He is not the million-dollar man that Wentz was just yet and should not be held to that kind of scrutiny.
And for those so-called Eagles “fans” who were excited that Jalen struggled against the #3 ranked defense because you always thought he was bad, please leave. You are the worst.
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Jish Sokolsky is a featured writer at The Birds Blitz. For more from Jish, check out his archive and read through our Eagles articles for the latest news about the Birds.
Great blog. I think Jalen should be allowed to play in the playoffs of the next season, it can bring him up!