Should the Philadelphia Eagles start Carson Wentz or Nick Foles?

Following the Philadelphia Eagles 30-23 upset victory of the Rams, many fans are wondering which quarterback is best to lead the Eagles.

On Monday morning, many Philadelphia Eagles fans awoke to the same burning question. Carson Wentz or Nick Foles? It is a fair question as Foles is coming off a big 30-23 win over the Rams on Sunday night.

In the short-term, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson announced Monday afternoon that Foles will start next Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans. He wouldn’t make any comments regarding Foles’ status following that Houston game.

When asked about Wentz’s status for the rest of the season, Pederson said the quarterback will not be placed on IR, but was non-committal to who his backup quarterback will be. The door is being left open for a Wentz return down the road if circumstances permit.

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But for right now, Foles is the guy. Going forward, well that is a whole different situation.

When comparing Wentz and Foles, there are a lot of factors that have to be taken into consideration. Number one is health. A healthy Foles is the better option over a not healthy Wentz, something we saw on Sunday night.

The thing people forget when talking about Wentz’s “pedestrian” 2018 season is the circumstances he played under. He came back barely nine months removed from major knee surgery and was definitely not completely healed from that. Add to that, Wentz was playing with a pretty severe back injury for the past handful of weeks, or even longer.

Even with all of that against him, Wentz still managed to throw 21 touchdowns to only seven interceptions, while completing nearly 70 percent of his passes. That’s a pretty good season for any quarterback, let alone one less than a year removed from a torn-ACL.

Yes, there is the eye test, and that may tell a different story to some people. It was obvious that Wentz was not the same quarterback than he was in 2017. Wentz missed some key throws, did not have the same escapability/mobility, and tended to neglect some other receivers at times.

When taking all of that into consideration, people have to remember that Wentz had barely any training camp and did not play at all in the preseason. His first live game action didn’ t come until Week 3. Even then, Wentz probably wasn’t ready to be put back on the field yet.

Did the Eagles rush Wentz back? Maybe. Also, did the Eagles have Wentz play when he was not fully healthy? Probably. Is a healthy Foles a better option than a not healthy Wentz? The answer to that question has to be yes.

Just because Foles is the better option than Wentz right now, does not mean Foles is the better option in the long-term. Foles has had a lot of success in Philadelphia, but when both are healthy, Wentz offers much more upside at the quarterback position.

In his career, Foles has been a quarterback who has had success in small quantities. 2013 was eight games, last year was six games (even though he only played well in three of them), and this season we’ll see what happens.

That’s what makes Foles an ideal backup quarterback, his ability to come in and win games in the short-term. The largest sample size of games Foles has had in his career was 2015 when he started 11 games, he went 4-7.

Foles is a good quarterback, don’t get me wrong, but he has nowhere near the elite potential that Wentz offers. When everything around him is working, then Foles can play at a very high level. He is not a franchise quarterback.

When both quarterbacks are completely healthy, which Wentz was not this season, Wentz is by far the better option. The things Wentz can do when healthy don’t compare to Foles’ abilities at 100%.

All of those traits that make Wentz an elite quarterback were mostly not on display this year. The knee was a big reason why, and now we know the back played a big factor as well. Wentz was most likely rushed back, and Foles should have been out there a bit longer than two weeks.

Yes, Wentz has other flaws. Like his tendency to lock in on one receiver (Zach Ertz) and neglect his other options at times. But Wentz was much better at spreading the ball around last season, so with a full healthy offseason of work, he should regain that chemistry with guys like Alshon Jeffery, who also missed time with an injury.

Foles won a Super Bowl and who knows if Wentz ever would have, but the Eagles have a lot invested in Wentz, and when healthy, he is the better option over Foles. The injuries might always be a concern, but it is a risk the Eagles have to take moving forward.

Financially, it also makes no sense to keep Foles around long-term. He is owed $20 million if he sticks around next season and the only way the Eagles pay him that is if he is the starting quarterback. Which he won’t be unless the Eagles get offered some king’s ransom for Wentz.

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So for right now, the answer to the Foles vs. Wentz question is simple. Ride with Foles for the rest of the season and let Wentz get healthy. But Wentz is the Eagles long-term answer at quarterback. He will be healthy in 2019 and trust me, Wentz will be back in 2019 better than ever, and this conversation will be over and done with.

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