The Philadelphia Eagles are all in on Jalen Hurts…for now

On face value, it appears the Philadelphia Eagles – as an organization – have fully committed to second-year quarterback Jalen Hurts this offseason. They traded away Carson Wentz, they passed on adding any real competition during free agency, they traded up for Alabama teammate DeVonta Smith in the first round (passing on Justin Fields in the process), and they ultimately passed on adding any QB competition during the draft.

Heading into training camp, Hurts should be the unquestioned starter barring any sort of unforeseen developments.

However, where there’s smoke there’s fire, and best believe there’s been an ungodly amount of smoke circulating the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback situation over the past few months.

Howie Roseman and the Eagles have been connected to Russell Wilson for multiple seasons now, and they’ve routinely been linked to Deshaun Watson all offseason long. Should either player become available at some point in the next 12 months or so, the Eagles are expected to be major players with their three potential 2022 first-round picks.

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Obviously Watson’s availability depends on his current legal/civil situation, which remains incredibly murky, deserving of a full and thorough investigation.

Additionally, the Eagles have now seen themselves linked to quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who could be on the way out of Green Bay should the two sides fail to meet some sort of middle ground. Rodgers is in a very similar situation to that of Wentz in 2020, playing for team that is already looking towards the future with a recently drafted QB.

Lastly, the Eagles expressed genuine interest in moving up for the New York Jets newest franchise arm, Zach Wilson, prior to this year’s draft commencing. Obviously they were unable to complete such a maneuver, but it was something they explored nevertheless (according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport).

Set to possess at minimum four picks in the first two rounds of the 2022 draft, the Eagles should be in a much better position to trade up for a top-tier QB prospect next draft cycle should they wish to recreate the manner in which they acquired Wentz back in 2016, a move that was universally praised prior to the disaster of 2020.

Just how committed are the Philadelphia Eagles to Jalen Hurts moving forward?

While I personally think the Eagles should steer clear from the likes of Watson, and someone like Rodgers isn’t worth the gamble at his age, Howie Roseman tends to throw logic out the window when it comes to the quarterback position. If he sees an opportunity to improve his QB room, he typically aggressively pursues it, ignoring any future ramifications,

The decision to draft Hurts during last year’s second round, despite already possessing a highly paid starter in Carson Wentz on the roster, is a pretty obvious example of this type of logic in action.

For the moment, it appears the Philadelphia Eagles are in fact committed to helping Hurts have the best 2021 campaign possible. The additions of DeVonta Smith, Landon Dickerson, and Kenneth Gainwell in the draft are substantial ones, and the team’s newest coaching staff has had success developing offenses in the past.

However, if Hurts ends up struggling in 2021, or even just plays at an average level, I’d expect all these Watson/Wilson/Rodgers/future rookie QB rumors to start heating up once more.