Philadelphia Eagles: The season rides on Jalen Hurts

It’s no secret that there are two opposing camps when it comes to the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. The third-year quarterback has his fair share of supporters and detractors, both of which are very opinionated about him as a player and his future as this franchise’s QB1.

You have one side that praises his leadership, athleticism, and the winning pedigree that helped take this franchise to the playoffs in what was supposed to be year one of a rebuild. On the contrary, you have the side that doubts his accuracy, arm strength, and ability to be anything more than a “one read and run” signal caller.

Both sides of the aisle have valid arguments, and this season will be the true test of which side is correct.

The Philadelphia Eagles’ season rests on Jalen Hurts, as does his future.

The last time Hurts took the field, he ended up on the receiving end of an embarrassing sound bite in a blowout loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. From the moment the season ended, discussions in regards to the future of Hurts started.

It’s clear that the team isn’t fully sold on the future of their 2020 2nd round pick. Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers, Jimmy Garoppolo, and the much-maligned DeShaun Watson were all rumored to be on the trade market this off-season, and if reports are to be believed, the Eagles were in hot pursuit of a few of those names.

Alas, none of those trades came to fruition. The Eagles were either unwilling or unable to secure any of the big-name signal callers on the trade market, and it became clear that Jalen Hurts had the keys to the castle for this coming season.

With Hurts entrenched as the QB for 2022, Howie Roseman made it his mission to improve the roster and give Hurts everything he would need to take a step forward in his development. He bolstered the defense through trades, the NFL Draft, and free agency, he made a draft night trade for star receiver (and Jalen’s best friend) A.J Brown, as well as drafting his tight end from Oklahoma Grant Calcaterra, giving him plenty of options in what could be a prolific offense.

Now that the 2022 season is here, it is all on the young quarterback’s shoulders. When you are given all the ingredients to win, you need to succeed, expectations are sky high and despite his cool demeanor, Hurts has to be feeling the pressure of this season riding on his shoulders.

If Hurts seizes the opportunity, utilizes the weapons at his disposal and progresses as a thrower of the football, there is a good chance the Eagles will be one of the most formidable forces in a depleted and aging NFC race.

If Hurts doesn’t show much growth from an arm talent aspect, this team could be relegated to mediocrity and fall within the 7 to 9 win range, otherwise known as football purgatory.

If the latter of the two happens, the Eagles are well prepared to make a change under center. They own six picks in the first three rounds of the 2023 and 2024 NFL Draft, and they could easily use them to climb up into the top slot and have their pick of an extremely deep and talented QB class.

This is a win-now roster, in a passionate city, with a GM and owner who aren’t afraid to shake things up at the quarterback position. Hurts has been given everything he needs to succeed, and his football career with the Philadelphia Eagles will probably be relying on this season.