Philadelphia Eagles: I was wrong about Jalen Hurts

When the Philadelphia Eagles first made the decision to draft Jalen Hurts 53rd overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, I was one of the biggest skeptics. Wasting such a premium draft pick on a Quarterback after just handing Carson Wentz a 4-year, $128 million dollar extension had to be a mistake, right?

Well, three years later, with Carson Wentz now playing for a division rival; Jalen Hurts is making Howie Roseman look like a genius while also making a ton of people look like idiots; myself included.

During Jalen Hurts rookie season in 2020, I wrote an article detailing how awful of an idea it was to continue to implement Jalen into the offense. While I still agree with the idea of running as two quarterback offense being a disaster, I was so wrong about who should continue to see the bulk of the snaps moving forward. I begged and pleaded with the Philadelphia Eagles to “pull the plug” on the Hurts experiment; and that continuing to double down on the move would just make things worse for the organization.

Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts continues to prove his doubters wrong in 2022

For the majority of the 2021 season and subsequent offseason, I was one of those many fans you would see on social media declaring how there was no way this team could win with Hurts as the quarterback. There was no way his arm was talented enough and his legs would only be able to take this team to the cusp of contention; without actually becoming a contender. The dominant run game was cute, but surely there was no way it was sustainable, right? Wrong. I was flat-out wrong. It really is as simple as that.

The 2022 season has seen Jalen Hurts take that next step and become an MVP-caliber player. He currently has the Philadelphia Eagles 8-0 for the first time in their storied history; and depending on where you look, he is the odds-on favorite to win the NFL MVP award.

Throughout these first eight games of the season, Jalen has completed 68% of his passes for 2,042 yards and 12 passing touchdowns. He has chipped in 326 yards rushing and 6 more touchdowns on the ground. Hurts has only thrown two interceptions; and is one of only six quarterbacks to lead his team to an 8-0 record while having three or less turnovers in those first eight games.

Trust me, there are plenty of people who were dead wrong about Jalen Hurts, and I’ll be the first to admit I was one of those people. As the season carries on, the Philadelphia Eagles would be wise to begin internally discussing what an extension for Hurts could look like. He is first eligible for an extension following the 2022 season, and the team should look to get this completed so it is not something that continues to loom over their head.

Currently, an extension for Jalen Hurts could potentially cost the Philadelphia Eagles roughly $250 million over six seasons. With Kyler Murray and Deshaun Watson both signing for $230 million just this past summer, this feels like a safe spot to project what could be in the future for the Eagles’ franchise quarterback.

Now that kind of number being worth it or not is an entirely different argument. But if what has transpired so far in 2022 is any indication of what lies ahead for Jalen Hurts, he would be worth every penny.

All things considered, I was dead wrong about Jalen Hurts. This guy is the real deal. Let’s hope this is just the beginning of a long storied career in Midnight Green.