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Now this is all starting to make a little more sense.
On Sunday morning, we wrote about the multiple reports emerging that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was getting first team reps in training and the team planned to use it more often – and that they were going to do it. with Carson Wentz on the sidelines, something they’ve been hesitant to try before. It seemed the plan wasn’t to give Hurts the ball for the entire series at once, but to mix it in more attacking plays throughout the game to keep the defense on guard.
While we don’t agree with the idea – if you play Hurts so much you should make him the quarterback, not flip flip – it looks like there could be more than the we initially thought.
According to a report by Geoff Mosher of Inside the Birds, increasing Hurts’ training time with the first team could be in preparation for him eventually to take over if Wentz fights against the Seahawks.
While that’s certainly interesting, it’s also pretty vague (it’s definitely not an idea from Mosher’s report) as to what Lurie means by “if Wentz struggles”. He’s struggled all year, so could that just mean more clichés for Hurts, as these previous reports from ESPN’s Tim McManus and NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo suggest? Or does Lurie want Doug Pederson to sit Wentz down longer, maybe bench him for part of the Seahawks game if he comes out flat again?
McManus and Garafolo both insisted the Eagles weren’t ‘banking’ Wentz – he should always start against Seattle – but it’s hard to read this latest report from Mosher as anything other than ownership giving the coach the green light (or maybe even an order) to bench the franchise quarterback if he’s struggling.
[UPDATE: According to NBCSP’s John Clark — and as we speculated above — it was less of a direct order from the owner and more of a reminder that the coach has the ability to change quarterbacks if he believes it will improve the team. Yes, that’s where we’re at with these 2020 Eagles.]
Our own Jimmy Kempski wrote on Monday morning that the time had come for Lurie – who would not even have traveled to Cleveland to watch his team lose in Week 11, in part because of his frustration with their struggles this year – to blow up the Eagles, part ways with Pederson and GM Howie Roseman, and rebuild this thing from the ground up. Part of that will be assessing the talent available, and that certainly includes Hurts.
The Eagles spent a valuable second-round pick on him in this year’s draft – and if they continue to slide down the NFC East standings, they could have a top 10 or even a top 5 in the next draft. It would be up to them whether or not they should spend another high pick on a quarterback or whether they will try to develop the Hurts in case Wentz’s struggles persist next year. Because one thing is for sure, whether Wentz is on the bench or under the center, he’s not going anywhere. That was guaranteed the day he signed that massive contract last year.
How much will Hurts play against Seattle? It seems to depend on Wentz’s misreading. Stay tuned…
Follow Matt on Twitter: @matt_mullin
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