Carson Wentz has had quite the journey since being taken No. 2 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2016. After an MVP-caliber season in 2017, no one predicted that there would be this much uncertainty surrounding his football future.
While fielding questions from reporters during a media call Monday, ESPN's newest color commentator Troy Aikman was asked about Wentz's future in Washington due to he and Joe Buck calling the Eagles-Commanders game on Nov. 14 for Monday Night Football. Believing that the stakes are high for Wentz this season, Aikman stated that Washington may be his last opportunity to prove himself as a starting franchise QB in the NFL.
Aikman, who joined ESPN after 20 years at Fox, said he's hoping that Wentz can bounce back and lead the Commanders to the playoffs but at the same time states that the 2022 season, is a "defining one" for the troubled QB.
"I think that right now, Carson had an opportunity; it didn’t end well in Philadelphia, of course. He then got traded to Indianapolis. Didn’t go great for him there. They decided to make another change at that position, and now he’s landed in Washington," Aikman said in a conference call with the media.
"This is probably his last opportunity, just being blunt about it. I'm hopeful that he's able to take advantage of that. Looking forward to that match-up between those two teams. But this is kind of a defining season, I think, for Carson Wentz and what his future is going to look like."
To say it's been a whirlwind of three years for Wentz would be a huge understatement. After tearing his ACL and sitting on the sidelines while Nick Foles led the Eagles to a Super Bowl victory, Wentz returned and led the Eagles to two straight playoff births including a 2019 campaign that saw Wentz throw for over 4,000 passing yards and 27 touchdowns -- arguably his best season since being the league.
Things came crashing down in a big way in the COVID-riddled 2020 season. Wentz had the worse statistical season of his career, throwing for only 2,620 yards, 15 touchdowns and 16 interceptions before being benched for a then-rookie Jalen Hurts.
Similar to his time in Philly, Wentz was traded to the Colts in 2021 where he performed well, (3,563 yards, 27 touchdowns, 7 interceptions) but came up short in the final two games that cost Indianapolis a spot in the postseason and also cost Wentz his job.
Now that he's landed in the nation's capital, the spotlight will be bright on Wentz this season which doesn't seem to worry head coach Ron Riveria who claims the 29-year-old quarterback is exactly what the team has been looking for under center.
"I believe it is. I believe it's what we're looking for," Rivera said Thursday when asked if Wentz's could be the team's solution at quarterback. "His skill set speaks very well for us, especially for what we want to do and how we want to attack our opponents. I like our quarterback position."
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