There is plenty of debate this week about Jalen Hurts.
How good is he? Should he start in 2021? Can he be the franchise quarterback?
We will start to get a clearer answer to those questions the more Hurts plays, starting with a crucial game for the franchise this Sunday in Arizona.
But as we all start to debate the new quarterback, we should take a lesson from what we learned from the old quarterback.
In 2016, Carson Wentz was Jalen Hurts. Coming off of his first start with the Eagles, Wentz had the entire city excited about his future. He looked amazing against Cleveland, and then again vs. Chicago, and then again vs. Pittsburgh on his way to a 3-0 start.
Wentz was accurate, he was dynamic, he was a playmaker. His teammates raved about his leadership. The offense looked different with him under center. He was spark the team was hoping he would be.
By the time the 2017 season was underway, it wasn’t a matter of if Wentz was the franchise quarterback, but how long he would be dominating for. Timeframes of 10-15 years were thrown around when discussing moves the team should make. His mega-extension was labeled a steal before he even played under it. Wentz was such a sure thing to everyone that the Eagles had to plan years in advance to make sure they could always compete with him.
Then, Wentz tore his ACL.
Then his backup won the Super Bowl.
Then he fractured his back.
Then his backup won again.
Then he suffered a concussion.
Then, this past Sunday, his backup won for the third time.
And just like that, in what felt like the blink of an eye, that bright 10-15 year future disappeared.
Whether that 10-15 years will end up being just five years remains to be seen. A trade this offseason feels more-and-more realistic by the week. Whatever happens, it is safe to say that nobody saw this coming when Wentz left the field in Los Angeles in 2017 with a torn ACL. To think we went from there to here so quickly, and so dramatically, remains amazing when you take a step back and think about it.
It is also something we should all keep in mind when discussing Hurts.
There is a lot to like about Hurts. He was a proven winner in college, dominating at not one, but two of the best programs in the country. He looked dynamic in his first NFL start. He was poised, he handled the blitz flawlessly, he made big throws when he had to. He looked every bit of what a franchise quarterback looks like in today’s NFL. It is hard not to wonder how bright his future could be.
But as Wentz taught us, trying to project years from now is pretty pointless. If 2017 Wentz didn’t become a franchise quarterback, if he couldn’t become that consistently dominant player everyone thought he would be, how can anyone say with any certainty that anyone will be?
Wentz taught us that injuries really, really matter when dictating the outcome of a player's career. Patrick Mahomes already has a Super Bowl because the knee injury he suffered last season was the “best-case scenario” instead of season-ending. Joe Burrow looked like the perfect quarterback prospect this season. Then he tore his ACL, and now, who knows what he will be when he returns. Just one year ago Josh Allen looked like a small fraction of the player Wentz was. But Allen stayed healthy and Wentz didn’t. Allen was able to develop his game while Wentz rehabbed, and now, the Bills would never trade Allen for Wentz.
Maybe all of those players are just more talented than Wentz. The reality might be that now, Wentz just isn't that good. That is certainly possible when you look at the flaws in Wentz’s game, and right now, it is hard to point to anything he does at a high level, a statement that seemed impossible just a few years ago. Perhaps it wouldn't have ended this way if he didn't suffer multiple injuries, but he did, and now here we are.
The scary part for the Eagles is that while you can certainly point to some questionable roster decisions, the downfall of Wentz has mostly been out of their control. They couldn’t control his health. They couldn’t project Nick Foles winning the Super Bowl. They couldn’t stop the snowball impact it had. They were somewhat helpless in watching their sure thing become the highest-paid backup in the NFL.
The best thing the Eagles can do is pick the best quarterback right now and hope it works out. Right now, Hurts is a better quarterback than Wentz is. Will he be in two years? Who knows. That will depend on if he can stay healthy, and if he does suffer an injury, can he avoid another one. It will depend on what happens around him. It could even depend on who is behind him.
Wentz’s road to success once seemed so clear. Then, it quickly became anything but, and given his past, the path ahead for Wentz certainly seems a lot tougher and a lot more complicated than Hurts’ path does.
Maybe the decision for the Eagles should be that simple. Hurts has less baggage, fewer injuries and a smaller salary. Take your chance with the healthy, younger player, cross your fingers, and see what happens.
Whatever decision the Eagles make, however, there is only one thing we can be sure of — we won’t know if their solution to a complicated problem was the right one for years to come.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
