Speaking Wednesday for the final time before the 2021 NFL Draft, neither Eagles general manager Howie Roseman or head coach Nick Sirianni were willing to commit to Jalen Hurts as their starting quarterback for the upcoming season.
"To name any starters at this particular time.. We have been working with these guys for two days," said Sirianni. "My biggest thing is competition. We have talked a little bit about my core values, it's my second core value, it's this team's second core value. Competition is a huge thing and we are going to have competition at every position."
Howie Roseman did not address the Hurts question and deferred to Sirianni on the matter.
Hurts, a second-round pick by the team in the 2020 NFL Draft, started four games last season after the team benched Carson Wentz. He played well in the limited action considering the circumstances, throwing for over 300 yards in two of his starts and consistently making big plays with his legs. Hurts lead the Eagles to their best win of the season in a Week 13 game against the New Orleans Saints, and nearly lead them to a comeback win the following week against the Arizona Cardinals.
Still, the Eagles did their homework on all the quarterbacks in this year’s draft before trading from No. 6 back to No. 12, and reportedly looked into trading up into the top three to (presumably) draft one. While that isn’t a sure sign that they aren’t sold on Hurts, it also doesn’t point to the team being completely committed to him as their guy moving forward.
After trading back it is likely a matter of when, not if, the Eagles eventually commit to Hurts as their starting quarterback. There is almost no chance Joe Flacco wins the job in training camp, and while a trade for another quarterback is possible, the chances are not very high.
Which means unless something unforeseen happens, Hurts is the clear favorite — even if the team won’t come out and say it.
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