Jalen Hurts has a Jordan brand hat with the words "purpose before opinion" stitched onto the side, which is at least a little ironic, being that the Philadelphia Eagles' quarterback plays in a city that doesn't shy away from voicing its thoughts.
Just a season removed from helping bring home the Eagles' second Lombardi Trophy, Hurts finds himself in the crosshairs of doubters once again. The discourse around the seventh-year signal-caller is interesting, as his name isn't tossed into the ring when people debate the best passers in the game, but he's also one that a lot of other teams wouldn't turn their nose at.
Eagles general manager Howe Roseman recently pushed back on the perception that this is a "make or break" year for Hurts during an appearance on Philadelphia sports radio station WIP.
"No I don't agree with that," Roseman said.
In games that the Eagles have trotted out Hurts as starter since Nick Sirianni took over as head coach in 2021, they're 56-22 in the regular season and 6-4 in the playoffs, winning Super Bowl LIX.
"I think the bottom line for us, in the position we're in, and really for all our fan base, is winning football games," Roseman said. "And all (Hurts) does is win football games. In terms of what Jalen does, he's another guy with a tremendous track record. All he does is go out and play good football. Really excited to have him as our quarterback, excited about this season and what we have going forward, and I know there are a lot of fan bases out there that would love the results we've had with him as our starting quarterback."
Why might Jalen Hurts deserve criticism?
Hurts' stats through the air haven't been steady, and certainly weren't last season, despite looking respectable as a whole. He finished the go-round with 3,224 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and six interceptions. He threw for fewer than 200 yards in nine regular-season games, then again in Philadelphia's 23-19 Wild Card playoff loss to San Francisco.
Having Saquon Barkley in the same backfield helped cover up some of those blemishes, but the offense did lose a very talented weapon in receiver A.J. Brown, who was shipped to New England this offseason and has been reported not to have had the best relationship with Hurts during the latter stages of them being teammates.
On condition of anonymity, some Eagles team sources told ESPN last season that "Hurts has had a hand in the offense becoming calcified." He pushed back on changes to the attack, including ones that would've had him play from under center more often. One team source even knocked Hurts' body language and willingness to be coached.
In April 2023, the Eagles tied themselves to Hurts through the 2028 season, and in a big way. They dished him a five-year, $255 million contract extension that made him the highest-paid player on an annual basis in NFL history. About 22 months later, he rewarded them with a citywide parade.
Now, with the outside noise growing louder, Hurts must prove himself once again.
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