PHILADELPHIA — Where it began, singer Neil Diamond would say, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts cannot begin to knowing.
But Hurts suspects he came to the realization that winning, rather than statistics and performance, is what’s truly fulfilling by, well …
“Losing,” Hurts said. “I think it’s as simple as that. You come up short, you learn from it, and you ask yourself what’s more important.”
Hurts hasn’t done a lot of losing lately. Since the start of the 2021 season his 25-8 record and 75.7 win percentage in the regular season are the best in the league. Better than reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes (27-9) and annual MVP candidate Josh Allen (25-10), who are next at 75 percent, and who Hurts will face this season.
The Eagles are 21-1 with Hurts behind center since late in the 2021 season. One of just three unbeaten teams left in the NFL this season, the Eagles are heavy favorites to make it 22 of 23 Sunday when they oppose the Washington Commanders (2-1) at a forecasted sunny, 77-degreee Lincoln Financial Field.
The good times never seemed so good, right?
The only controversy involving Hurts and the Eagles right now is about the Tush Push, the Brotherly Shove or whatever you want to call the rugby-style short-yardage run with everyone in tight except for a couple of trailing players who help push the quarterback to the first down. Not as entertaining or as popular as Taylor Swift’s flirtation with Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs, but trendy.
Everyone is weighing in on it, and a lot of the opinions are negative on what remains a legal play.
“I have no thoughts on it,” Hurts said. “We’re the only ones doing it as well as we are.”
Eagles offensive coordinator Brian Johnson likened the success of the push to the days when Tom Brady was converting first downs on sneaks for the New England Patriots.
“At one point of my career, the play was called ‘Brady,’” Johnson said. “When we were at Florida, we used to call the quarterback sneak ‘Brady’ because we saw him do it a bunch.”
This week the Eagles face a more conventional defense that hasn’t blitzed nearly as much as its first three opponents. The New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings pressured Hurts the most. It showed on the scoreboard, the Eagles hanging on for five- and six-point victories.
“I’d say the first three weeks have probably been the most exotic with the coaches, the schemes that other teams have,” Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert said. “Watching film this week it seems like we’re going to know when they’re in certain personnel, what fronts they’re going to play, what coverages they’re going to play, when they’re going to change personnel. We’re aware of certain things that they do with the back. So, going forward we’ll probably see more defenses that are just routine in the NFL, not the exotic stuff that we have been seeing.”
To Hurts, all the looks have been “beneficial,” a big-picture point of view that should serve him well down the homestretch. He views the first three challenges as learning tools.
“We want to execute,” Hurts said. “It’s about execution and what you do, so you get different looks, you see different schemes and play against guys with different philosophies, and you learn from those things. You learn from the good, you learn from the bad and you grow and move forward with it. I think that’s the beauty of experience.”
Aside from the 3-0 record that Hurts shares with former Alabama teammate Tua Tagovailoa of Miami and Brock Purdy of San Francisco, Hurts’ numbers are anything but eye-popping.
Hurts’ 84.5 passer rating ranks 21st, below both unbeaten QBs as well as former backup Gardner Minshew’s 91.3 in two stars for Indianapolis. Three touchdown passes and three interceptions aren’t much for Hurts to brag about.
Hurts’ 67.7 percent completion percentage is 10th in the league. And while he’s been getting blitzed, he’s thrown for 5.5 yards per attempt, which ranks sixth according to Edge Remarkable stats.
Enter the Commanders, who have allowed 4.9 yards per dropback when the opposing quarterback was pressured this season. That figure is fifth worst in the league.
“I think they’re fast,” Hurts said. “Obviously, the front seven, the D-line they have, is very disruptive there. I think their DBs are really good. They play the ball well and track the ball well. It’s a familiar opponent obviously but a great team that has given us challenges in the past, so we have to be ready to execute.”
Source: Berkshire mont