Getty Quarterback Carson Wentz of the Philadelphia Eagles will take on the Washington Football Team Week 1.
When Carson Wentz walked to the bench last Sunday, no one talked to him or patted him on the helmet. Those non-gestures spoke volumes, per one NFL Insider.
Wentz, of course, has struggled mightily through two weeks as the chorus for backup Jalen Hurts starts to pick up steam in Philadelphia. It’s still closer to elevator music than a heavy metal concert, but it’s getting more audible by the day. ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio recently joined the “Keyshawn, JWill & Zubin” show to add perspective on the situation. His insight was alarming, to say the least.
According to Paolantonio, Wentz walked off the field after throwing that first interception against the Rams to no support from his teammates. No chatter. No conversation. No high fives. The only interaction Wentz had with anyone on the sideline came when he went up to one of his coaches and grabbed his tablet to look at the play.
“That was very telling to me,” Paolantonio said. “There was no patting him on the helmet and saying, ‘Yo dawg, we’re going to get you next time, don’t worry about it, we got your back.’ There was none of that.”
Meanwhile, Hurts did some good things in a decoy role on a very limited set of plays: three to be exact. The second-round pick was elevated to backup quarterback pre-game and it was always the organization’s intention to use him on the field.
Is he strictly a gadget-play specialist? Or the future of the franchise? Keyshawn Johnson asked Paolantonio that exact question and the long-time NFL reporter wasn’t sure. He did offer an “enormous” opinion, though.
Paolantonio said: “You’re asking me, behind center, taking the snaps? Hey Key, that’s an enormous, an enormous admission of a mistake that you made, right? You just gave this guy $100 million-plus … you anointed him the franchise quarterback. A year later, you’re telling your team, you’re telling your organization, you’re telling your fan base, you’re telling the whole world, oops.”
“I can’t be ready to move on from him!”
@keyshawn & @RealJayWilliams debate whether the Eagles should bench Carson Wentz.
Should Philly play Jalen Hurts? #KJZ
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Doug Pederson Continues to Trust Wentz
Doug Pederson continues to pump the brakes on any quarterback controversy talk in Philly. The Eagles are doing their best to fix their broken offense, especially the play under center. It starts with limiting the turnovers. Wentz has lost the football five times (four interceptions, one fumble) over the first two weeks. Unacceptable.
“I don’t think anybody can totally master the sport,” the head coach said. “You’re constantly learning and getting better, and that’s what we’ve got to do and continue to coach that. I just don’t want Carson to feel like he has to make all the plays every single time. I want him to just be Carson and you guys know him, you’ve been around him, you’ve heard him, his demeanor. He wants to do everything right and we’ve given him control to do that, but we just have to continue to work to get better.”
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