Jalen Hurts has a calculated response to everything, including questions about his physical appearance. So when a reporter commented that he looked “thinner,” the chiseled starting quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles smirked.
Hurts is still walking around with 222 pounds of lean muscle. And the confidence to match it. Hurts wouldn’t admit to dropping any weight this offseason, saying: “I guess, I’ll let you tell it.” Then, out of nowhere, added: “I’m still cockstrong, though.”
Now before anyone’s mind goes into the gutter, let’s define what Hurts meant. Cockstrong is a slang term used to describe a person who is “self-assured,” not cocky but confident. There was nothing sexual about his choice of words.
Eagles OC Shane Steichen says the work Jalen Hurts has put in this offseason is already showing up. “He doesn’t have an offseason.”
Hurts went on to detail how he attacked the offseason by heading out to California.
“This offseason I did something I’ve never done before, you know what I’m saying,” Hurts told reporters on Friday. “I went to Cali and I worked out out there. I got some good work out there. And I talked about how I was still in the front part of my career so I’m still trying to figure out what my offseason looks like.
“Where do I want to train? What does that look like? Where am I going to be? I think that that’s something over time that I’ll find on my own and as the years go on, I’ll simply kind of figure that out myself.”
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Hurts Addresses Gun Violence Epidemic
The Eagles took a strong stand against gun violence as a team on Friday by sporting orange jerseys on the practice field. They were supporting the Wear Orange movement while commemorating all the survivors and victims impacted by the gun violence epidemic gripping the United States.
#Eagles players will wear orange practice shirts today to honor survivors and those who have fallen victim to gun violence. It’s part of the #WearOrange movement (@Everytown); observed every year in June it honors the more than 110 lives cut short and hundreds more wounded.
Hurts voiced his personal angst over the situation to start his press conference. He’s sick and tired of seeing innocent people gunned down, especially in this new wave of killings happening in schools, hospitals, and grocery stores.
“Fear doesn’t belong in those places,” Hurts said, “and me sitting here as a big brother, a big cousin … I can’t even imagine my little cousins not coming home from school, my little sister not coming to from school, my dad not coming home from work. You see what we’re doing here at the Eagles trying to bring awareness to it and it’s a real thing.
“Everybody sitting here may have kids or someone they love, and it all matters, whether that be spreading love, appreciating what you have, but ultimately getting this artillery off the streets and making true change, and that’s something we urge in all our communities in the community of Philadelphia. It’s gotta change.”
“Whether it’s a grocery store, hospital, or elementary school, fear doesn’t belong in those places.” – @JalenHurts
Darius Slay Speaks on Hurts’ Increased Maturity
Hurts was a leader from the day he set foot in the Eagles’ locker room. Perhaps that rubbed outgoing quarterback Carson Wentz the wrong way. It doesn’t matter now. Either way, Hurts continues to unify his teammates around him with his playmaking ability on the field and his maturity off it.
“All I see is he’s growing into a mature leader,” cornerback Darius Slay said of his growth. “Each and every day, he’s been a leader already, he’s just getting better at doing it. He knows what he messed up in last year, what he has to get better in, and I think he’s doing that very well.”
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Eagles QB Jalen Hurts Reveals Training Secret: ‘I’m Still Cockstrong’