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It’s hard to be a pass rusher when refs are letting the laundry fly at the slightest hint of contact. The NFL mandated that quarterbacks be protected and the zebras responded by calling some dubious roughing-the-passer penalties in Week 5.
Two extremely questionable calls — one on Kansas City’s Chris Jones, the other on Atlanta’s Grady Jarrett — have been major points of contention in recent days. Hall of Famer Troy Aikman begged the Competition Committee to “take the dresses off.”
Yes, everyone has an opinion these days. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts weighed in on the brewing controversy, although he predictably gave a vanilla answer. He’ll trust the refs to do their jobs.
“I think there’s a balance with it,” Hurts told reporters. “Obviously I want to be protected back there, but those are things that I really can’t control. So I kind of just let them do their job.”
Hurts is always in the cross-hairs as a dual-threat playmaker. He’s itching to break free from jail when the pocket collapses, sometimes accidentally forcing him into a sack. He has taken 11 sacks, tied for seventh-most among quarterbacks. But Hurts’ ability to break contain has also resulted in 266 rushing yards with six ground scores.
“Whatever it takes,” Hurts said. “Whatever it takes.”
Red Zone Sucess: Passing vs. Rushing
The Eagles have done a stellar job of converting red-zone possessions into touchdowns. They rank No. 8 in the league in that department, with Hurts turning 24 carries into 62 yards and 5 rushing touchdowns. The team has been unstoppable on quarterback sneaks in the red zone, including a 53.3% success rate.
“We run quarterback sneaks really well,” Hurts said. “It’s a testament to the guys up front and I kind of just follow their lead.”
However, Philadelphia has struggled to throw the ball down there: Hurts is 8-of-20 for 47 yards and 2 scores while posting a 40% success rate in the red zone.
“I like where we are in the red zone,” head coach Nick Sirianni said. “You want to score touchdowns every single time you get down in there, but the reality is that’s probably not going to [happen]. I think we’re a little short of what our goal is [down there].”
Everything is a Journey, Keep Climbing
Sirianni relayed a quote he heard from a Cardinals defender talking about how he knew when Hurts was going to run versus pass. The Eagles quarterback is going to throw it every time he rolls right; vice versa, he’s looking to run it every time he rolls left. That’s an interesting tell if true. Sirianni’s film review didn’t uncover the same thing.
“I don’t think that’s true,” Sirianni said. “I actually see him growing there, that he’s breaking out of the pocket and he’s making plays with both his feet and his arm to the right or the left.”
Hurts is just trying to make plays and “trying to climb” every day. His even-keeled mentality won’t allow for too many highs or too many lows.
“We can’t get caught up in anything but the process,” Hurts said. “And that’s what matters the most. Taking it day by day, trying to climb every day, and just winning the day. That’s the mentality that I have and I think that’s the mentality we have as a team.”
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