Getty Jalen Hurts walks to the locker room after loss to the Seattle Seahawks
After the Eagles’ 20-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football in Week 15, quarterback Jalen Hurts answered questions at the postgame press conference. Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer was on hand and took away an interesting quote:
“Been talking about execution all year. Been on the same page, everyone been on the same page. We didn’t execute. I don’t think we were committed enough. Just got to turn it around. You know, it’s a challenge that we have to embrace. Just continue to see it through.”
When asked to clarify what “I don’t think we were committed enough” meant, Hurts followed up this line of thought by saying, “Commitment. I don’t know – I don’t have a dictionary on me now. Excuse me. I don’t know how else to say that.”
Eagles’ Offense Hasn’t Performed Well in Second Half, But Neither Has Jalen Hurts
This makes three losses in a row, and the offense has sputtered in each of these games, failing to put up more than 19 points in any of the last three contests.
There’s been plenty of frustration to go around, but calling into question his teammates’ “commitment” to the offensive game plan marks a clear departure from the way Hurts has spoken about the team’s struggles.
Hurts has been annoyed by a left knee injury for most of the season, but was labeled as “questionable” coming into this one due to a bad illness that worsened through the weekend.
It got so concerning Hurts even had to fly separately from the team to Seattle. Media members hoisted the narrative, even likening it to Michael Jordan’s flu game. The table was set for Hurts to be the hero, but instead, fans are turning on the star quarterback.
The comments on McLane’s post ranged from, “Tired of Jalen looking like he is lost sitting on the bench. Why doesn’t he show some emotion, be a leader” to “Nobody wants to hear guy talk anymore.. just go win” to “Jalen is the main one not executing on offense. Poor decision making and playing hero ball too much. Big regression by him this season.”
Philadelphia Has Hit a Rough Patch Since Week 11
Hurts and the Eagles are learning just how quickly a season can sour in the NFL.
After Week 11, Andy Reid called Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai “brilliant” and now it seems he’s defensive coordinator in name only as head coach Nick Sirianni replaced him with Matt Patricia on the sideline calling plays.
Hurts has had his own downturn over this stretch. In this one, he was unable to connect on a passing touchdown. He did run for 82 yards and 2 touchdowns, but overall his stat sheet looked more like that second-round rookie who didn’t show much in the pocket but frantically tried to make plays happen with his feet, amounting to losing football.
Hurts also added 2 interceptions to his total on the year, which positions him fourth in the NFL in interceptions with 12. In 2022, he only had 6 throughout the entire season.
Jalen Hurts Will Need to Be Careful With the Football & His Words
Many fans were especially frustrated with Hurts missing a dump-off pass late in the game. Eagles Nation, a well-known Eagles fan blog, posted a photo of the play showing how wide open running back Kenneth Gainwell was, saying, “Jalen Hurts missed a WIDE open check-down to Kenneth Gainwell on the game-losing interception play. No one in front of him for 20+ yards.”
Jalen Hurts missed a WIDE open check-down to Kenneth Gainwell on the game-losing interception play. No one in front of him for 20+ yards. #Eagles
Ultimately, it’s plays like this that will earn Hurts little sympathy amongst fans and possibly teammates if he’s going to continue to question their “commitment” to executing the offense.
When the Eagles are winning, Hurts’ calm demeanor has come off as a quiet confidence, but if he’s going to remain soft-spoken during a losing streak, he may need to choose the words he does say a little more carefully.
Coach Sirianni and the Eagles have another great chance to right the ship in Week 16 as they play a struggling 5-9 New York Giants team.
Even after this terrible stretch Philadelphia still has the opportunity to go into the playoffs with a 13-4 record at the top of the NFC East if they figure it out and win the remaining games on their schedule.