A message to Jalen Hurts Haters, a surprising comparison between Jordan Matthews and Devanta Adams in a crazy Sonny Jurgensen stat.
A week into the free agency and a month of drafting, here’s a fresh look at Roob’s Random Offseason Eagles observations.
1. There are people out there who believe that Jalen Hurts, with his unique skill set and peerless work ethic, has a chance to grow into an elite quarterback. Then there are others who believe that Hurts’ problems with accuracy, inconsistency and reliance on running mean that he will never develop into a guy who can consistently lead a team on deep playoff runs. Both are valid opinions. I’m falling somewhere in the middle. But what really irritates me is the “HE CAN’T PLAY” audience. You saw them. You heard them. There’s a significant group of Eagles fans throwing this out whenever Hurts’ name comes up. Usually followed by “LOL.” Does Hurts need to improve its accuracy? Yes. Does he have to learn to throw with more expectation? Sure. Does he need to accelerate his progress? For sure. But “HE CAN’T PLAY?” He can play and that is not up for discussion. The only question is its upside. Jalen Hurts will be in a role in the NFL for a long time. You do not lead a team to the playoffs at 23 years old in your first season as a starter, calculate 26 touchdowns that pass and run and become a Pro Bowl alternative if you “DO NOT PLAY.” Heck, Chase Daniel has had eight touchdowns pass and run combined in his career, and he is entering his 13th NFL season. Hurts is one of nine QBs that led a team to the playoffs 23 years old or younger in a season where they recorded a total of 26 TDs. The others in that group are Dan Marino, Patrick Mahomes, Matt Stafford, Lamar Jackson, Daunte Culpepper, Jared Goff, Peyton Manning, Deshaun Watson and Dak Prescott. Not bad company. What’s his ceiling? Nobody knows. But be careful when you go nonsense like “HE CAN’T PLAY.” Because when you say that, you’re saying more about yourself than you are about Jalen Hurts.
READ: Why Eagles legend Brian Dawkins believes in Jalen Hurts
Dallas Goedert hit 56 passes last year and averaged 14.8 yards per catch. Only six wide receivers made it last year.
The Eagles drafted Jordan Matthews 11 spots ahead of Davante Adams in the 2014 draft. Sounds crazy now, right? Terrible choice, right? But here’s the thing. Three years into his career, Matthews had more catches (225 on 163), yards (2,673 on 1,926) and touchdowns (19 on 16). Adams did not actually pass Matthews into the yards and was caught until his fifth season. But since 2017? Adams has 506-6,195-57, and Matthews sits at 49-615-3 and has been on and off in recent years. Was it a bad design choice? Or did the bad luck cut off Matthews’ career with injuries? Matthews would never have done what Adams did – five straight Pro Bowls, two 1st team all-pro seasons, three 100-catch seasons – but Adams was not an elite WR until his fifth season. It’s just to show you how many factors besides talent determine success in the NFL. Your quarterback, your position coach, your health. Matthews was a good choice. He just wasn’t the right choice.
For those who believe that the Eagles need to attack a free agency by making moves – all moves – remember that it’s not about who makes a day 1 splash, it’s about who makes the smart dealer. We panic every year through this free agency. There is a lot of overpayment in the first days, and there is good value in the next days and weeks and even months. And remember, in the 2017 offseason some of the biggest acquisitions the Eagles made well after the launch of free agency. Free agency started on March 9, 2017, and the Eagles signed Alshon Jeffery, Torrey Smith and Chance Warmack on Day 1. But Chris Long and Patrick Robinson were not out for another 2 ½ weeks, Tim Jernigan was in April, LeGarrette Blount May and Corey Graham in August. Ronald Darby traded in August and Jay Ajayi traded in October. Of all those guys, the only one who did not contribute to a Super Bowl championship was Warmack, one of the day 1 guys. It’s not who’s first. It’s the one in the closet. Especially if you have three 1st-round cherries and five of the first 83 overall cherries. Build through the design and choose and choose value and free agency. If the Eagles do not address their needs in the summer, there will be plenty of time to criticize them. It’s way too early.
5. The only quarterback the Eagles have ever drafted that has had two career seasons with 30 touchdowns and 3,500 passing yards is Sonny Jurgensen.
6. When looking at the Eagles’ potential to build this offseason, do not forget that the draft does not end with the first round. They not only have three 1st round picks, they have their 2nd and 3rd round picks without trade, so they are sitting on 15, 16 and 19 plus they have 51 and 83. Last time they had five of the first. 83 picks was in 1995. The last team with three top-20 picks in 2nd and 3rd round picks? 1991 Cowboys. This design is a unique opportunity for the Eagles.
7. I’m surprised that Derek Barnett is still on the free agent market. I really thought some team would look at his physical characteristics and potential, considering he is only 25 and overpaid despite his lack of production and his five years as an Eagle. But the longer he does not sign, the more his price has to fall. Before the free agency started, Pro Football Focus estimated his price tag at $ 12.5 million a year over three years, but at this point I can not imagine him coming close.
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8. Think for a moment about how crazy Irving Fryar’s 1996 and 1997 seasons were. He had 88 catches for 1,195 yards and 11 TDs at 34 in 1996 and 86-for-1,316 with 6 TDs at 35 in 1997, making the Pro Bowl all his first two years as an Eagle. Fryar had 3,067 yards for the Eagles after his 34th birthday. That’s twice as many yards as any other WR in franchise history combined after her 34th birthday [1,501]. The only other WR with two 1,195-yard seasons after his 34th birthday is another former Eagle, Cris Carter. Fryar’s 1,316 yards in 1996 were mostly 35 years old. He had more seasons with 1,195 yards in his mid-30s than any Eagles WR other than Mike Quick had in his 20s.
9. The movement of Anthony Harris surprised me. I did not expect him back. Harris was not terrible last year, he just did not make many games. But he’s a smart guy, he knows Jonathan Gannon’s defense, he’s generally in the right place and he was willing to take a cap-friendly one-year deal. Harris obviously has a story with Gannon with the Vikings, and you would hope in a second year in his defense Harris would be more active and around the ball more. Increasing fitting pressure would also help all d-cheeks. Not a nice move but a pretty safe one.
10. Long before the 1990s in the Eagles mass exodus under Norman Braman and Rich Kotite there was a very big Eagle who also wanted out because of his coach. That was the great Maxie Baughan, and long before social media, podcasts, and 24-hour sports coverage, he had some nice choice words for the coach he desperately wanted to escape. Baughan was the Eagles’ 2nd. In six seasons with the Eagles, he made five Pro Bowls and all-Pro 1st team once in 2. Baughan played under Buck Shaw in 1960 and Nick Skorich from 1961 to 1963, but in 1964 Joe Kuharich the Skorich was replaced and the franchise quickly declined. By 1965, Baughan had had enough and demanded a trade. The Eagles sent him to the Rams, and early in the 1966 season he spoke to Joe McGinniss of the Inquirer and thanked Kuharich for his departure: “I thought I had a really good year last year. It was. seems the only people who did not think so were the Eagles coaches. They told everyone I had a bad year, but whatever rating system they used, I do not agree with that. I know that “Kuharich has said many things about me, but the only person who hurts him by speaking like that is himself. So let him say whatever he wants. I will say nothing.” Baughan made four more Pro Bowls and 2nd team all-pro four straight years with the Rams. He should be a Hall of Famer. What about Kuharich? He was fired after the 1968 season after going 28-41-1 in five years. He never trained again.
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