Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles have lost three consecutive games and are in a rut. And the skid has Dan “Big Cat’ Katz asking a question: is Hurts this generation’s Russell Wilson?
“Hurts is a very good quarterback. Jalen Hurts is just a Russell Wilson 2.0,” Katz said on Tuesday’s edition of “Wake Up Barstool.” “That’s how I’ve thought about him for a while now, where he’s a very good quarterback who needs a good defense … Russell Wilson was a very good quarterback. It’s not saying that Jalen Hurts is bad. It’s okay to say that there are levels to this thing where Jalen Hurts is a very good quarterback. You can win a Super Bowl with Jalen Hurts. He has a set of skills that’s dynamic and very difficult to defend when he comes to running the football, which I think he should do more of. But if you asked me [would I rather have] ‘Jalen Hurts or Josh Allen’ or ‘Jalen Hurts on Patrick Mahomes,’ it isn’t a debate.
“There are just a few guys within the league who can elevate a roster which may not be excellent. Jalen Hurts is an ideal instance of a man who, should you put him on an excellent roster, he can do what must be finished to win a Tremendous Bowl.”
The Seattle Seahawks began Wilson out of the gate in his 2012 rookie marketing campaign, with them going 11-5 and advancing to the NFC divisional spherical. Then, Seattle received Tremendous Bowl XLVIII in 2013 and reached the Tremendous Bowl once more in 2014.
This success got here in opposition to the backdrop of a ferocious protection that featured star defensive backs Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor and Byron Maxwell, defensive ends Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril and linebackers Bobby Wagner and Bruce Irvin, amongst others. The Seahawks have been first within the NFL in opponent factors from 2012-15 and opponent complete yards from 2013-14.
Alternatively, Wilson, who has made 202 profession begins, is fifth in NFL historical past amongst certified quarterbacks with a 99.3 passer score, twelfth with 353 passing touchdowns and sixteenth with 46,966 passing yards. A nine-time Professional Bowler with the Seahawks, Wilson led Seattle to double-digit profitable seasons in eight of 11 seasons, posted a passer score north of 100 in seven seasons and threw for 30-plus touchdowns in 5 seasons. He additionally rushed for 500.7 yards per season from 2012-20.
Since being traded by Seattle following the 2021 season, Wilson has performed for 3 groups. He had a two-year stint with the Denver Broncos (2022-23), which ended with Wilson being benched for the ultimate two video games of 2023 and launched within the offseason. He then had a one-year stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2024), adopted by signing a one-year cope with the New York Giants, who benched Wilson after three video games this season for rookie Jaxson Dart. Wilson’s groups are a mixed 17-27 with him because the beginning quarterback since 2022.
“If you happen to take a look at Russell Wilson’s profession arc, I sort of see the identical factor coming from Jalen Hurts,” Katz stated. “You spend some huge cash on him, you then have to surrender cash to different locations, and you are like, ‘you do it.’ He might need a pair years the place he has to do loads of it, and he is thrilled, however is it profitable soccer? I do not know if it is profitable soccer.”
Hurts, who has been Philadelphia’s main beginning quarterback, barring damage, because the remaining 4 video games of the 2020 common season, has averaged 3,401.5 passing yards, 19.8 passing touchdowns, 8.8 interceptions and a 94.8 passer score per season throughout his 4 full seasons as a starter (2021-24), whereas finishing 65.4% of his passes. Hurts, a two-time Professional Bowler who signed a five-year, $255 million extension with the Eagles after the 2022 season, additionally rushed for 694.8 yards and 13 touchdowns per season over that span.
The Eagles reached the Tremendous Bowl in 2022 with Hurts below middle after which received Tremendous Bowl LIX in 2024, with Hurts incomes MVP honors for his or her 40-22 victory over the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs. Within the common season, Philadelphia’s protection was first within the NFL in opponent complete yards (278.4 per recreation) and second in opponent factors (17.8 per recreation); the Eagles have been additionally second in opponent complete yards after they reached Tremendous Bowl LVII.
This season, Hurts boasts a 96.0 passer score, whereas finishing 64.7% of his passes. In Philadelphia’s Monday night time extra time loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, Hurts threw 4 interceptions.
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