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Why was Pederson so muted in his praise for Hurts?


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https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/why-was-doug-pederson-so-muted-his-praise-jalen-hurts

Why was Pederson so muted in his praise for Hurts?

Rueben Frank

Here’s Doug Pederson after Carson Wentz beat the Browns in his first career start: "For him to have that kind of poise in the pocket for his first start and only having about four series throughout the entire preseason, you just can’t teach that.”

Here’s Doug Pederson after Jalen Hurts beat the Saints in his first career start: "It took everybody in uniform to win this game, not just one guy, and I'm  going to repeat myself again that it takes a village to get this stuff done. Jalen was a part of it, yes, but it took a team effort to win, honestly.”

Doug on Wentz after the Browns game in 2016: "The poise was tremendous and that’s just who he is.”

Doug on Hurts Sunday: "He obviously was a part of the win, but my hat’s off to a lot of guys in this football game.”

Doug in 2016: "Those are things you see from more veteran type of quarterbacks.”

Doug Sunday: "I thought overall there were some good things and he kind of gave us the spark as a team that I was looking for and we were looking for as a team, but this win today was not about one guy. This win is about this team and how resilient this team is.”

Time and time again Sunday night, Pederson went out of his way to avoid praising Hurts and it reached the point of absurdity when he declined to even name Hurts as the Eagles’ starter for next Sunday against Arizona.

"You know, I’m going to enjoy this one, I’m going to go home, relax, be with my family tonight and enjoy this win and get ready for the week,” he said.

Hurts completed 17 of 30 passes for 167 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and ran for 106 yards against the NFL’s top-ranked defense, ending the Saints’ nine-game winning streak, ending the Eagles’ four-game losing streak and becoming the first QB in 45 years to end a team’s nine-game winning streak in his first career start.

But literally every time Pederson was asked about Hurts, he deflected the question and instead spoke about the defense, the offensive line or overcoming injuries.

It got so weird Pederson was even asked why he was so reluctant to say anything nice about Hurts and whether he was because he had to take into consideration Wentz.

"Um, I have to take into consideration the entire football team,” he said. "Jalen played well, obviously we won the game, but you know there’s a lot of good performances out there tonight.”

Hurts' numbers weren't mind-blowing, but his pocket presence, command of the huddle, playmaking and big plays at big moments were a stark contrast to the way Wentz has played lately.

The 24 points are the most the Eagles have scored in their last seven games and the most the Saints have allowed in their last eight games.

Why did Pederson go out of his way to show he wasn’t impressed with Hurts?

Maybe he’s concerned about Wentz’s feelings and doesn’t want to come across as too complimentary about his replacement. Although it’s hard to imagine any NFL quarterback is that sensitive.

Maybe he wants to make sure Hurts doesn’t get too full of himself. Although Hurts hardly seems to be the kind of athlete who would do that.

Maybe it’s just more Doug being contrary just for the sake of being contrary, which he likes to do from time to time to try and keep people guessing what he really thinks.

Who knows.

But when you compare the way he spoke about Wentz four years ago with the way he spoke about Hurts on Sunday, the difference is clear.

Trying to figure out exactly why isn’t clear at all.

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The pandering to Wentz is absolutely pathetic and I think a lot of fans are getting sick of it. In fact there's a case to say this babying of him is actually now turning more fans against him.

I mean before the game on Sunday Doug was talking about how it is difficult to prepare Hurts whilst making sure Carson doesn't withdraw. 

Carson is one of the leaders. He's one of the captains I believe. He's paid a fortune and he is one of the more senior players. This year his performances have been unacceptable and if other players were putting in those kind of performances (which they were) then I'm sure Wentz would want them to be benched once it was clear they weren't turning things around. 

Hurts was very good on Sunday. Was he great? No. But he showed poise, he showed maturity, he was decisive and he led this offense on some really good drives. And he gave this team a spark. So why so reserved in his praise? Why not announce him as the starter for next week? Everyone with a brain and eyes knows that was the decision that was going to be made. 

Is Doug so tied to Wentz that if Hurts succeeds then Doug is gone?

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Hurts play was average this past sunday.  But in comparison to how wentz has struggled, it made it seem even better.

Yes, Hurts was just average sunday.......when a QB runs for over 100 yards,  it's probably because he wasn't seeing his receivers or keeping his eyes downfield.  So he used his athleticism to his advantage, which is a good thing as he plays and learns more and more.  He .gave the O-line a break by making quicker decisions than Wentz and making the Saints account for his mobility.

BUt is also shows what the team was capable of with a QB who was just playing at an average level.  And the experience of his first game will help him with his development. Plus his self confidence inspired the whole team.

The NFL is a passing league and Hurts needs to show a lot more in the passing game as he progresses.

But again, pretty typical of philly fans and media to blow this out of proportion.  All the things being said about Hurts was said about Wentz not too long ago.....

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Doug either:

  • didn't want to hurt Wentz's feelings (perhaps knowing Wentz is a bit fragile and probably not taking the benching as well as he is letting on publicly, not wanting to pour salt on the wound)
  • favors Wentz and perhaps even prefers to continue playing him but is being directed from above to play Hurts
  • doesn't want too much praise potentially going to Hurts' head (possibly so he stays humble, or doesn't get unrealistic expectations of having a strong hold on the starting QB spot (in the event he has his own struggles and Doug goes back to Wentz), or so that he continues to work as hard as he possibly can to get better, etc.
  • knows the starting QB spot still belongs to Wentz (perhaps due to cap and draft status), that he is only sitting out temporarily in an effort to get his head straight (and wants to avoid putting Hurts in a position to feel let down when Wentz is inserted into the starting lineup again)

Regarding the first (and last point), in 2016, Wentz only had Chase Daniel to fend off for that starting QB spot.  Everyone knew, after all they gave up to get him, that Wentz would be the starting QB.  So all that praise then could have been to help him build confidence and there were no concerns over how Daniel would handle that.  

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10 hours ago, birdman#12 said:

Hurts play was average this past sunday.  But in comparison to how wentz has struggled, it made it seem even better.

Yes, Hurst was just average sunday.......when a QB runs for over 100 yards,  it's probably because he wasn't seeing his receivers or keeping his eyes downfield.  So he used his athleticism to his advantage, which is a good thing as he plays and learns more and more.  He .gave the O-line a break by making quicker decisions than Wentz and making the Saints account for his mobility.

BUt is also shows what the team was capable of with a QB who was just playing at an average level.  And the experience of his first game will help him with his development. Plus his self confidence inspired the whole team.

The NFL is a passing league and Hurts needs to show a lot more in the passing game as he progresses.

But again, pretty typical of philly fans and media to blow this out of proportion.  All the things being said about Hurts was said about Wentz not too long ago.....

I mean we do have to cut Hurts a little slack here - it was his first start, where he is replacing the franchise QB not because of injury but because of performance, with a busted OLine against the best defense in the league.

Having an average day was massive considering the circumstances.

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4 hours ago, pallidrone said:

I mean we do have to cut Hurts a little slack here - it was his first start, where he is replacing the franchise QB not because of injury but because of performance, with a busted OLine against the best defense in the league.

Having an average day was massive considering the circumstances.

No doubt, but I was trying to comment on the overreaction of fans and media about Hurts performance.  Hurts did what he had to do, and began his pro development.....I wasn't trying to belittle what he did.....

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Perhaps the events of this season and the reported unhappiness of Doug has simply just sucked the life out of Doug. 
 

It’s also been said that Wentz is uncoachable, doesn’t like to run certain plays, and even has the green light to go above Doug’s head, so it doesn’t make much sense that Doug’s replies are to protect Wentz. 
 

There is really a vast difference between Doug on opening day of 2016, and Doug in week 14 2020. 

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On 12/16/2020 at 6:19 AM, EagleJoe8 said:

Perhaps the events of this season and the reported unhappiness of Doug has simply just sucked the life out of Doug. 
 

It’s also been said that Wentz is uncoachable, doesn’t like to run certain plays, and even has the green light to go above Doug’s head, so it doesn’t make much sense that Doug’s replies are to protect Wentz. 
 

There is really a vast difference between Doug on opening day of 2016, and Doug in week 14 2020. 

Yup and part of it is that the expectations placed on him are off the charts. There's a heavy weight that goes along with those.

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3 minutes ago, PoconoDon said:

Yup and part of it is that the expectations placed on him are off the charts. There's a heavy weight that goes along with those.

Certainly, and then add in the frustrations of Howie meddling as has been reported. Like I've said, Doug is not without his own warts, but the situation on this team just seems to be a mess top to bottom.

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1 hour ago, EagleJoe8 said:

Certainly, and then add in the frustrations of Howie meddling as has been reported. Like I've said, Doug is not without his own warts, but the situation on this team just seems to be a mess top to bottom.

Without doubt. There have been many issues with this team this year as is the way when a team plays like a bottom 5 team. It isn't any one person or any one single issue. 

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On 12/17/2020 at 4:42 PM, nipples said:

Doesn’t want to hurt Wentz feelings. 

If the alleged rift is true though, why would Doug care?

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