Posted July 12, 20223 yr What does Jalen Hurts have to do in 2022 to be the Eagles' quarterback in 2023? BY JIMMY KEMPSKI PhillyVoice Staff NATHAN RAY SEEBECK/USA TODAY SPORTS Jalen Hurts The question in our headline above is one that I get with high frequency, and it's not an easy thing to answer. Typically, the person asking is looking for some statistical benchmark, like 4000 yards, or TD:INT ratio. Quarterback evaluation can often be subjective. Carson Wentz, for example, threw 27 TDs vs. 7 INTs a season ago, and yet, the Colts couldn't wait to ship him out of town, and rightfully so. He was nowhere near as effective as that TD:INT ratio might indicate. There probably isn't a hard and fast statistical benchmark that should measure Hurts' 2022 season. He could fall short of such a benchmark and still have proven that he's "the guy" going forward. He could also hit some predetermined benchmark, but the eye test will show that his numbers were misleading. We'll make the obligatory mention that Hurts has intriguing traits, like the ability to make plays with his legs, and other intangibles, such as toughness, intelligence, and leadership skills. On the downside, his general throwing ability has left much to be desired through his first two seasons, particularly in the accuracy department, and his ability to quickly cycle through his reads and fearlessly pull the trigger instead of holding onto the ball. There. Mentioned. But let's do this a different way, for now. A few weeks ago, I was listening to the "Around the NFL" podcast with Gregg Rosenthal, Dan Hanzus, Marc Sessler, and guest Patrick Claybon, who were trying to come up with a new NFL quarterback "Prime Meridian" to replace Andy Dalton. Huh? What does that mean? The late, great Chris Wesseling created the "Dalton Scale," which he described as the following: "Andy Dalton is the 'Prime Meridian' of NFL quarterbacks. He represents quarterback purgatory. If you are ranked below Andy Dalton, your franchise needs a quarterback. If you're ranked above Andy Dalton, you're in ship-shape, everything is figured out, you're good to go." To note, Wesseling said this when Dalton was still a starting quarterback a few years ago, and so, the boys on the Around the NFL podcast sought out to name a new quarterback to replace Dalton as the Prime Meridian. I should note that the Prime Meridian is not necessarily the 16th or 17th best quarterback in the league, cutting the NFL's starters in half. The Prime Meridian can fall anywhere. If he's 10th, then there are only nine teams that don't need to be hunting for a new quarterback. If he's 20th, then the league has its fair share of quality quarterbacks. Got that? Anyway, it was a fun premise for a podcast episode, and I thought it would be fun to play along as a way of answering the question of what Hurts needs to do in 2022 to keep his job in 2023. For the record, Rosenthal, Hanzus, Sessler, and Claybon all landed on different quarterbacks as their Prime Meridian. You can listen to their full conversation here: To start this exercise off, I think we should first rank the NFL's quarterbacks. If we're looking solely at who I would want specifically in 2022, with no regard for growth potential in 2023 and beyond (and ignoring contract considerations), my list would go something like this, submitted without analysis: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs Josh Allen, Bills Tom Brady, Buccaneers Aaron Rodgers, Packers Justin Herbert, Chargers Joe Burrow, Bengals Russell Wilson, Broncos Lamar Jackson, Ravens Matthew Stafford, Rams Dak Prescott, Cowboys: MALKOVICH MERIDIAN Derek Carr, Raiders: Kyler Murray, Cardinals Mac Jones, Patri*ts Kirk Cousins, Vikings: PRIME MERIDIAN Jalen Hurts, Eagles Ryan Tannehill, Titans Matt Ryan, Colts Jimmy Garoppolo, 49ers* Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins Jameis Winston, Saints Daniel Jones, Giants Carson Wentz, Commanders Jared Goff, Lions Davis Mills, Texans Trey Lance, 49ers* Justin Fields, Bears Marcus Mariota, Falcons Zach Wilson, Jets Drew Lock, Seahawks Mitchell Trubisky, Steelers Sam Darnold, Panthers Deshaun Watson, Browns I landed on Kirk Cousins as my "Prime Meridian." He always has good stats, and if he's your quarterback you're going to get (mostly) competent play and win some games, but unless you have an absolutely stacked roster around him he's never really going to be a threat to win a Super Bowl because he doesn't have any elite skills and he tends to come up small in big games. He's the closest player to "quarterback purgatory" in the NFL, in my opinion. I currently have Hurts just below the Prime Meridian, and, well, so do the Eagles, since they unsuccessfully tried to trade for Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson this offseason. In my estimation, Hurts has to be better in 2022 than what Kirk Cousins represents as of this publish date. And even then, if an opportunity to land a much better quarterback arises next offseason, the Eagles should probably jump at that opportunity. In other words, passing the Prime Meridian merely gives Hurts the chance of keeping his job in 2023, while anything short of that should result in a full-on effort to upgrade at quarterback. You may have also noticed that I included a "Malkovich Meridian" above. What's that? Well, Hurts will be eligible for a contract extension in 2023. Merely passing the Prime Meridian wouldn't be enough to sign him to a long-term contract, sealing a marriage to him for the foreseeable future. He would need to pass the Malkovich Meridian to even begin those negotiations. Why call it the Malkovich Meridian? Well... If Hurts proves to be a bona fide top 10 type of quarterback at or beyond the level of a Dak Prescott, for example, go ahead and seal that marriage. If not, the Eagles should continue to keep their options open. https://www.phillyvoice.com/what-does-jalen-hurts-have-to-do-in-2022-eagles-quarterback-2023/
July 13, 20223 yr Look , he has to beat a couple teams with winning records in the regular season and a playoff game plus show some improvement in reading defenses to keep the job.
July 13, 20223 yr I think QB's in a certain developmental stage don't really count in the rankings. Wilson, Lawrence, Fields absolute rankings do not count. Hurts and Tua are borderline...still early, but also worth keeping in mind that 2 players from their draft class have already secured their status. Anyone with 3 years under their belt in the league...they've earned a spot in the rankings. Dak is the perfect meridian QB, IMO. He's very good and statistically excellent, but he is not truly elite and has won nothing. If you are better than him, you are a franchise QB. If you are worse, you definitely aren't good enough. Daniel Jones over Wentz is a bit silly.
July 13, 20223 yr You would need to ask Howie and Lurie. And they won't tell you. They would be stupid to commit to any criteria for keeping Hurts at QB. Even if he hits that criteria, they may want to walk away or not extend Hurts. At the end of this year, they will need to make the decision and try to extend Hurts if that's what they want. On a side note, I think Howie is perfectly happy paying a QB very little money while he unscrews the cap money and rebuilds the team. So, I would not be surprised to see the Eagles select a QB in the draft and play out Hurts on the last year of his deal in 2023. I also would not be surprised if Howie trades Minshew midseason in 2022 and trades Hurts before the draft/start of next year and we see Carson Strong as the starter in 2023. Trade deadline this year is Tuesday, Nov 1, 2022, following Week 8 on the schedule.
July 15, 20223 yr If he has a 68% completion percentage, throws 2 1/2 X more td's than interceptions, and averages 230 yeards per game, keep him.
July 15, 20223 yr 40 minutes ago, Rob331 said: If he has a 68% completion percentage, throws 2 1/2 X more td's than interceptions, and averages 230 yeards per game, keep him. I want to see 69-71% range, a 3 to 1 ratio on TD to Int's, and about 280 yds per game. The long term Eagles QB can't top out at a little above average, he has to be markedly better than that.
July 16, 20223 yr So our win loss record will of course matter. And I think winning a play off game would seal the deal for Hurts. But it has to come down to the eye test. He's got to improve on last year and he's got to show he can win games for this team. Last year I think the team won with him. He played well at times but the run game was the key. This year I think he's got to show he can win games, he can outduel a really good QB.
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