Flattered Hurts shrugs off Dak comparisons
The Dak Prescott comparisons are nothing new for Eagles rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts.
Hurts appreciates the mention with Prescott, who he has known since the injured Cowboys quarterback hosted his recruiting visit to Mississippi State. Both are about the same size and mobile.
But the Texas-grown Hurt thinks there is only a piece of Prescott’s game in his style of play. Upon learning that the Cowboys and head coach Mike McCarthy viewed him as the second coming of Prescott, Hurts politely described who he should be compared to.
Spoiler alert: It’s a group thing.
“I have a lot of respect for Dak coming in and doing the things that he’s done,” Hurts said. “I’m praying for a healthy recovery for him. I’ve always said that Aaron Rodgers, DeShaun Watson, Russell (Wilson), those guys as well, those are all a great group of quarterbacks that I love to watch play. I think there is a balance of probably all four of those guys you could argue. I just try to go out there and be the best version of myself.”
Hurts plans to be a little more specific when the Eagles (4-9-1) oppose the Cowboys (5-9) Sunday at AT&T Stadium, a 3½-hour drive from his hometown near Houston. You can count on his folks being there, as fans are allowed at Cowboys games. That includes his father, who coached him growing up.
“My dad has a different perspective on things now,” Hurts said. “My dad is very happy and excited for me to have come this far. He can honestly care less about anything win, lose or draw because his son is living his dream. He knows what I want to achieve. He knows the goals I have and he’s in full support of those things. I think just generally having a dad like him, a coach and all the different perspectives I can just reach out to him on life, not just ball. The conversations that we have, they are greatly appreciated.”
It doesn’t get any better than that for Hurts, who is 1-1 as a starter an undefeated in fighting off questions about whether he deserves to be the starter over benched veteran Carson Wentz. Drawing on his time at Alabama under coach Nick Saban, Hurts laughed while breaking out the wisdom of his first college coach.
“I try and stay away from the rat poison,” said Hurts, who completed his college
career at Oklahoma. “You’ve got to ask Coach Saban. He knows a little bit about rat poison, too. It’s all external factors. I’ve talked about that a little bit. External factors are no good for us and what we’re trying to do as a team.”