Expect to see Wentz on the sidelines
It was clear from the moment the Eagles took quarterback Jalen Hurts off the board in the second round of the draft that his NFL journey would begin in a role like that of Taysom Hill, the Inspector Gadget backup who suddenly is 3-0 as a starter for the injured Drew Brees in New Orleans.
No one could have envisioned a Hurts-Hill showdown when the Saints visit Sunday at the Linc. If Brees, who is eligible to come off injured reserve with his cracked ribs, decides his recovery needs another week, then the Hurts-Hill duo could face each other as starters. That’s because the Eagles essentially turned the page on franchise quarterback Carson Wentz, their highest-paid player, on the second series of the second half Sunday, their season slipping away in what became a 30-16 loss to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
While coach Doug Pederson declined to rip the band aid off completely in Green Bay, he almost certainly did on the long flight home. It’s been his idea to play Hurts full-time at quarterback, according to sources, because he’s been alarmed with the regression of Wentz. Pederson has pushed for Hurts the last two weeks.
“You’ve got to let me get through this game,” said Pederson, fighting off the starting question. “I’ve got to get through injuries. I’ve got to get through the tape. There’s a lot of things I’ve got to consider and evaluate before anything’s decided. But look, opportunity arose and like I said we just needed that opportunity to get us back into the football game today and we came up short.”
Just the sight of a healthy Wentz watching from the sideline for the first time in his five-year career was shocking. Speaking of which, he still isn’t satisfied he deserved the demotion.
The Eagles (3-8-1) were comatose with Wentz completing just six of 15 passes for 79 yards. The Eagles scored three points. He was sacked
four times. He also had what looked like a heated argument on the sideline with assistant coach Press Taylor, who according to a report called the plays in the second half of the Eagles’ loss Monday to Seattle.
“I didn’t know what the plan was fully,” Wentz said. “I was just told (Hurts) was going in for the next play and the next series. I didn’t really know what was going on there. Obviously, it’s frustrating. I want to be the guy out there. But it is what it is. They made the call today. At the end of the day, we lost. As a team we lost and for me that’s what I’m most frustrated about.”
Wentz said he hadn’t spoken about his role going forward but is certain he and Pederson will “talk here very soon.”
The Eagles trailed, 203, when Hurts got into the game with 7:39 remaining in the third quarter.
It was one of those games where each series or so, Packers superstar Aaron Rodgers hit another milestone. Two TD passes in the first half made him the first player in league history to throw 35 or more in five seasons.
In the third quarter,
Rodgers became the seventh player in league history to notch 400 TD passes. Davante Adams, who caught 10 passes for 121 yards against a less than 100 percent Darius Slay, took a knee after his second scoring grab and presented the ball to Rodgers in the end zone. They bumped helmets.
Hurts got the call after the latter milestone, and Nate Herbig took over for Jason Peters, who was overmatched at right guard. Pederson gave the news to Wentz.
“I just felt like where we were as an offense, we needed a spark,” Pederson said. “So, I just put Jalen in the game.
“I just said Jalen was going in the next series. Carson was professional on the sideline. He helped Jalen on the sideline. Carson was very supportive. That was it.”
Three plays into the possession, Hurts connected with a diving Jalen Reagor for a 34-yard gain. A long run by Boston Scott was wiped out by a hold on Isaac Seumalo, stalling the 34-yard excursion at the 41-yard line of the Packers. But the foundation had been laid.
Eventually Hurts made a statement on fourthand-18. Rolling away from pressure and out of the pocket, he looped his first NFL touchdown pass to
Greg Ward to cut the deficit to 23-10.
On the next series the defense stopped Rodgers.
Reagor bobbled the ensuing punt, but then streaked 73 yards for a score, getting the Eagles to within 23-16 with 6:30 left in the final frame.
Just like that, an Eagles team that was flatlining had energy on offense, defense and special teams.
“I think you create your own energy,” said Hurts, who completed five of 12 attempts for 109 yards with the TD and one interception. “You know, as great as it was, as great as the spark it was and the energy we had, it’s about moving forward. I’m telling you we’re going to be working our tail off, we’re going to find a way. It comes down to how bad you want it.
“Today Coach gave me the opportunity. With all my heart I had every intention of coming in and getting it done and winning the game but we came up short. That only lights a fire in everybody moving forward. However, the objective in this game is to win so you’ve got to keep pushing. Keep pushing and believe.”
Hurts finished with five rushes for 29 yards. He ran for a couple of first downs when the pocket collapsed. He looked downfield. Most of all, he didn’t panic. Pederson had to see that as well.
“I’ve got to look at the tape and evaluate it but he did some good things,” Pederson said. “He used his legs when he had to. He made a really nice throw to Greg Ward to get us back in this football game. That was the spark to kind of get us back in this football game. But I’ll have to really evaluate the film to see how he played overall.”
For the Eagles, reality arrived when they gave up a 77-yard scoring run to Aaron Jones with 2:36 left. Rodgers, who threw for 295 yards, wasn’t going to let the game slip away. But that run hurt, no pun intended, because a pile of Eagles took turns trying to tackle Jones.
Disappointing as that was, it wasn’t going to tarnish the chance Hurts worked for this season.
“It was an opportunity to go in there,” Hurts said. “Obviously, we came up short. But we’ve got a great opportunity this week moving forward so we’re going to be working really hard to twist this thing around.”