User:Brandynf/Jalen Hurts

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Jalen Alexander Hurts (born August 7, 1998) is an American football quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played his first three seasons of college football at Alabama. He was part of the team that won the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship, and used his final year of eligibility at Oklahoma. Selected by the Eagles in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, Hurts replaced Carson Wentz and became their starter near the end of his rookie season. He is currently in his 3rd season with the team and is leading them to an NFL best record of 10-1 (and counting) He has cemented himself in the middle of the MVP conversation.

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The Philadelphia Eagles selected Hurts 53rd overall in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. This move appeared as a head scratcher to every other team as the Eagles had just their then starter Carson Wentz to a 4 year 128 million dollar extension. Sources in Philadelphia also were questioning this pick due to the fact Hurts was deemed a "project quarterback." After originally being named as the third string quarterback behind Nate Sudfeld, he gained the backup position at Week 2, mainly so he could be used for quarterback running plays or as a decoy. On December 6, 2020, Hurts came on in relief of Carson Wentz, who was benched due to ineffective play, against the Green Bay Packers. In this Week 13 matchup, Hurts threw his career first passing touchdown to Greg Ward and finished the game with 109 passing yards with a touchdown and an interception in the 30–16 loss. On December 8, 2020, Hurts was named the starter for their Week 14 game against the New Orleans Saints. In his first NFL start, Hurts completed 17 of 30 passing attempts for 167 passing yards and one touchdown, leading the Eagles to a 24–21 win. Hurts also added 106 rushing yards, totaling 273 all purpose yards. On December 20, 2020, in Week 15 against the Arizona Cardinals, Hurts finished with 338 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, 63 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown in the 26–33 loss. In Week 16 against the Dallas Cowboys, Hurts threw for 342 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and rushed for 69 yards during the 17–37 loss.

Hurts in 2021

In Week 17 against the Washington Football Team on Sunday Night Football, Hurts threw for 72 yards and an interception and rushed for 34 yards and two touchdowns before being benched in favor of Sudfeld during the 14–20 loss. Hurts' benching drew allegations of Eagles head coach Doug Pederson attempting to deliberately lose the game;Pederson was fired shortly afterwards.

Before the start of the regular season, Hurts switched his jersey number to No. 1, which had become available with the departure of punter Cameron Johnston. On August 31, 2021, Hurts was named the starter for the regular season by new head coach Nick Sirianni. In the season opener, on the road against the Atlanta Falcons, Hurts led the Eagles to a 32–6 victory, throwing for three touchdowns and a passer rating of 126.4. Throughout the season talks arose whether Hurts could be the guy or not. Toward mid October and into November he led the team to wins in 3 out of 4 games which put the trade talks aside. During a Week 12 loss to the New York Giants, Hurts suffered an ankle injury which kept him out for the following week's game against the New York Jets. The Eagles won that game 33–18 led by backup quarterback Gardner Minshew. Hurts returned after the bye week in a Week 15 matchup against Washington enroute to a 27–17 victory. Hurts helped lead the Eagles to a playoff berth after defeating the Washington Football Team 20–16 in week 17 and with wins from the San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers later that day. On December 23, 2021, Hurts was named a 2021 Pro Bowl NFC alternate. In the 2021 season, Hurts finished with 3,144 passing yards, 16 passing touchdowns, and nine interceptions to go along with 139 carries for 784 rushing yards and ten rushing touchdowns. He led all quarterbacks in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in the 2021 season.

In the Wild Card Round against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Hurts threw for 258 yards and a touchdown, but fumbled once and threw two interceptions in the 31–15 loss.

2022 Season

Jalen Hurts has arrived as a top quarterback in the NFL. During the 2022 NFL Draft, Philadelphia traded their first round pick to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for star wide receiver AJ Brown. He would be paired with 2021 first round pick and heisman winner, Devonta Smith. With these weapons around him Hurts started the season on fire. Through the first half of the season he is averaging 300 total yards. He has been doing it through the air and on the ground as through 11 weeks of the season he has 597 rushing yards, 8 rushing TDs, 2560 passing yards, 17 passing touchdowns and just 3 interceptions. With these insane numbers, Hurts has placed himself atop the MVP conversation. As if what he is doing is not already great, this past Sunday he set the Eagles record for most rushing yards by a QB in a single game with 157. Hurts has led the Eagles to an NFL best 10-1 record with the Titans being their next game on Sunday December 4th. Look for Hurts and the Eagles to make a deep run into the playoffs with they're all around great team. There is no doubt that Hurts silenced the critics and cemented himself as the guy in Philadelphia for many years to come.