2 Often overlooked areas in this Carson Wentz regression
By Joe Walls
Carson Wentz has obviously lost his mobility as well.
Wentz showed incredible touch and poise in the 2017 Super Bowl season after heavy off-season training with renowned quarterback-whisperer Tom House. No, he hasn’t quite been the same since his knee injury, which largely might be a result of hindered mobility. He had made strides in the seasons that have followed, and toward the end of 2019, he started to look more like himself. He definitely isn’t as fast as he used to be though.
That brings us back to the original point. The added weight has obviously affected his return to 2017’s form. He wasn’t anywhere close to being the escape artist he was in seasons prior. He struggled behind a shape-shifting offensive line as he got sacked 50 times, which was good for second-most in the league among quarterbacks who only had 12 starts. What was once a strength was now, all of a sudden, a flaw.
Whether he loses the weight or not, put your money on Wentz making a strong comeback with repetition, repetition, and more repetition. Wentz just needs to go back to the drawing board and recreate that muscle memory. It isn’t impossible. Just ask Ryan Tannehill, who sped out of Miami like there were threats made against him in South Beach.
Forget about Jalen Hurts and the creation of Eagles executive vice president and general manager Howie Roseman’s ‘Quarterback Factory’. A lot of stock has been put into the theory that Carson Wentz was ‘afraid’ of the backup, that Wentz is horrified of having to look over his shoulder. Now, come on! Can he get a little more credit than that?
It wasn’t that long ago that Carson Wentz was a big part of a Super Bowl-winning Season. He led Philly to a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the NFC Playoffs. Not a big deal, right? Nothing against Hurts, but he has a ton of potential and was thrust into a no-win situation. That’s low-hanging fruit though.
Take what the media has said about him with a grain of salt. Veteran players that matter like Fletcher Cox have stood up for him even after he lost his job. I’ll take his word over ‘anonymous sources’.
These aren’t the only reasons for the regression, but both of these are wildly underrated reasons. We all could go on and on about the roster Howie Roseman assembled around Wentz, but that’s more redundant than talking about snowballs being thrown at Santa Clause.