There might not have been a quarterback who took more heat this offseason from the media than Philadelphia Eagles signal-caller Jalen Hurts.
Mainly, it came from an explosive piece by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and Tim McManus that featured multiple sources slamming the star quarterback for calling the four vertical routes on the final offensive play in the playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers, saying he was uncoachable and would change the play calls. Hurts was asked about that ESPN article, and he responded the way Eagles fans expected.
"I've never asked for the opportunity to respond to anything," Hurts said via The Athletic's Zach Berman. "Just let it live and go do my job."
Jalen Hurts took the route Eagles fans thought he would
Hurts has always been one who won't give those kinds of questions the time of day, as he is more focused on what is going on with the team when they are playing. While it would have been out of character for him to answer it honestly, this is how a true leader handles the situation.
Everyone has been questioning him all offseason when he hasn't warranted the kind of doubt the media and fans have given him. He has won over 68% of his career regular season starts, been to three Pro Bowls, taken the Eagles to two Super Bowls, won a Super Bowl title, and was Super Bowl MVP.
The notion that Hurts is not open to change or is coachable is crazy since all he has done over the years is just that. Seven play callers in seven years kind of forces someone to adapt and grow from a situation like that. Hurts talked about his willingness to change as a quarterback.
"I'm always open to growth. I'm always open to improvement. A lot of it is, where do we put our time on task? A lot of it is, what are we exhausting? What are we repping?"
Unfortunately, the noise is not going to go away because he finally answered questions about that article. He is going to have to show that on the field and in front of the public. The good news is that, so far, reports since then indicate Hurts is working well with new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, and they appear to be on the same page.
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Who knows what it will take for people to believe in Hurts again, but a Super Bowl run without his top receiver, A.J. Brown, would help silence those critics.
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