The Philadelphia Eagles were victorious over the New York Jets back in Week 13, with backup quarterback Gardner Minshew sparking the victory while starter Jalen Hurts, who was out with an ankle injury, watched from the sidelines. After the game, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said that Hurts was the team's starter when healthy. Sirianni and the Eagles had to commit to Hurts as their starter publicly for two reasons.
Philadelphia loves a quarterback controversy
The city of Philadelphia has always been in love with the backup quarterback. As ESPN radio host Keyshawn Johnson pointed out, the city has an infatuation with the backup signal-caller that dates all the way back to the days of Koy Detmer.
This infatuation certainly wasn't helped by the events of 2017, when backup Nick Foles led the Eagles to a Super Bowl win after starter Carson Wentz succumbed to a season-ending injury. This scenario, of course, isn't the same.
But it probably takes Eagles fans right back to Foles when they see the lovable Gardner Minshew lead the team to victory. The potential for magic with Minshew is there in the eyes of Philly fans- and not with Jalen Hurts.
And that's why the Eagles had to commit to Hurts publicly. They had to stop the possibility of a quarterback controversy before it even began. Of course, the Philadelphia talk radio shows will make a controversy out of it, but the Eagles couldn't afford to let that spill into the locker room.
That could split a team in half. But that's not the only reason why Philadelphia had to commit to Hurts.
The Eagles couldn't forget what the true purpose of this season was
Ask any Eagles fan if they want to make the playoffs this season. Every single one will tell you yes, obviously. No one wants to watch a losing team.
However, the Eagles knew going into this season that the goal was to develop quarterback Jalen Hurts. After investing a second-round pick in Hurts last year, it wouldn't have made sense for the Eagles to turn away from him after one bad game.
They needed to commit to him publicly and give him the chance to bounce back from his poor start against the New York Giants from a couple of weeks ago. They needed to give Hurts a chance to show what he's really made of.
If the Eagles left the door open to potentially start Gardner Minshew over Hurts, it would essentially rob the latter of that opportunity. Not only that, but it would make their potential decision on Hurts this offseason even harder.
Think about it. If Minshew is starting, how would the Eagles ever get to make a truly sound decision on Hurts as a franchise guy? What if Hurts starts the remainder of the games and plays tremendously? That would allow the Eagles to move into the offseason at least knowing they have a quarterback to build around.
That's why the Eagles had to commit publicly to Jalen Hurts. It's not just about this year. It's about the future of the Eagles, too.
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