Hurts addresses whispers of locker room friction, refuting claims of player frustration and highlighting his focus on improvement amid Eagles' rocky season.
It’s been a rocky season for the defending Super Bowl Champions despite an 8-2 record on the year, with reported drama surrounding Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts.
A recent report by Dianna Russini of the Athletic (subscription required) indicated that Eagles players are growing frustrated by Hurts this season, specifically his approach on the field in zone coverage with hesitancy to throw into tight windows.
Hurts, smartly, got out and addressed the alleged dissent directly on Wednesday.
"I'm not surprised by anything,” Hurts said. “This is kind of the nature of the position. But I put my energy and my focus on trying to go out there and do my best and trying to learn, trying to build, trying to take in the things that I can to try and improve."
Here is the full story from Eagles Roundtable writer Matthew Schmidt on Hurts setting the record straight.
It’s a bit surprising, in a way, that Hurts is not surprised by the reports. It might just be leader-speak where he’s shutting down disarray, but it seems a bit different when the issues are coming from players in the locker room versus outside noise.
However, outside of A.J. Brown being a bit more public with his issues this season, no other players in specific were named, and per Tim McManus of ESPN, Hurts hasn’t been approached by anyone regarding the alleged frustrations in the organization.
Philadelphia head coach Nick Sirianni shot down the reports as well, though he didn’t outright say they were false.
"I don't necessarily believe everything that's being written. I just don't," Sirianni said. "I just don't fall into the trap of believing everything you see or read."
It would be a steep fall for the reigning Super Bowl MVP who has completed 66.9% of his passes for 16 touchdowns in the air to one interception – it’s the best touchdown-to-interception ratio in the league. Sure, maybe that’s due to some alleged hesitance, but it’s hard to argue with that level of protecting the football.
He has, however, been limited in the air through six games this season, being held to under 200 passing yards in those contests, including their last two games against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions in which the Eagles scored 26 total points.
But a quarterback isn’t the only reason a team gets to a Super Bowl. Philadelphia’s stout defense helped the team win both contests. Whether the reports are true, false, or somewhere in between, it’s not the best narrative to surround defending champions in Week 12.
A strong offensive outing against NFC East-rival Dallas Cowboys would go a long way to shutting down the noise that’s transpired in Philly.