Cooney’s Column: It’s Getting Pretty Hard To Make A Case Against Hurts
By Bob Cooney The debate isn’t over for many, still red hot for others. Like so many things in sports, there is no definitive answer, but it appears to be…
By Bob Cooney
The debate isn’t over for many, still red hot for others. Like so many things in sports, there is no definitive answer, but it appears to be leaning heavily one way.
The Eagles improved to 4-0 yesterday with a rain-soaked 29-21 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, remaining the only team in the league without a loss. They did it with a run-heavy offense. So run-heavy, in fact, that they had twice as many rushes (50) than they did passing attempts (25).
And if you’re looking for an offensive star, it’s easy to focus on running back Miles Sanders, as he went for 134 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown. More importantly, he was reliable, picking up necessary yardage on third downs and kept the chains moving on a day when moving anything against heavy winds was a battle in futility.
And while Sanders was terrific and wide receiver A.J. Brown again was more than steady again with five catches for 95 yards, it was the play of the most debated sports figure in this city that impressed me with his somewhat unimpressive play.
Jalen Hurts didn’t post any eye-popping numbers with 204 passing yards, no passing touchdowns and a horrifically poor decision on a pick-6 in the first quarter. He ran the ball 16 times for just 38 yards. So while you may, understandably, come away with a meh feeling towards the quarterback after yesterday’s performance, I didn’t.
To me, it was yet another way in which Hurts showed he could win a game in the NFL, something he’s done in seven straight regular season games, an NFL best. Yes he basically managed a win Sunday, which is what the day sort of demanded. But think of what it comes on the heel of. Week One was a game in which Hurts had to make the Detroit Lions pay for their man-to-man defense by rushing for 90 yards. The next two wins, over Minnesota and Washington, showed Hurts’ newfound ability to be a pocket quarterback, to the tune of 333 and 340 passing yards.
I said before the season that I’m waiting for this year to play out to make a decision on if he is the franchise quarterback moving forward. And the Eagles have that luxury, also. But even to his staunchest non-believers, it’s getting pretty hard to make a case against Hurts, isn’t it?
Bob CooneyEditor
Bob Cooney has been a part of the Philadelphia sports scene for more years than he wants to admit after 25 years in print media, and now in his seventh year at The Fanatic. Throughout the years, he has covered all sports from the World Series, multiple Final Fours and Regional Finals in men’s college basketball, to the U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club and the 76ers. He takes his sports media knowledge and background to a new level by joining a conversation with the passionate fans of this great city. He writes about the Sixers, Eagles, Flyers, and Phillies for the Fanatic.
