Chris Simms Is Still Stubbornly Hating on Jalen Hurts
Chris Simms has created a reputation for being a Jalen Hurts hater. Throughout his whole MVP-caliber season, and the run to Super Bowl, Chris Simms was being a downer on Jalen Hurts. He said ridiculous things like saying Daniel Jones is as good as Jalen Hurts. No matter how good Jalen Hurts looked, he would be there putting Hurts down. Saying asinine things like that Jalen Hurts is not that good of a thrower.
Pretty much everyone else has acknowledged that Jalen Hurts took a HUGE step and became a great thrower last year. Going into last season, saying he struggled with accuracy or deep balls may have been fair. But that was not the case last year. He was 5th last season in deep ball completion percentage. We saw him deliver so many balls to AJ Brown, in good coverage, to a place where only Brown could make the play. Yes, Brown made great catches. But it was the great throws by Hurts that made those great catches possible.
Well, Chris Simms is at it again. He put out his annual top 40 Qb list. Now Jalen Hurts came in at 7. Which on its surface is fair enough. He put Lamar Jackson and Trevor Lawrence over him, which is crazy. But he still has him as one of the best QBS in the league.
It was what he said about Hurts though that makes him still look foolish. Simms couldn’t help but get a dig in while pretending to praise Hurts.
“There is a reason they were trying to trade for Russell Wilson last year. It is why I had him low last year… He is a great runner… But the throwing is still, yes, there is more meat on the bone. There are still a lot of throws where he misses throws.”
Really Chris? Did you miss the Super Bowl? Or the whole season? Was this throw missed?
DIME CITY from Jalen Hurts to DeVonta Smith for 6️⃣ pic.twitter.com/IO61hIpwB0
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) December 11, 2022
How about this one?
Hurts to Brown for 68 yards! @Eagles
— NFL (@NFL) December 18, 2022
📺: #PHIvsCHI on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/mzMHAEtgdH pic.twitter.com/0mx6FRfFdT
Or this one?
Jalen Hurts leads the NFL this year with 13 - 20+ yard TDs
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) February 13, 2023
AJ Brown’s 45 yard TD is the longest scoring play in an Eagles Super Bowl.
pic.twitter.com/PBZvVE9uRF
That is just the tip of the iceberg. He made throws like that all season long. Maybe you should try actually watching games Chris Simms
Now to Simm’s credit, he did have some good things to say about Hurts. He acknowledged how he is the ultimate baller and a great team leader. Simms also noted that Hurts makes the right decision almost every time. But why is he still sticking to the false narrative that he is inaccurate? We know that is not true. Everyone who watched Hurts play, saw him make these great throws.
No, he doesn’t have Patrick Mahomes’ arm. But no one does. He doesn’t “miss throws” though. There is no tape, or stats, that back that opinion up. The numbers say he is one of the best pocket passers and deep ball passers in the league.
The fact he is praising Hurts, just to keep needling in by saying crap like “he doesn’t have an elite arm” or “can’t make all of the throws,” almost makes it more annoying. He can’t go 3 sentences without reminding us that he doesn’t think Hurts is good at throwing the football.
“His flaw, again, was shown in the Super Bowl. You could play Aaron Rodgers the way the Chiefs played him. Where they just sell out for the run…”
Welp, that seals it. There is zero chance Phil Simm’s son actually watched the Super Bowl. He is acting like Hurts struggled to throw the ball. Meanwhile, he put up one of the best performances from the losing Qb in the Super Bowl ever. He is the youngest QB to have a completion rate of over 70%. The highest QB rating by a QB under 25 in the Super Bowl ever. His 87 pass attempts in the playoffs without an Interception is an Eagles record. He threw for over 300 yards and threw no interceptions in the Super Bowl.
Hurts was elite in that game. Not just as a runner, but as a passer. So what the hell is Phil Simm’s son talking about?
I guess he at least made some progress and acknowledged some of the good things about Hurts. But even though Simms claimed he is not too prideful to admit when he is wrong, that is clearly the case here. We all remember his meltdown when ESPN made fun of his awful take. He acted like a child told he can’t get any candy at the grocery store. A full blown temper tantrum on his own show.
And now he is still sticking to his guns and refusing to admit Hurts is a great thrower. We really shouldn’t be giving this dude attention. But man I can’t help but be annoyed every time the NFL’s most notable case of nepotism opens his mouth.