NFL Draft Mailbag: Take a quarterback early or stick with Jalen Hurts?

This week in the Draft Mailbag, we only have one very good question. If you have any inquiries about the NFL Draft relating to the Eagles, shoot them over to BGDMailbag@gmail.com!

“If the Eagles trade Carson Wentz, how much more likely are they to draft a QB? Who would they pick at #6 or would they even possibly trade up for one?” - Anthony

These are the questions at the front of all our minds as we wait for the Carson Wentz trade to finally happen.

In terms of targeting a rookie quarterback, it all depends on what the team thinks of Jalen Hurts, which is something certainly worth weighing in their decision to draft a new signal caller.

From my view, Jalen Hurts has a future as an NFL quarterback. While his rookie season had its ups and downs, there was plenty to be encouraged by. The big sale for me, and likely for the Eagles, are Jalen Hurts’ intangibles. He is clearly loved by the team and it’s obvious in the way the offense responded to him while he was starting. Hurts never seemed daunted by obstacles as a starter: be it his mistakes, the mistakes of his teammates, or the pressure of the defense. That is huge for a young player like Hurts.

Hurts’ arm strength is widely viewed as a limit on his NFL ceiling. While those concerns are valid, there is also plenty of ways Hurts can overcome an average arm in the NFL. Hurts is a smart passer who has limited mistakes going all the way back to college. Becoming very efficient, quick, and accurate with the ball is a clear path for Hurts to win in the NFL as a quarterback. Couple that with his existing athleticism and cool demeanor and you have yourself quite the player.

A final thing for Hurts is that he has improved his whole career. From his freshman year at Alabama to his tremendous final season at Oklahoma, Jalen Hurts took strides in every measurable way when it came to playing the quarterback position. There is no reason to think that trajectory stops after his rookie year in the NFL. He is the youngest quarterback to start games for the Eagles in a long time and it wouldn’t be completely ridiculous if the team wanted to see what he could do with a full offseason as the starter. They could use the haul they get for Wentz to keep building a talented young offense and hope Hurts takes a big step in his second season. If he doesn’t, the Eagles are in a position to get a top quarterback next year.

Of course, the argument for drafting a quarterback high is the quality of this class. Even with Trevor Lawrence as a lock to the Jaguars, the Eagles could get a very good player in Justin Fields, Zach Wilson, or Trey Lance. If the team is sold on any of those guys, Jalen Hurts’ potential is immaterial.

All of this is very hypothetical at the moment. We don’t know what the Wentz trade looks like and the team is bound to make some statements about Jalen Hurts after it happens.

Personally, I think that this quarterback class is too good to pass up on. However, if the team decides to stick with Jalen Hurts for another season and use their ammo to rebuild the offense this spring, it would make total sense.