Jalen Hurts Continues Making Plays with Arm, Legs
PHILADELPHIA – Another day of training camp, another dandy throw from Jalen Hurts.
On Thursday, in seven-on-seven drills, the rookie quarterback lofted a pass high and deep, from about 40 yards, landing in the arms of rookie receiver John Hightower in the end zone, and with safety Jalen Mills and cornerback Darius Slay in the vicinity.
Mills was asked about the play during a videoconference call after practice. He called it a good pass, but added “he held it kind of long, but it’s seven-on-seven.”
Begrudging praise from the ultra-competitive Mills.
So far, in the four days since phase three of camp began and reporters have been allowed to watch, Mills has done some nice things with his legs, has thrown a touchdown pass in goal line drills off play action, and launched a deep ball down the sideline for a big completion to Hightower.
Hurts has also shown elusiveness in the pocket, and he’s had to do that playing behind an offensive line comprised mainly of third-team blockers who are still learning their way around the pro game.
When Mills was asked about Hurts and how he has looked since the Eagles have been training for the Sept. 13 season opener, Mills was anything but begrudging.
There will be a package of plays this season for Hurts. He is simply too good and too tantalizing of a prospect not to see how he can help the Eagles win games.
“He’s definitely going to cause problems with his legs,” said Mills. “Knowing he played at Alabama, which is a pro-style offense, so you gotta know, in a pro-style offense as a quarterback, he has to know that he can make all the throws. Outside, and in the middle of the field as well. For sure, he’s a guy who’s going to be causing a lot of problems, as far as his legs.
“But you have those situations to where it may be third-and-3 or third-and-5, and the defense has no choice but to go man. Once that’s defended, you gotta watch his feet, but our back is to the quarterback because we’re so locked in on our man. He can scramble four or five yards easy, slide down, and that’s a first down. So that’s definitely a problem when you’re talking about a guy like him.”
The thing about giving Hurts a package of plays is they don’t have to be naked boots or read-option runs. He has the ability to throw the ball, too, so defenses will have to play him honestly rather than load up against him running when he comes into a game.
The Eagles, though, have to trust Hurts to throw the ball, and the staff will likely do that.
“Obviously, the skill set is there,” said head coach Doug Pederson prior to Thursday’s practice. “You can see him with his legs, obviously the ability to escape the pocket, things he did in college, and throws a good ball and all those things. Those are things we've just got to continue to keep working with him on as he grows as a quarterback in our offense.”
Pederson insisted that Nate Sudfeld remains the No. 2 quarterback behind Carson Wentz.
That feels subject to change, and maybe even sooner than anyone thinks, including Pederson.
It would have been interesting to see if that would have already changed by now had there been preseason games this summer.
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