QB Rankings: Eagles Jalen Hurts Better Than Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson?
On a new countdown, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts finds himself among the best quarterbacks in the NFL. In fact, after finishing runner-up in the NFL MVP race in 2022, Hurts is now ranked above some of the most accomplished names in the the sport.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports unveiled his post-NFL Draft quarterback rankings, and Hurts checked in at No. 3:
"Wear and tear is something to monitor with Hurts because of his physical approach to the ground game, but you simply cannot question this man's will to win, and his seismic leap as a downfield passer in 2022 has him on an MVP course."
Given that Lamar Jackson has been limited to 24 of a possible 34 regular season games over the past two seasons, it's not especially surprising that Hurts has leapfrogged the 2019 NFL MVP. Heck, Aaron Rodgers is 39, coming off a down year and now part of a new team -- Hurts above one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history doesn't feel like a stretch.
The same can be said for who is above Hurts; Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow. You'll be hard pressed to find someone who will objectively tell you that those two don't deserve to be ahead of Hurts.
What's interesting is that at No. 3, Hurts finds himself above both Josh Allen and Justin Herbert, which would have been unthinkable a year ago.
While Herbert is an immensely gifted player, it's not surprising that he's below Hurts. Right or wrong, Hurts has had more team success and his best individual season, 2022, probably tops that of Hebert.
But Allen is a bit more of a gray area. The Buffalo Bills signal caller is arguably the most physically-gifted quarterback in the sport right now. He can throw the ball 80 yards and run you over (perhaps to a fault) on the ground. Unlike Hurts, he hasn't reached a Super Bowl yet, but the AFC is objectively more crowded than the NFC. And like Hurts, Allen has a second-place MVP finish on his resume.
This isn't to take away from Hurts, but Allen -- outside of Stefon Diggs -- doesn't have the same type of supporting cast to work with. The Eagles have a deeper group of pass catchers, a better mix of running backs and clearly the superior offensive line. So Allen might have a legitimate gripe with being ranked at No. 4. If anything, he should be competing with Burrow for the No. 2 spot.
Nonetheless, Hurts deserves a top-five ranking. He's blown away what anyone could have expected when the Eagles used a second-round pick on him in the 2020 NFL Draft. And deservedly so, Hurts was rewarded with a five-year, $255 million extension this offseason, a pact that guarantees him $179 million.
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